Space Exploration Technologies Corp.
US launch and spacecraft manufacturer founded by Elon Musk in 2002. Operates the Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, and Starship launch vehicles. Provider of the Transporter dedicated smallsat rideshare programme to sun-synchronous orbit, which has become the dominant launch service for commercial Earth observation smallsats including Planet, ICEYE, Spire, Capella, Satellogic, Pixxel, and GHGSat. SpaceX is also the principal launch provider for the Starlink broadband constellation it operates.
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is a US private launch and spacecraft manufacturer founded in 2002 and headquartered in Starbase, Texas. In the EO-Atlas, SpaceX appears as a launch services provider. It operates the Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, and Starship (in development) launch vehicles and runs the Starlink broadband constellation separately from its launch business.
The Transporter smallsat rideshare programme, operated on Falcon 9 Block 5, is the primary EO-Atlas relevance. Transporter missions fly to sun-synchronous orbit at approximately 500-550 km altitude. The programme launched its first mission (Transporter-1) on 24 January 2021, deploying 143 payloads, the most satellites launched on a single vehicle at the time. As of mid-2025, 14 Transporter missions had completed, with per-mission payload counts ranging from 40 to 143. Pricing as of February 2026 is USD 350,000 per slot up to 50 kg and USD 7,000 per kilogram above that, with a minimum 50 kg booking.[^nse-pricing] Typical Transporter manifests carry an estimated 5,000 kg total across all payloads, though SpaceX does not publish official per-mission totals.
EO operators confirmed across Transporter missions include ICEYE, Pixxel, Planet Labs, Spire Global, Capella Space, Satellogic, GHGSat, and BlackSky Global.[^elonx-missions] SpaceX does not operate any EO instrument or distribute EO data products.
Falcon 9 Block 5, introduced in May 2018, has achieved 640 launches with 637 full successes as of May 2026, making it the most-launched orbital rocket in history by flight count.[^wiki-f9] A single booster has reflown 34 times. Falcon Heavy, first flown February 2018, carries up to 63,800 kg to LEO in expendable configuration; it has completed 12 missions including NOAA GOES-19 (June 2024). Starship remains in flight-test phase with no commercial EO rideshare service announced.
Starlink, SpaceX's broadband LEO constellation, operates over 10,000 satellites in low Earth orbit as of March 2026 and is unrelated to EO data collection.[^wiki-starlink]