SpaceX Launch Delivers 44 SuperDove Satellites

Planet, an ecological space surveillance company, has successfully launched their Flock 4X satellite cloud, adding 44 to their fleet of roughly 200 already in orbit.

The delivery was made in conjunction with SpaceX by sending the new additions aboard a Falcon 9X, bringing its track record with Planet up to 127 satellites across 8 launches. The new mission was the first under a recent multi-year, multiple launch rideshare agreement between the two. 

Planet said that contact was quickly made with their satellite cloud additions, establishing connections within minutes. The constellation allows Planet to obtain daily insights about the Earth's resources and global events under the firm's PlanetScope program. The company boasts its fast-paced, rapid construction and just-in-time assembly prior to launch, saying their procedures allow continuous uninterrupted innovation up to the very last moment before shipment to the launch site. Planet's constellation is one of the largest assemblies of Earth observation satellites in history, bringing in prodigious amounts of medium and high resolution data over the preceding decade. Planet says that 1,700 images for every portion of Earth's landmass have been accumulated, allowing interested customers to see continuous, up-to-date PlanetScope imagery with a solid foundation of prior ground conditions for long term trend analysis.

Planet says that their rapid growth is only possible with recent improvements to the technology in every facet of the space industry. "Over the last 10 years, rocket launches have dropped in price and increased in frequency while satellites have dramatically decreased in size, allowing for greater numbers of satellites to be launched on each rocket. The unprecedented amount of Earth imaging data our entire fleet collects enables global analytics of planetary activity and resources. With Flock 4x, our data products will continue to provide high-cadence Earth insights for governments, NGOs, and companies working in sustainability, disaster relief, financial management, and security," said the company in the days leading up to the launch. 

FMI: www.planet.com