News

Elbit Systems Ltd. launched the company’s advanced JUPITER space camera aboard the National Advanced Optical System (NAOS) satellite, supporting a wide span of Earth Observation (EO) missions, including military operations, environmental monitoring and scientific research.

The NAOS satellite, manufactured by OHB Italia S.p.A., was launched on August 26th from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, for the Luxembourg Government’s Directorate of Defense aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

JUPITER, developed by Elbit Systems ISTAR&EW – ELOP, is one of the world’s most advanced space cameras, featuring a very large aperture and an exceptionally lightweight design. The camera is multispectral, offering a combination of imaging channels:

• A high-resolution panchromatic channel (black and white), which captures fine spatial details across the full visible spectrum.

• RGB channels (red, green, blue) for true-color imaging.

• A NIR channel (Near-Infrared), which enables analysis of vegetation health, water content, and material properties.

These channels are ideal for advanced image fusion and analysis. JUPITER is capable of capturing continuous long image strips with a swath, allowing efficient coverage of large geographic areas in a single orbital overpass.

The data generated by the JUPITER camera is designed for seamless integration with onboard systems and ground station analytics platforms. Its compatibility with advanced image processing and AI engines enables the extraction of actionable insights, supporting informed decision-making across a wide range of applications.

In addition to the camera, Elbit Systems developed and supplied advanced algorithms to support the ground segment of the NAOS mission, enhancing image analysis capabilities.

This achievement is the result of a close collaboration between OHB Italia and Elbit Systems, combining satellite engineering excellence with top-tier imaging technology to deliver one of the highest-performing spaceborne optical systems in the world.

A partnership between TI (Texas Instruments) and SAC-ISRO helped enable the mission payloads for the NISAR satellite, which is currently orbiting Earth.

TI’s space-grade power management, mixed signal and analog technologies optimize system performance and allow the satellite to operate in the harsh environment of space over the mission’s lifetime. NISAR is the first satellite to use dual-band, synthetic aperture radar technology to monitor the Earth’s ecosystems, natural hazards and climate patterns.

Texas Instruments (TI) semiconductors are enabling the radar imaging and scientific exploration payloads for the NASA-Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) synthetic aperture radar (NISAR) satellite, which was recently launched into orbit. The launch of the satellite culminates a decade-long partnership between TI and the ISRO to optimize the performance of the electronic systems responsible for this Earth-observation mission. NISAR is equipped with TI’s radiation-hardened and radiation-tolerant products that enable designers to maximize power density, precision and performance in their satellite systems.

The ISRO describes NISAR as the first EO mission to use dual-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) technology, enabling the system to capture precise, high-resolution images during the day, night and all weather conditions. TI’s technology is enabling the satellite’s next-generation capabilities through efficient power management, high-speed data transfer, and precise signal sampling and timing.

The NISAR satellite will image the entire planet every 12 days, offering scientists greater understanding of changes to Earth’s ecosystems, ice mass, vegetation biomass, sea-level rise and groundwater levels. The agencies also expect the data to improve real-time monitoring of natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and landslides.

Throughout the project life cycle, TI’s system expertise and space-grade semiconductors, which are designed to withstand the harshest space environments, helped enable the advanced S-band SAR capabilities of the NISAR mission. The company provided:

Radiation-hardened power management die for SAC-ISRO developed point-of-load hybrid power module, helping optimize size, weight and power for the mission payloads. Analog-to-digital converters with ultra-high sampling rates and high resolution, allowing the satellite payload to generate fine-grained, high resolution radar imagery. High-performance interface technology, which enables high-speed data transfer between different satellite subsystems to ensure reliable communication. A clocking solution that enables the precise time alignment and synchronous, coherent sampling required for high-precision SAR systems.

From selecting the correct products to ensuring consistent support across development cycles, TI’s technical expertise helped us navigate complex payload requirements,” said Shri Nilesh, Desai, Director, Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO. “A deeply coupled partnership, specifically focused on high-impact mixed signal and analog semiconductors, enabled ISRO to meet the system-level requirements for a satellite in LEO. Together, we achieved the space-grade performance standards needed for this important mission.”

As the NISAR satellite is now in orbit, I reflect on the decade-long partnership that brought us here and how our teams are already looking to what’s next, developing new technologies that will enable future missions,” said Elizabeth Jansen, TI India’s sales and applications director. “Building on more than 60 years of expertise, TI’s radiation-hardened and radiation-tolerant semiconductors are ready to meet the evolving demands of the space market. Our broad and reliable space-grade portfolio is ever-expanding and pushing the limits of what’s possible in the next frontier.”

Rocket Lab Corporation (Nasdaq: RKLB) is boosting its U.S. investments to expand semiconductor manufacturing capacity and provide supply chain security for space-grade solar cells and electro-optical sensors for national security space missions.

The Trump Administration will support these investments with a $23.9 million award through the Department of Commerce, part of the CHIPS and Science Act that ensures U.S. leadership in space-grade semiconductor technology.

In a strategic response to the increasing demand for a robust domestic supply chain of space-grade solar cells and electro-optical sensors for spacecrafts and satellites, Rocket Lab’s capital investments over the next five years are expected to strengthen the Company’s market position as a leading satellite manufacturer, components supplier, and end-to-end mission provider for commercial and national security space missions.

Rocket Lab is one of only two companies in the United States that specialize in the production of high efficiency, radiation hardened, space-grade compound semiconductors.

Rocket Lab’s investment builds upon the Company’s existing U.S. expansion plans for its space systems products alongside a $275 million acquisition of Geost, an electro-optical payload provider based in Tucson, Arizona and northern Virginia. Combined, these multi-hundred million-dollar investments will strengthen America’s semiconductor industrial base and invigorate industry innovation for U.S. commercial and national security satellite missions.

Through these investments, Rocket Lab expects to:

• Double production capacity of compound semiconductors and space-grade solar cells, from 20,000 wafers to nearly 35,000 wafers per month

• Provide U.S. spacecraft manufacturers and the wider aerospace industry with access to domestically produced, advanced semiconductor and electro-optical technologies

• Expand its ability to rapidly deliver integrated spacecraft systems purpose-built for U.S. national security

• Drive economic growth in California, Colorado, Maryland, New Mexico, Mississippi, Arizona and northern Virginia, as it expands its U.S. based headcount to more than 2,000 employees

Rocket Lab’s solar cells have powered industry-defining space missions including the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA’s Artemis lunar explorations, the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, and the Mars Insight Lander, and more – underscoring the Company’s pivotal role in space industry innovation and U.S. supply chain security.

Rocket Lab Vice President of Space Systems, Brad Clevenger, said, “Our leadership in American-made semiconductor technologies is built upon more than 25 years of engineering and manufacturing excellence in New Mexico. These latest investments will expand that production capacity, strengthen supply chains, create new jobs, and develop economic opportunities across the states where we operate – and are additional examples of Rocket Lab’s commitment to delivering reliable and cost-effective solutions at scale to the space industry.”

This administration is taking historic actions to encourage companies like Rocket Lab to invest in American ingenuity and innovation,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. “Rocket Lab’s investment will help cement our dominance in space while expanding opportunities for workers across the country.”

Engineers from Gliwice, Poland, carried out an unusual experiment on board their Intuition-1 satellite—using the Leopard Data Processing Unit, they successfully launched the 1993 classic game Doom in space.

Meanwhile, the Polish satellite continued to deliver new hyperspectral images from various regions of the Earth, demonstrating full operational capability nearly two years after launch. Intuition-1 has been orbiting Earth since November 11, 2023, completing an average of 15 orbits per day. Over 647 days in orbit, it has already circled our planet nearly 9,807 times.

This constant presence makes it possible to provide regular observations from different climatic zones—from the tropics to temperate regions of Europe. In recent months, the satellite’s instruments have captured views from across the globe: coastal areas of Mula, Tamaulipas in Mexico, the urban sprawl of Beijing, the desert landscapes of Phoenix, Arizona, the vibrant shoreline of Miami, Florida, the tropical mangroves of Mein-ma-hla-kyun Wildlife Reserve in Myanmar, the diverse cerrado of Goiás State in Brazil, and the green scenery of Rarangi, New Zealand.

The satellite also turned its eye to Poland—one image shows snow-covered Lubawa, proving that hyperspectral data is collected all year round. At the heart of the mission is the Leopard Data Processing Unit (DPU), designed and built by KP Labs. Leopard enables data processing directly in orbit, allowing analysis of images before they are transmitted to Earth. This onboard processing capability significantly reduces the volume of data that needs to be downlinked, delivering faster and more practical information to end users.

On August 12, 2025, KP Labs engineers used Leopard for a unique demonstration: they ran Doom, originally released in 1993 by ID Software, in space—on board the satellite. To achieve this, they modified an open-source version of the game’s code, and before sending it to orbit, the entire solution was tested on a ground-based FlatSat setup.

Although the Doom experiment was primarily symbolic, its significance goes far beyond nostalgia as it demonstrated that Leopard can handle diverse computational tasks—from simple to complex—even in the harsh conditions of space. This confirmed the flexibility of the system and its ability to support a wide range of scenarios.

Since the beginning of its mission, Intuition-1 has repeatedly proven the value of Polish-developed space technology. In its first months, it downlinked hyperspectral images processed entirely on board, becoming one of the first satellites worldwide to achieve this. Later, its data was used to test algorithms for vegetation classification and environmental monitoring, showing that Intuition-1 can support applications such as precision agriculture, ecosystem monitoring, and resource management.

KP Labs also operates another DPU on-orbit—LeopardISS, installed on the International Space Station as part of the ESA-led IGNIS mission involving Polish astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski. The compact module, integrated in the Columbus laboratory via the ICE Cubes platform, has been running AI algorithms in microgravity. The first task was testing a 3D terrain mapping algorithm developed by Poznań University of Technology—a technology that could one day support autonomous lunar or Martian rovers.

A partnership between TI (Texas Instruments) and SAC-ISRO helped enable the mission payloads for the NISAR satellite, which is currently orbiting Earth.

TI’s space-grade power management, mixed signal and analog technologies optimize system performance and allow the satellite to operate in the harsh environment of space over the mission’s lifetime. NISAR is the first satellite to use dual-band, synthetic aperture radar technology to monitor the Earth’s ecosystems, natural hazards and climate patterns.

Texas Instruments (TI) semiconductors are enabling the radar imaging and scientific exploration payloads for the NASA-Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) synthetic aperture radar (NISAR) satellite, which was recently launched into orbit. The launch of the satellite culminates a decade-long partnership between TI and the ISRO to optimize the performance of the electronic systems responsible for this Earth-observation mission. NISAR is equipped with TI’s radiation-hardened and radiation-tolerant products that enable designers to maximize power density, precision and performance in their satellite systems.

The ISRO describes NISAR as the first EO mission to use dual-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) technology, enabling the system to capture precise, high-resolution images during the day, night and all weather conditions. TI’s technology is enabling the satellite’s next-generation capabilities through efficient power management, high-speed data transfer, and precise signal sampling and timing.

The NISAR satellite will image the entire planet every 12 days, offering scientists greater understanding of changes to Earth’s ecosystems, ice mass, vegetation biomass, sea-level rise and groundwater levels. The agencies also expect the data to improve real-time monitoring of natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and landslides.

Throughout the project life cycle, TI’s system expertise and space-grade semiconductors, which are designed to withstand the harshest space environments, helped enable the advanced S-band SAR capabilities of the NISAR mission. The company provided:

Radiation-hardened power management die for SAC-ISRO developed point-of-load hybrid power module, helping optimize size, weight and power for the mission payloads. Analog-to-digital converters with ultra-high sampling rates and high resolution, allowing the satellite payload to generate fine-grained, high resolution radar imagery. High-performance interface technology, which enables high-speed data transfer between different satellite subsystems to ensure reliable communication. A clocking solution that enables the precise time alignment and synchronous, coherent sampling required for high-precision SAR systems.

From selecting the correct products to ensuring consistent support across development cycles, TI’s technical expertise helped us navigate complex payload requirements,” said Shri Nilesh, Desai, Director, Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO. “A deeply coupled partnership, specifically focused on high-impact mixed signal and analog semiconductors, enabled ISRO to meet the system-level requirements for a satellite in LEO. Together, we achieved the space-grade performance standards needed for this important mission.”

As the NISAR satellite is now in orbit, I reflect on the decade-long partnership that brought us here and how our teams are already looking to what’s next, developing new technologies that will enable future missions,” said Elizabeth Jansen, TI India’s sales and applications director. “Building on more than 60 years of expertise, TI’s radiation-hardened and radiation-tolerant semiconductors are ready to meet the evolving demands of the space market. Our broad and reliable space-grade portfolio is ever-expanding and pushing the limits of what’s possible in the next frontier.”