# companies

atlas_id: bd3a13d2-be2d-45c3-80ab-e6795ef82119
slug: endurosat
status: live
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: EnduroSat
aliases: ["EnduroSat AD"]
kind: commercial
country: Bulgaria
website: https://www.endurosat.com
operator_domains: ["endurosat.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
EnduroSat (legal name: EnduroSat AD) is a Bulgarian private smallsat manufacturer and space service provider headquartered in Sofia, founded in 2015 by Raycho Raychev. The company designs, builds, and operates CubeSat and microsatellite platforms, supplying bus hardware directly to customers and offering end-to-end mission services through its Space Service programme.[^endurosat-about]

The platform portfolio spans three classes. The CubeSat line covers 1U through 16U form factors, with the 6U, 8U, and 16U platforms carrying declared flight heritage.[^endurosat-home] The 16U accommodates payloads of up to 24.5 kg with 25-60 W average power and a 1 Gbps X-Band or K-Band downlink; the 8U supports up to 6.8 kg at 13-40 W with 150 Mbps X-Band; the 6U supports up to 7.8 kg at 10-30 W with 150 Mbps and optional 0.01-degree three-axis attitude control.[^endurosat-platforms] All platforms share a modular subsystem architecture built around EnduroSat's own OBC, EPS, ADCS, and S-Band or X-Band transceiver modules, which are also sold as discrete components.[^endurosat-obc]

The FRAME family targets ESPA-class missions from 85 kg (FRAME S, 15-inch) through 250 kg (FRAME L, 24-inch) to 500 kg base (FRAME Max).[^endurosat-frame-s][^endurosat-frame-l] FRAME L supports up to 300 kg of payload at 1 kW average power with 4 Gbps downlink and sub-0.06-degree nadir pointing. The cableless modular design is stated to allow a single technician to assemble and functionally test an ESPA-class satellite in 8 hours.[^endurosat-frame-l] Production scaling was backed by EUR 43M in May 2025 (Founders Fund-led) and $104M in October 2025 (Riot Ventures, GV, Lux Capital, EIC Fund), targeting the Sofia Space Center.[^endurosat-funding-104m][^endurosat-funding-43m]

The Space Service offering provides mission design, integration, launch procurement, and operations as a fixed-cost package, with a stated 6-month time-to-orbit from requirements sign-off.[^endurosat-space-service] A shared satellite variant flies multiple customer payloads on a single bus, with SPARTAN (June 2021, 7 payloads) as the first operational example.[^endurosat-spartan] TAIFA-1, a hyperspectral 3U EO satellite for SayariLabs and the Kenya Space Agency, launched in April 2023 as the most-cited EO customer mission on an EnduroSat bus.[^endurosat-taifa]

EnduroSat is developing the Balkan constellation: 120 nanosatellites at 500 km targeting 1.5-hour revisit, with 1.5 m multispectral imagery in 7 bands aligned to Sentinel-2 VNIR, selected as a Copernicus Contributing Mission candidate by ESA and the EU.[^balkan-constellation] Balkan-1, the pilot 16U satellite, launched on Transporter 12 in January 2025 and carries onboard AI event-detection processing developed by Agenium.[^balkan-1-news]

As of 2026, EnduroSat reports more than 80 satellites in orbit with 3,500+ modules deployed, employs approximately 325 staff across Sofia, Italy, France, and US operations, and claims 400+ customers across commercial and institutional segments.[^endurosat-about]

description:
Bulgarian smallsat platform manufacturer headquartered in Sofia (founded 2015). Modular CubeSat platforms across 1U through 16U form factors and ESPA-class FRAME family (FRAME S, FRAME L, FRAME Max). Subsystems (OBC, EPS, ADCS, S-Band/X-Band) sold discrete. Space Service offering wraps mission design, integration, launch procurement, and operations as a fixed-cost package. Developing the Balkan multispectral constellation (120 nanosats, 1.5 m GSD, Copernicus Contributing Mission candidate).

sources:
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atlas_id: 20af2a77-dd62-4280-8901-be923e152376
slug: esa
status: live
name: European Space Agency
kind: agency
country: International (23 full member states, 5 associate members as of 2026)
website: https://www.esa.int
operator_domains: ["esa.int"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-08T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
The European Space Agency (ESA) is an intergovernmental organisation established on 30 May 1975 under the ESA Convention, formed from the merger of the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO) and the European Launcher Development Organisation (ELDO).[^esa-history] Headquartered in Paris with its primary technical centre at ESTEC in Noordwijk (Netherlands) and its Earth observation operations centre at ESRIN in Frascati (Italy), ESA brings together 23 full member states and five associate members as of 2025-2026.[^wikipedia]

ESA's Earth observation programme operates through four principal lines: the Copernicus programme, the FutureEO programme (Earth Explorers and Scouts), Heritage Missions, and Third Party / Copernicus Contributing Missions.[^earth-online] Within Copernicus, Europe's civil Earth observation infrastructure owned and mandated by the European Commission, ESA acts as the Space Segment Development Authority, designing, procuring, launching, and operating the Sentinel satellite family.[^copernicus-esa] Sentinel missions span C-band radar (Sentinel-1), multispectral optical (Sentinel-2), ocean-land monitoring (Sentinel-3), and atmospheric monitoring (Sentinel-5P), among others; EUMETSAT co-operates specific missions including the Sentinel-3 marine data stream and Sentinel-6 ocean altimetry.[^copernicus-eu] Copernicus data is freely available globally through the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem under an open data policy.[^copernicus-data-space]

Through the FutureEO programme, ESA funds and operates science-driven Earth Explorer missions selected through community consultation, each addressing a distinct geophysical question. As of 2025-2026, seven Earth Explorers are operational or completed and four are in development or assessment.[^futureeo]

ESA does not manufacture satellites itself; industrial development and manufacturing are contracted to European prime contractors including Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space. ESA serves as the system authority, setting requirements, managing integration, and conducting launch and early operations. With a total budget of approximately €8.26 billion for 2026 and a staff of approximately 3,000, ESA is the primary institutional operator of European EO infrastructure and the central counterpart for European EO data policy.[^wikipedia]

description:
Inter-governmental space agency operating Earth observation programmes including Sentinel, EarthCARE, and Aeolus.

sources:
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atlas_id: 587554c9-7cb7-47ef-9fc3-36ede93fd427
slug: eumetsat
status: live
name: EUMETSAT
aliases: ["European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites"]
kind: agency
country: International
website: https://www.eumetsat.int
operator_domains: ["eumetsat.int"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
EUMETSAT (European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites) is an intergovernmental organisation established by convention entered into force 19 June 1986, with 29 member states across Europe. Headquartered in Darmstadt, Germany, it serves as the operational arm of Europe's meteorological and Earth observation satellite infrastructure, with a mandate to establish, maintain, and exploit European systems of operational meteorological satellites. Its data policy is free, full, and open access for registered users.[^eumetsat-home]

The organisation operates two independent satellite systems. The Meteosat programme provides geostationary coverage at 36,000 km altitude: the Second Generation (MSG) constellation supports backup and rapid-scan operations while the Third Generation (MTG) transitions to full service. MTG-I1 (Meteosat-12, launched December 2022) carries the Flexible Combined Imager (FCI, 16 channels) and the Lightning Imager (LI), providing full disc imagery every 10 minutes.[^eumetsat-mtg] MTG-S1 (launched July 2025) hosts the Infrared Sounder (IRS) and the Copernicus Sentinel-4 UV-Vis-NIR spectrometer for hourly atmospheric monitoring over Europe.[^eumetsat-sentinel4] The Metop polar system (EPS) provides morning-orbit coverage at 817 km: Metop-B and Metop-C remain operational, while Metop-SGA1 (launched August 2025) begins the second-generation transition carrying the Copernicus Sentinel-5 UVNS trace gas spectrometer, IASI-NG sounder, and a GNSS radio occultation instrument.[^eumetsat-metop-sg]

EUMETSAT is a primary operator in the EU Copernicus programme. It operates the Sentinel-3 constellation jointly with ESA, processing and distributing marine data and near-real-time atmospheric products from the OLCI, SLSTR, SRAL, and MWR instruments.[^eumetsat-sentinel3] The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich altimeter (launched November 2020) and Sentinel-6B (launched November 2025) extend the continuous sea level record that began in 1992, continuing the Jason mission series co-operated with CNES, NASA, and NOAA.[^eumetsat-sentinel6][^eumetsat-jason3] For the Sentinel-5P mission, ESA operates the satellite while EUMETSAT processes and distributes the TROPOMI Level-2 atmospheric trace gas and ozone data products in near-real time.[^eumetsat-sentinel5p] Future programmes include EPS-Sterna, a 6-satellite microwave-sounding constellation planned for 2029, and EPS-Aeolus, a Doppler wind lidar follow-on to ADM-Aeolus planned for 2034.[^eumetsat-eps-sterna][^eumetsat-eps-aeolus]

description:
European intergovernmental organisation operating meteorological and Earth observation satellites. EUMETSAT operates the Meteosat geostationary fleet (MSG operational; MTG-I1 and MTG-S1 in service) and the Metop polar fleet (Metop-B and Metop-C operational; Metop-SGA1 in service). It operates Sentinel-3 jointly with ESA and distributes data for Sentinel-6, Jason-3, Sentinel-4, and Sentinel-5. EUMETSAT distributes Sentinel-5P data; ESA operates the satellite. 29 member states across Europe. Headquartered in Darmstadt, Germany.

sources:
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atlas_id: bc39449b-c228-41a9-929c-b611a10cdce9
slug: exolaunch
status: live
name: Exolaunch
aliases: ["Exolaunch GmbH"]
kind: commercial
country: Germany
website: https://exolaunch.com
operator_domains: ["exolaunch.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Exolaunch is a Berlin-headquartered commercial launch integrator and separation hardware manufacturer, founded in 2010 by engineers from the Technische Universitaet Berlin Department of Space Technology.[^exolaunch-heritage] The company holds GmbH legal status and operates as a private entity with no publicly disclosed investors or parent company.

Exolaunch occupies a hybrid position in the smallsat supply chain: it acts simultaneously as a launch services broker - contracting rideshare slots from launch vehicle operators and reselling them to satellite customers - and as a manufacturer of its own deployment hardware, principally the CarboNIX family of separation systems and the EXOpod family of CubeSat deployers.[^news-33][^news-25]

The CarboNIX separation system, space-qualified in 2019, is designed for microsatellites up to 200 kg (15" variant) and up to 250 kg-class payloads (24" variant, confirmed April 2025).[^news-33][^news-126] Its spring-pusher mechanism minimises deployment shock and residual tip-off rates below 1 deg/s. The EXOpod deployer family supports CubeSats from standard 1U configurations through the 16U extended form factor, with flight heritage from 2019.[^news-25] In early 2025, Exolaunch introduced the Quadro family of four-point separation systems, winning the 'Innovation in Space' award at the 2023 European Space Forum.[^news-101]

On the launch services side, Exolaunch has integrated satellites on every SpaceX Transporter rideshare mission to date and secured a multi-launch framework agreement with SpaceX extending capacity through 2028.[^news-127] By May 2026, the company had completed 47 missions and deployed over 520 satellites.[^news-152][^news-122] Customers span government agencies (NASA, ESA, DLR, CNES, UNOOSA), defence research institutions, and commercial operators including Planet Labs, Spire Global, ICEYE, Synspective, and Pixxel. The EUR 18M German Space Agency (DLR) contract awarded in January 2024 covers launch brokerage, integration, and technical guidance for small satellite developers under the German Small Satellite Initiative.[^news-98]

Exolaunch also offers a mission management service bundle covering pre-launch integration documentation and on-orbit handover support, and has extended its deployment hardware to beyond-LEO missions, supplying CarboNIX and EXOpod Nova hardware for the Intuitive Machines IM-2 lunar rideshare in February 2025.[^news-120] The company operates its primary manufacturing and engineering operations in Berlin and maintains US commercial operations through Exolaunch USA, headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

Leadership transitioned in August 2024 when founder Dmitriy Sternharz moved from CEO to President, handing the CEO role to Robert W. Sproles, who joined from Spire Global where he served as VP of Constellation Planning and Operations.[^news-113]

description:
German commercial launch services and rideshare integrator headquartered in Berlin. Specialises in smallsat deployment and rideshare brokerage, integrating customer payloads onto SpaceX Falcon 9 Transporter and Bandwagon missions, Vega-C, and other launch vehicles. Provides launch contracting, integration services, deployment hardware (CarboNIX separation systems, EXOpod CubeSat deployers), and on-orbit launch documentation. One of the principal European smallsat launch integrators alongside SAB Aerospace, ISILAUNCH (ISISPACE internal division), and D-Orbit.

sources:
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atlas_id: b5f8bc52-b9e8-40ab-b649-962b28d62dc1
slug: fao
status: live
name: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
aliases: ["FAO"]
kind: agency
country: International
website: https://www.fao.org
operator_domains: ["fao.org"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-18T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a UN specialised agency founded on 16 October 1945 in Quebec City, Canada, and headquartered in Rome, Italy. It operates across 130+ countries with 194 member states and is governed by a biennial Conference and a 49-member Council. Director-General Qu Dongyu (China) has led the organisation since 2019.

In Earth observation, FAO functions as a major data user, tooling provider, and methodology authority. It neither operates satellites nor owns data distribution infrastructure; rather, it builds open-source analysis platforms and assessment methodologies that leverage data from Landsat, Sentinel-2, and other open archives through providers such as Google Earth Engine, ESA, and NASA.

The Open Foris initiative, offered by FAO as a digital public good, comprises ten open-source tools for forest and land monitoring. SEPAL (System for Earth Observation Data Access, Processing and Analysis for Land Monitoring), the flagship cloud platform, provides countries with access to satellite data archives and high-performance processing for national forest monitoring systems and UNFCCC climate reporting. SEPAL Phase 1 (2016-2021) was financed by Norway's International Climate and Forest Initiative; Phase 2, Forest and Land Monitoring for Climate Action, is ongoing. Collect Earth provides plot-level visual interpretation of Landsat and Sentinel imagery, supporting national greenhouse gas inventories in IPCC-compliant workflows. Earth Map, developed with Google, enables time-series analysis of vegetation, climate, and land-cover change without specialised software. WHISP (What's in that Plot?) applies a Convergence of Evidence methodology across global deforestation and commodity datasets to support supply-chain transparency, including EUDR compliance workflows.

FAO's Forestry Division leads the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA), a periodic five-yearly global forest inventory that uses Collect Earth and other Open Foris tools for remote sensing validation of country-reported data. The FRA standard is catalogued as fao-fra. FAO was a founding co-lead of GEOGLAM (launched 2011, G20 Cannes Summit); operational management sits with the Group on Earth Observations community structure and FAO participates as a contributing partner.

FAO's Geospatial Programme, with more than 50 years of activity, covers land cover mapping, agro-ecological zoning (GAEZ), land degradation monitoring, and emergency agricultural response. Open Foris solutions have been used in 91% of forest submissions from 65 countries to the UNFCCC since 2014. Sentinel-2 integration in SEPAL confirms a Copernicus data dependency; a formal FAO-Copernicus collaboration agreement has been reported but the specific agreement document was not accessible from tier-1 sources as of 2026-05-24.

description:
UN specialized agency founded 1945, headquartered in Rome. Mandated to achieve food security and sustainable agriculture for 194 member states. Operates SEPAL (cloud-based EO processing for national forest monitoring), hosts the Open Foris open-source suite, and conducts the Global Forest Resources Assessment every five years as the sole global authority on forest statistics.

sources:
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atlas_id: 6cfd84e4-7c86-472f-8762-03e0fe8581e9
slug: google
status: live
confidence: 0.85
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: Google LLC
aliases: ["Google","Google Earth Engine","GEE"]
kind: commercial
country: USA
website: https://www.google.com
operator_domains: ["google.com","earthengine.google.com","developers.google.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-18T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Google LLC (Alphabet Inc. subsidiary, NASDAQ GOOGL/GOOG) occupies the platform and distribution layer of the Earth observation ecosystem. Founded in 1998 and restructured under Alphabet in 2015, Google does not operate satellites, manufacture sensors, or produce raw imagery data. Its EO relevance is entirely upstream infrastructure and downstream ML-derived data products.

Google Earth Engine (GEE), launched in 2010, is a cloud geospatial analysis platform hosting more than 80 petabytes of satellite imagery, including Landsat 4 through 9, Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2, MODIS, ASTER, ALOS PALSAR-2, and the ISS-mounted EMIT hyperspectral instrument, among others.[^gee-concepts] GEE provides distributed compute via Python and JavaScript APIs, supporting both interactive and planetary-scale batch processing modes. Since its transition to a Google Cloud product, access is split between a free noncommercial tier (research and nonprofit, subject to verification) and a paid commercial tier billed in Earth Engine Compute Units (EECU).[^gee-access] The platform functions as the compute substrate for a significant fraction of global forest monitoring infrastructure, including Global Forest Watch (WRI-led), MapBiomas, and the GLAD-L alert system (UMD).

Google Cloud Public Datasets extends this hosting role: Sentinel-2 (10-60m, 2015-present) and Landsat Collection 1 archives are mirrored in Google Cloud Storage at no cost to users, providing raw file access independent of the GEE compute environment.[^gcp-public-datasets]

On the derived data product side, Google produces two datasets of direct EO-Atlas relevance. Open Buildings (v3, May 2023) delivers 1.8 billion ML-derived building detections across 195 countries and 58 million km^2, using deep learning on high-resolution satellite imagery; the dataset is dual-licensed under CC BY-4.0 and ODbL.[^open-buildings-v3] Dynamic World V1, developed jointly with the World Resources Institute and National Geographic Society, is a near-realtime global land cover classification at 10-metre resolution, updated every 2-5 days from Sentinel-2 L1C input across nine land cover classes; it is peer-reviewed and CC-BY licensed.[^dynamic-world-paper]

Google is not a data producer for alert systems hosted on its platform. GLAD-L alerts are produced by the UMD GLAD lab; RADD alerts by Wageningen University and Research; Hansen Global Forest Change maps by the University of Maryland. Google supplies the compute and hosting; the scientific content and methodology attribution belongs to the respective producing institutions.

description:
US technology company, wholly-owned subsidiary of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ GOOGL/GOOG) since the 2015 restructuring. EO-Atlas relevance is Google Earth Engine (GEE), a cloud geospatial analysis platform launched in 2010 that hosts over 80 petabytes of third-party satellite imagery (Landsat, Sentinel, MODIS, ALOS/PALSAR-2 and others) and provides distributed compute for global-scale analysis. Google is not an EO operator, sensor manufacturer, or alert producer. GEE is the substrate and distribution channel for GLAD-L, GLAD-S2, RADD, DIST-ALERT, and the Hansen Global Forest Change dataset; producers are UMD, WUR, and NASA respectively.

sources:
[{"id":"gee-concepts","url":"https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/guides/concepts_overview","title":"Earth Engine Concepts Overview (Google Developer Docs)","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"gee-access","url":"https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/guides/access","title":"Earth Engine Access Guide","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"gcp-public-datasets","url":"https://cloud.google.com/storage/docs/public-datasets","title":"Google Cloud Public Datasets: EO-relevant subset (Sentinel-2, Landsat)","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"open-buildings-v3","url":"https://sites.research.google/open-buildings/","title":"Google Open Buildings v3, dataset and coverage page","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"dynamic-world-paper","url":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01307-4","title":"Dynamic World, Near real-time global 10m land use land cover mapping, Brown et al. 2022, Scientific Data","tier":"peer-reviewed","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Open Buildings source imagery provider unverified. GEE commercial tier launch year unverified. 80PB figure is operator-marketing-stated only.


atlas_id: b51f38b5-db66-428f-a6eb-2592aba4d5f8
slug: headwall-photonics
status: live
name: Headwall Photonics
aliases: ["Headwall","Headwall Group"]
kind: commercial
country: United States
website: https://www.headwallphotonics.com
operator_domains: ["headwallphotonics.com","headwall.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Headwall Photonics designs and manufactures high-performance hyperspectral imaging instruments based on concave holographic diffraction grating technology. Founded in 2003 through a management buyout of Agilent Technologies' Holographic Grating Operation, itself the successor to American Holographic, the company has operated from Bolton, Massachusetts throughout its history.[^arsenal-recap-2022]

The product portfolio spans three deployment contexts. For remote sensing and EO applications, Headwall produces airborne push-broom hyperspectral payloads covering the VNIR (400-1000 nm) and SWIR (900-2500 nm) ranges, available as standalone sensors or co-aligned dual-channel systems for simultaneous VNIR-SWIR data collection.[^hisui-launch] The company has demonstrated space heritage through its supply of imaging spectrometers for the HISUI (Hyperspectral Imager SUIte) mission aboard the International Space Station, launched December 2019 on SpaceX CRS-19.[^hisui-launch] HISUI delivers 185 spectral bands across a 20 km swath at 20 x 30 metre ground resolution, serving Japan's METI-led Earth observation research programme.

For industrial machine vision, Headwall offers inline hyperspectral cameras serving food quality and safety inspection, pharmaceutical manufacturing, recycling and sorting, and precision agriculture. A benchtop and OEM product line supplies custom spectrometers and holographic gratings to instrument integrators.

In January 2022, Arsenal Capital Partners led a recapitalization that made it the majority owner of Headwall.[^arsenal-recap-2022] Since then, the company has assembled the Headwall Group through four transactions: acquisition of Holographix LLC (optical replication components, June 2022), strategic investment in perClass BV (ML-based spectral interpretation software, July 2022), acquisition of inno-spec GmbH (industrial hyperspectral systems, Germany, January 2024), and acquisition of EVK DI Kerschhaggl GmbH (sensor-based industrial sorting systems, Austria, January 2025).[^inno-spec-acq][^evk-acq]

Headwall serves defense and security, environmental monitoring, precision agriculture, food safety, pharmaceutical, mining, and infrastructure inspection markets. The company operates as a subsystem supplier to platform integrators in the EO domain and as a direct instrument provider in industrial and laboratory contexts.

description:
US manufacturer of hyperspectral imaging instruments and holographic diffraction grating optics, headquartered in Bolton, Massachusetts. Founded 2003 via management buyout of Agilent Technologies' Holographic Grating Operation. Product lines span airborne push-broom hyperspectral payloads (VNIR 400-1000 nm, SWIR 900-2500 nm), co-aligned VNIR-SWIR systems, compact UAV sensors, and industrial machine-vision hyperspectral cameras. Demonstrated space heritage: supplied imaging spectrometers for HISUI aboard the ISS (launched 2019). Since 2022, majority-owned by Arsenal Capital Partners and expanded into the Headwall Group through acquisitions of Holographix LLC (optical replication, MA), perClass BV (ML spectral software, NL), inno-spec GmbH (industrial hyperspectral, DE), and EVK DI Kerschhaggl GmbH (sensor sorting, AT).

sources:
[{"id":"arsenal-recap-2022","url":"https://www.arsenalcapital.com/news/arsenal-completes-recapitalization-of-headwall-photonics","title":"Arsenal Capital Partners: Arsenal Completes Recapitalization of Headwall Photonics","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hisui-launch","url":"https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2019/12/09/1957742/0/en/Headwall-Hyperspectral-Sensor-System-Launched-Into-Space.html","title":"GlobeNewswire: Headwall Hyperspectral Sensor System Launched Into Space","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"inno-spec-acq","url":"https://www.arsenalcapital.com/news/headwall-acquires-inno-spec","title":"Arsenal Capital Partners: Headwall Acquires inno-spec GmbH","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"evk-acq","url":"https://www.arsenalcapital.com/news/evk-joins-headwall-group","title":"Arsenal Capital Partners: EVK Joins Headwall Group","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 295a02ce-9b36-44d7-9788-ff2fbd9c9370
slug: hyspex
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: HySpex
aliases: ["HySpex (Norsk Elektro Optikk)","NEO HySpex"]
kind: commercial
country: Norway
website: https://www.hyspex.com
operator_domains: ["hyspex.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
HySpex is the commercial hyperspectral imaging brand of Norsk Elektro Optikk AS (NEO), a Norwegian electro-optics company founded in Oslo in 1985. According to neo.no, NEO operates under a foundation-ownership structure that channels profits back into R&D; the underlying legal chain has not been independently confirmed. HySpex instruments are push-broom imaging spectrometers covering the visible-near-infrared (VNIR) and shortwave-infrared (SWIR) spectral ranges, built for airborne, laboratory, and industrial deployment.

The product line spans three active families. The HySpex Classic series, including the VNIR-1800 and SWIR-384, are the company's heritage airborne instruments, used by agencies including USGS and DLR as reference spectrometers for calibration and validation of satellite hyperspectral missions such as EnMAP, PRISMA, and EMIT. The Mjolnir series, designed for airborne and UAV survey use, combines VNIR and SWIR in a single housing (VS-620) with 620 coregistered spatial pixels across the 400-2500 nm range; the Mjolnir V-1240 has flown on Sceye's high-altitude platform system at 70,000 feet. The Baldur series targets industrial process monitoring (pharmaceuticals, food sorting, conveyor-belt mineral identification) rather than airborne remote sensing.

Beyond its established airborne and laboratory instruments, NEO is developing the HySpex Methane Satellite Camera (MSC), a compact SWIR imager for methane detection co-funded by ESA's InCubed programme (development contract circa 2025; not yet flown). In parallel, NEO is the camera designer for the European Defence Agency's Hyper-IP project, a consortium developing a hyperspectral satellite system with airborne demonstration. NEO expanded into the German market through HySpex GmbH, opened in Berlin in November 2024, targeting European customers and the emerging space-segment OEM market.

HySpex instruments are widely used as the airborne hyperspectral reference for spaceborne mineral mapping calibration campaigns, with confirmed deployments at USGS and DLR; operator-reported customers include major mining operators AngloAmerican, BHP, and Vale.

description:
Norwegian hyperspectral instrument manufacturer, owned by Norsk Elektro Optikk (NEO). Product line includes the Mjolnir benchtop and airborne hyperspectral cameras, ODIN and Baldur lines, plus laboratory and field accessories. Established player with deployments across Earth observation, defence, agriculture, mineral exploration, environmental monitoring, and quality control. HySpex instruments are widely used as the airborne hyperspectral reference for spaceborne mineral mapping cal/val campaigns; the 2024 Namibia carbonatite comparative study (Chakraborty et al., Remote Sensing) used HySpex Mjolnir airborne data as one of the reference datasets alongside PRISMA, EnMAP, and EMIT.

sources:
[{"id":"hyspex-home","url":"https://www.hyspex.com","title":"HySpex, home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"neo-home","url":"https://www.neo.no","title":"Norsk Elektro Optikk AS, home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hyspex-about","url":"https://www.hyspex.com/about","title":"HySpex, About Us","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"neo-hyspex-microsatellite","url":"https://www.neo.no/news/hyspex-for-microsatellites","title":"HySpex camera for microsatellites, NEO","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hyspex-berlin-expansion","url":"https://www.hyspex.com/about/news/news-norsk-elektro-optikk-expands-to-europe-with-new-office-in-berlin","title":"Norsk Elektro Optikk expands to Europe, HySpex news","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hyspex-sceye-flight","url":"https://www.hyspex.com/about/news/hyspex-demonstrates-capabilities-in-stratospheric-flight","title":"HySpex demonstrates capabilities in stratospheric flight","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hyspex-eda-hyperip","url":"https://www.hyspex.com/about/news/news-neo-participates-in-new-eda-project-hyper-ip","title":"NEO participates in EDA project Hyper-IP","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hyspex-swir384-spec","url":"https://www.hyspex.com/hyspex-products/hyspex-classic/hyspex-swir-384","title":"HySpex SWIR-384, product specifications","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"jlsrf-hyspex-dlr","url":"https://jlsrf.org/index.php/lsf/article/view/151","title":"Airborne Imaging Spectrometer HySpex, Journal of large-scale research facilities","tier":"peer-reviewed","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"usgs-hyspex-cripple-creek","url":"https://www.usgs.gov/data/hyspex-neo-vnir-1800-and-swir-384-imaging-spectrometer-radiance-and-reflectance-data","title":"HySpex NEO VNIR-1800 and SWIR-384 data, Cripple Creek Victor mine, USGS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"photonics-hyspex-gmbh","url":"https://www.photonics.com/Articles/Norsk_Elektro_Optikk_Establishes_HySpex_GmbH/a70452","title":"Norsk Elektro Optikk Establishes HySpex GmbH, Photonics Spectra Nov 2024","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"spacedaily-sceye-haps","url":"https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/HySpex_Payloads_Successfully_Complete_Key_Diurnal_Stratospheric_Flight_999.html","title":"HySpex Payloads Successfully Complete Key Diurnal Stratospheric Flight, SpaceDaily","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 65a656a9-eb67-4d7c-914e-150623f52887
slug: iceye
status: live
confidence: 0.85
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: ICEYE
aliases: ["ICEYE Oy","ICEYE Ltd"]
kind: commercial
country: Finland
website: https://www.iceye.com
operator_domains: ["iceye.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
ICEYE is a Finnish microsatellite manufacturer and SAR constellation operator founded in 2014 as a spin-off of Aalto University's Radio Technology department, headquartered in Espoo. Co-founders Rafal Modrzewski (CEO) and Pekka Laurila (CSO) led the team that launched ICEYE-X1 in January 2018, the first commercial SAR microsatellite under 100 kg. By May 2026 the company had launched over 70 satellites and operates a commercial X-band SAR constellation of that scale.[^iceye-press-trans15][^iceye-gen4-pr]

The constellation operates in X-band (9.65 GHz), VV polarization, in sun-synchronous orbits at 500-610 km altitude. The product portfolio spans eight imaging modes: Strip (3 m, 30 km swath), Spot (1 m, 5 km scene), Spot Fine (0.5 m), Spot Extended Area (1 m, 15 km scene), and the Dwell family (Dwell, Dwell Fine, Dwell Precise) developed for persistent and coherent monitoring. The fourth-generation (Gen4) satellite, commercially available from September 2025, achieves up to 16 cm ground resolution in Dwell Precise mode through doubled antenna size and 1200 MHz imaging bandwidth.[^iceye-gen4-pr] Gen4 satellites downlink at up to 700 Mbps, enabling data delivery within the same orbital pass.

In July 2021 ICEYE achieved Daily Coherent Ground Track Repeat (DCGTR), at the time a first commercial capability enabling coherent change detection and interferometric SAR at 24-hour cadence.[^iceye-dcgtr] This underpins applications in ground subsidence monitoring, infrastructure integrity assessment, and environmental change detection. Subsequent independent research has used ICEYE constellation data for Thwaites Glacier InSAR studies and the 2023 Swiss Alps Brienz landslide monitoring.

ICEYE serves four primary market segments. In defense and intelligence, the company holds sovereign satellite supply contracts with the armed forces of Germany (EUR 1.76 billion SPOCK 1 contract with Rheinmetall ICEYE Space Solutions JV, December 2025), Poland (EUR 200 million POLSARIS constellation, May 2025), the Netherlands (RNLAF, 4 satellites), Sweden, Finland, Greece, Portugal, and Japan, and provides access to Ukraine's Ministry of Defence. In insurance and natural catastrophe response, ICEYE's Flood Insights service provides near-real-time flood extent and depth data used for parametric insurance product development. In maritime, ICEYE holds a multi-year framework contract with the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA, signed March 2023) supplying SAR imagery for the CleanSeaNet oil spill detection service and Copernicus Maritime Surveillance. In environmental monitoring, ICEYE is an ESA Copernicus Contributing Mission (since October 2021), supplying data to the Copernicus Emergency Management Service and Marine Environment Monitoring Service.[^iceye-esa-ccm]

Financially, ICEYE reached profitability in 2025 with revenue exceeding EUR 250 million and a contracted backlog of EUR 1.5 billion. The December 2025 Series E round (EUR 150 million primary, led by General Catalyst) valued the company at EUR 2.4 billion. ICEYE targets EUR 1 billion in 2026 revenue and is scaling satellite production to one unit per week.

description:
Finnish commercial SAR satellite operator, founded 2014 as an Aalto University spin-off and headquartered in Espoo. Operates the world's largest commercial X-band SAR constellation, over 70 satellites launched by May 2026, with sub-metre resolution. Approximately 700 employees, EUR 2.4B valuation as of December 2025, EUR 250M+ 2025 revenue, profitable. Counts the Royal Netherlands Air Force among sovereign customers (4-satellite SAR ISR contract, first launched June 2025). Copernicus Contributing Mission and ESA Third Party Mission status; partner on the ESA Civil Security from Space Programme.

sources:
[{"id":"iceye-press-trans15","url":"https://www.iceye.com/newsroom/press-releases/iceye-launches-five-new-satellites-supporting-additional-customer-missions","title":"ICEYE launches five new satellites, Transporter-15","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"iceye-gen4-pr","url":"https://www.iceye.com/newsroom/press-releases/iceye-launches-four-new-satellites-and-introduces-its-new-generation-4-satellite","title":"ICEYE launches four satellites and Gen4 introduction","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"iceye-dcgtr","url":"https://www.iceye.com/newsroom/press-releases/iceye-first-in-the-world-to-achieve-revolutionary-daily-coherent-ground-track-repeat","title":"ICEYE Daily Coherent Ground Track Repeat announcement","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"iceye-esa-ccm","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/ICEYE_commercial_satellites_join_the_EU_Copernicus_programme","title":"ESA, ICEYE commercial satellites join Copernicus programme","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 02ed6f95-6909-4303-9d3e-0de122fe4878
slug: inpe
status: live
confidence: 0.85
verification_status: reviewed
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais
aliases: ["INPE","National Institute for Space Research"]
kind: research-institute
country: Brazil
website: https://www.gov.br/inpe/pt-br
operator_domains: ["inpe.br","gov.br"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-18T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE) is Brazil's federal space and Earth observation research institute, established in 1971 as a research unit within the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovations. Headquartered in Sao Jose dos Campos, Sao Paulo, INPE operates Brazil's primary EO data systems and co-manages satellite programmes with international partners.

INPE's most internationally recognised contribution is its long-running deforestation monitoring infrastructure. PRODES, operational since 1988, produces annual benchmarks of native vegetation suppression across all seven Brazilian biomes; these figures constitute the official measure of Brazilian forest loss referenced in national enforcement and international reporting. DETER provides near-real-time alerts at two-week cadence, feeding Brazil's environmental enforcement agency (IBAMA) with operational intelligence for field response. Both systems are disseminated through INPE's TerraBrasilis platform.

In satellite development, INPE has led the CBERS programme in partnership with China's CAST since 1988. Six CBERS satellites have been launched across five missions (CBERS-1, -2, -2B, -4, and -4A), with CBERS-3 lost to a launch failure in 2013. CBERS-4 and CBERS-4A are operational, carrying instruments ranging from 5m panchromatic to 60m wide-field imaging. Data from these satellites is distributed freely in Brazil and partner countries.

INPE also developed Amazonia-1, launched in February 2021 aboard India's PSLV-C51 rocket. The 637 kg satellite carries an Advanced Wide Field Imager (AWFI) with 60m resolution and an 850 km swath, completing full Earth imaging cycles every 4 days. The mission was designed and integrated under Brazilian technical leadership, with subsystem contributions from Argentina's INVAP.

Beyond EO operations, INPE runs weather and climate forecasting through its CPTEC centre, space weather monitoring through the EMBRACE programme, and graduate research programmes in space and atmospheric sciences.[^inpe-base-juridica][^inpe-cbers-faq][^wiki-amazonia1][^terrabrasilis-downloads]

description:
Brazilian federal research institute under MCTI, established 1971 (predecessor CONAE from 1961), headquartered in Sao Jose dos Campos. Operational/research arm of the Brazilian space programme (AEB is the policy agency). Runs the CBERS satellite programme jointly with CAST (China) since 1988, Amazonia-1 (launched Feb 2021, designed and integrated under Brazilian technical leadership with INVAP subsystem contributions), and the TerraBrasilis distribution portal for PRODES annual deforestation and DETER near-real-time alerts. Standards authority on tropical-deforestation monitoring methodology used across the EU EUDR ecosystem and MapBiomas.

sources:
[{"id":"inpe-base-juridica","url":"https://www.gov.br/inpe/pt-br/acesso-a-informacao/institucional/base-juridica","title":"INPE Base Juridica (Legal Basis), gov.br","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"inpe-cbers-faq","url":"https://www.gov.br/inpe/pt-br/acesso-a-informacao/perguntas-frequentes/cbers","title":"INPE FAQ on CBERS, gov.br","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"wiki-amazonia1","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazonia-1","title":"Amazonia-1, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"terrabrasilis-downloads","url":"https://terrabrasilis.dpi.inpe.br/downloads/","title":"TerraBrasilis Downloads, INPE","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-18"}]


atlas_id: 7acefcc5-aab4-46ed-9472-2313d353b042
slug: isispace
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
name: ISISPACE
aliases: ["Innovative Solutions In Space","ISIS","ISIS Innovative Solutions In Space BV"]
kind: commercial
country: Netherlands
website: https://www.isispace.nl
operator_domains: ["isispace.nl"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
ISISPACE (legal entity: ISIS Innovative Solutions In Space BV) is a Dutch small satellite company founded in 2006 in Delft, Netherlands. Operating under the ISISPACE GROUP brand, the company designs and manufactures CubeSat platforms from 3U to 16U, a modular subsystem product line spanning electrical power systems, solar panels, antennas, and deployment hardware, and provides launch services through its ISILAUNCH division.[^isispace-home][^isispace-company]

The platform family covers the 3U through 16U CubeSat form factors, with each size tier offering defined payload volumes, communications options from VHF/UHF to S-Band, and optional propulsion. Flight-proven examples include a 6U bus supplied for the BRIK-II military technology demonstrator (Royal Netherlands Air Force, 2021) and a complete 12U bus for the SPEQTRE quantum key distribution mission (RAL Space, launched 2025).[^isispace-brikii][^isispace-speqtre]

The subsystem line encompasses the ICEPS2 compact electrical power system (for satellites up to 3UXL, flight heritage since 2018), the IMEPS2 modular EPS (for 6U-16U, up to 156W total solar input, flight heritage since 2020), and GaAs solar panels rated at 30% beginning-of-life efficiency with flight heritage since 2013.[^iceps2][^imeps2][^solar]

ISISPACE's deployment systems division produces the QuadPack family, the primary ISS-compatible CubeSat deployer for 12U and 16U payloads (Nanoracks/NRCSD-compatible), alongside the DuoPack for smaller clusters, the Deep Space Deployer (DSD) for non-LEO applications, and the Modular Deployment Sequencer for managing multi-satellite release sequences.[^quadpack][^dsd][^mds] The DSD was selected by ESA for the Hera planetary defence mission (launched October 2024), deploying the Milani and Juventas CubeSats toward the Didymos asteroid system.[^isispace-hera]

ISILAUNCH, ISISPACE's launch services division, acts as a rideshare broker and integration coordinator, aggregating satellite slots across launch vehicles including SpaceX Falcon 9 Transporter missions, PSLV, and others. By 2024 ISISPACE reported more than 700 satellites successfully launched across its ISILAUNCH-facilitated missions.[^isispace-company]

ISISPACE is privately held, headquartered in Delft, and serves more than 300 customers and partners across 50 countries. Active contracts as of 2025-2026 include the TANGO greenhouse gas monitoring constellation for ESA Scout and a LEO2VLEO constellation launch agreement with EDA.[^isispace-newsroom]

description:
Dutch CubeSat platform, subsystem, and deployment systems manufacturer headquartered in Delft. Founded in 2006, ISISPACE serves more than 300 customers and partners across 50 countries, offering CubeSat buses from 3U to 16U, electrical power systems, GaAs solar panels, and deployers including the QuadPack family. The ISILAUNCH division acts as a rideshare launch broker. By 2024 more than 700 satellites had been launched across ISILAUNCH-facilitated missions.

sources:
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atlas_id: 3666c2b3-7620-4b6b-afd0-6bf5dae316ed
slug: isro
status: live
name: Indian Space Research Organisation
aliases: ["ISRO"]
kind: agency
country: India
website: https://www.isro.gov.in
operator_domains: ["isro.gov.in"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
India's national space agency, established in 1969 under the Department of Space and reporting to the Prime Minister. Headquartered in Bengaluru at Antariksh Bhavan, ISRO employs approximately 14,637 staff (March 2026) across its network of centres including the Space Applications Centre (SAC), National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC/UR Rao Satellite Centre), and launch complex at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.[^wiki-isro]

ISRO's Earth observation portfolio spans optical and radar imaging at scales from sub-metre to regional. The Cartosat series provides very high resolution optical coverage: Cartosat-3 (2019) operates a 0.25 m panchromatic and 1 m multispectral camera with a 16 km swath from 509 km SSO, enabling detailed infrastructure and urban mapping.[^eoportal-c3] The Resourcesat series sustains medium-resolution multi-scale coverage for agriculture and land use: the current satellite, Resourcesat-2A (2016), carries LISS-4 at 5.8 m, LISS-3 at 23.5 m, and AWiFS at 56 m, all in VNIR and SWIR bands.[^wiki-r2a][^isro-r2a] RISAT-2B (2019) and EOS-04 (2022) provide C- and X-band SAR capability for all-weather surface and soil moisture observation.[^wiki-risat2b][^wiki-eos04] HySIS (2018) delivers 60-band VNIR and 256-band SWIR hyperspectral data at 30 m resolution.[^wiki-hysi] Ocean colour, wind vectors, and sea surface temperature are measured by the Oceansat series; EOS-06 (Oceansat-3, 2022) carries OCM-3, OSCAT-3, and SSTM instruments.[^wiki-oceansat] NISAR (2025), a joint mission with NASA, carries dual L- and S-band SAR at 5-10 m resolution with all data freely released within two days of acquisition.[^wiki-nisar]

Launch services are built around the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), which has achieved 58 successful flights out of 63 attempts and has placed 360 foreign satellites from 36 countries into orbit (as of December 2024).[^wiki-pslv] The GSLV Mk II serves medium-to-geostationary payloads (2,500 kg to GTO); LVM3 is India's heaviest operational rocket. SSLV provides small satellite launch services.[^wiki-gslv][^wiki-isro] Commercial operations are channelled through two government entities: NewSpace India Limited (NSIL, incorporated 2019), which manages commercial launch contracts and satellite services, and Antrix Corporation (established 1992), ISRO's original international marketing arm.[^nsil-about][^wiki-antrix] EO data access is provided through the Bhuvan geospatial portal, operated by NRSC, for visualisation of IRS imagery.[^bhuvan]

description:
India's national space agency, responsible for space science, technology, and applications. Operates the PSLV, GSLV Mk II, LVM3, and SSLV launch vehicles from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (Sriharikota). Operates Earth observation satellite programmes including RESOURCESAT, CARTOSAT, OCEANSAT, RISAT (SAR), and the EOS series. Communications and navigation satellite operator (INSAT, GSAT, NavIC). Commercial launches and EO data sales are channelled through NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), ISRO's commercial arm established 2019.

sources:
[{"id":"wiki-isro","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Space_Research_Organisation","title":"Indian Space Research Organisation, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-c3","url":"https://eoportal.org/satellite-missions/cartosat-3","title":"Cartosat-3, eoPortal satellite missions","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-r2a","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resourcesat-2A","title":"Resourcesat-2A, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"isro-r2a","url":"https://www.isro.gov.in/RESOURCESAT-2A.html","title":"Resourcesat-2A, ISRO official","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-risat2b","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RISAT-2B","title":"RISAT-2B, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-eos04","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EOS-04","title":"EOS-04, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-hysi","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HySIS","title":"HySIS, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-oceansat","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oceansat","title":"Oceansat, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-nisar","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NISAR_(satellite)","title":"NISAR, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-pslv","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PSLV","title":"PSLV, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-gslv","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GSLV","title":"GSLV, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nsil-about","url":"https://www.nsilindia.co.in/about-us","title":"About NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), ISRO commercial arm","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-antrix","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antrix_Corporation","title":"Antrix Corporation, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"bhuvan","url":"https://bhuvan.nrsc.gov.in/","title":"Bhuvan, Indian Geo Platform of ISRO","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 67371fd3-3bd8-4bcf-bdfd-89f7c070894b
slug: jaxa
status: live
name: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
aliases: ["JAXA","JAXA EORC"]
kind: agency
country: Japan
website: https://global.jaxa.jp
operator_domains: ["global.jaxa.jp","jaxa.jp","eorc.jaxa.jp"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is Japan's national space agency, established on 1 October 2003 through the merger of three predecessor organisations: the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS), the National Aerospace Laboratory of Japan (NAL), and the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA).[^jaxa-wiki] Structured as a National Research and Development Agency, JAXA is headquartered in Chofu, Tokyo, with its Earth observation activities centred at the Earth Observation Research Center (EORC), part of the First Space Technology Directorate.[^jaxa-eorc]

JAXA's principal EO programme is the Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS) series, based on L-band synthetic aperture radar. ALOS-2 (Daichi-2), launched May 2014 and carrying PALSAR-2, remains operational in extended mode alongside its successor ALOS-4 (Daichi-4), launched July 2024 and equipped with PALSAR-3.[^eoportal-alos2][^eoportal-alos4] PALSAR-3 provides 3 m resolution over a 200 km swath in Stripmap mode, a fourfold swath expansion over PALSAR-2 at equivalent resolution, enabling faster disaster response and improved deforestation monitoring. JAXA acts as system authority for both missions; satellite development is contracted to Mitsubishi Electric.[^eoportal-alos2]

In greenhouse gas observation, JAXA operates the GOSAT (Ibuki) series in partnership with Japan's Ministry of the Environment and the National Institute for Environmental Studies. GOSAT-1, launched in 2009, and GOSAT-2, launched in 2018, both continue in extended operation as of 2025-2026, measuring CO2 and methane column densities across sub-continental scales.[^eoportal-gosat][^eoportal-gosat2] Their successor, GOSAT-GW, launched June 2025 as the final flight of the H-IIA rocket, carries TANSO-3 for greenhouse gas observation alongside AMSR3 for water cycle measurements.[^wikipedia-gosat-gw]

JAXA's Global Change Observation Mission (GCOM) series addresses the water and carbon cycles. GCOM-W (Shizuku), launched 2012 with the AMSR2 microwave radiometer, reached its tenth year of operation in 2022 and has been superseded operationally by GOSAT-GW carrying AMSR3.[^gcom-w-eorc] GCOM-C (Shikisai), launched December 2017 with the SGLI optical-infrared sensor (380 nm - 12 um, 250 m - 1 km resolution), monitors carbon cycle dynamics, aerosol transport, and ocean color globally every two to three days.[^gcom-c-jaxa]

JAXA provides ISS Japanese Experiment Module Exposed Facility (JEM-EF) accommodation for the Hyperspectral Imager Suite (HISUI), launched 2019. The instrument was built by AIST and the mission is operated by Japan Space Systems (JSS) under METI funding; radiometric calibration updates have continued through 2026, past the nominal 3-year mission life. HISUI covers 0.4-2.5 um in 185 spectral bands at 20 m x 30 m GSD over a 20 km swath.[^eoportal-hisui] Himawari-8 and Himawari-9, the geostationary meteorological satellites at 140.7 deg East providing full-disk coverage every 10 minutes across 16 AHI channels, are owned and operated by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA); JAXA EORC contributes data processing and distribution support.[^eoportal-himawari]

JAXA distributes EO data through G-Portal (gportal.jaxa.jp), its primary open-access satellite data distribution platform requiring registration for download. EORC produces derived data products including the PALSAR Annual Forest/Non-Forest Map and the JJ-FAST tropical deforestation alert system, the latter jointly with JICA.[^jaxa-eorc][^jaxa-jjfast]

On the launch side, JAXA developed the H-IIA medium-lift rocket in partnership with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, completing 49 successful flights before retirement on its 50th and final mission in June 2025.[^wikipedia-hiia] The successor H3, developed by JAXA and MHI, completed its first successful launch in February 2024 and is now operational.[^wikipedia-h3] The small solid-fuel Epsilon rocket, operated by IHI Aerospace, retired in 2022 following a sixth-launch attitude-control failure; its successor Epsilon S targets launch in late 2026.[^wikipedia-epsilon]

description:
Japan's national space agency, formed 2003 from merger of ISAS, NAL, and NASDA. Operator of ALOS SAR series, GOSAT greenhouse gas satellites, GCOM climate observation missions, and HISUI hyperspectral ISS instrument. Launch authority for H-IIA (retired), H3 (operational), and Epsilon-S (in development).

sources:
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atlas_id: 67c33e95-0e90-411a-b004-344765f60a98
slug: jica
status: live
name: Japan International Cooperation Agency
aliases: ["JICA"]
kind: agency
country: Japan
website: https://www.jica.go.jp/english/
operator_domains: ["jica.go.jp"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-18T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) is Japan's bilateral overseas development assistance implementing body, established in August 1974 through the consolidation of the Overseas Technical Cooperation Agency and Japan Emigration Service.[^jica-history] It operates as an Incorporated Administrative Agency (dokuritsu gyosei hojin) under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, governed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency Law.

In the Earth observation domain, JICA is not an EO operator, sensor manufacturer, or data processing entity. Its engagement with EO is institutional: JICA provides the international cooperation framework that enables EO-derived information systems to reach developing-country governments. The primary example is JJ-FAST (JICA-JAXA Forest Early Warning System in the Tropics), a tropical deforestation alert system co-developed with JAXA, with data updates first documented from 2016.[^jjfast-main]

Within JJ-FAST, JICA's contribution is the ODA implementation layer: engagement with partner-country ministries and forestry agencies, capacity building for interpreting and acting on alert data, and institutional facilitation that embeds the system in government workflows across tropical-forest countries in South America, Central America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania. JAXA provides all technical infrastructure: ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 L-band SAR data, the detection algorithm (v4.2 launched April 2026), and the public alert portal at JAXA EORC. The JICA-first naming of JJ-FAST reflects the ODA partnership structure, not technical primacy.[^jjfast-main]

JJ-FAST alert data is distributed via Global Forest Watch (GFW/WRI) and the JAXA EORC portal, with API access available for registered users since September 2021. The system operates on approximately a 14-16 day update cycle. Partners include the Forest Governance Initiative and the International Tropical Timber Organization. The system experienced a temporary service interruption from December 2024, with operations resuming around April 2026 following the v4.2 algorithm launch.

JICA is led by President TANAKA Akihiko in his second term since April 2022.[^jica-president]

description:
Japan's bilateral ODA implementing agency; institutional co-developer of JJ-FAST tropical deforestation alert system with JAXA (PALSAR-2 SAR-based). Contributes ODA implementation framework, partner-country engagement, and capacity building. Not an EO operator or data processor.

sources:
[{"id":"jica-history","url":"https://www.jica.go.jp/english/about/history/index.html","title":"History of JICA","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"jica-president","url":"https://www.jica.go.jp/english/about/president/index.html","title":"President's Desk, JICA","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"jjfast-main","url":"https://www.eorc.jaxa.jp/jjfast/","title":"JJ-FAST, JICA-JAXA Forest Early Warning System in the Tropics","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: d0aff40a-c124-40cf-b32a-6d7b19cf90e3
slug: kayhan-space
status: live
name: Kayhan Space
aliases: ["Kayhan","Kayhan Space Corp"]
kind: commercial
country: US
website: https://kayhan.space
operator_domains: ["kayhan.space","kayhanspace.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Kayhan Space Corp. is a US commercial software company founded in 2019, headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado.[^osc-pathfinder-2024] The company builds space situational awareness (SSA) and space traffic coordination (STC) software for satellite operators.

The company's primary offering is the Satcat Product Suite, launched in February 2025, which unifies real-time space object data aggregation with autonomous collision avoidance and operator-to-operator coordination tools.[^satcat-launch-2025] The suite covers over 60,000 tracked objects from 12+ public data sources. Prior to the Satcat unification, the company's flagship product was Pathfinder, a subscription platform for conjunction risk assessment and autonomous collision avoidance maneuver planning. Pathfinder 3.0 (beta, Fall 2023) added machine-to-machine space traffic coordination based on Space Safety Coalition Best Practices.[^seed-ext-2023]

Named commercial customers include Capella Space, Globalstar, and Lynk Global, following beta deployments.[^pathfinder-launch-2022] As of 2025, the platform has surpassed 50 satellite operator customers. The company holds multiple US government contracts via SBIR/STTR programs, with relationships spanning DoD, Space Force, Air Force, and NASA.[^breaking-defense-2022] The Office of Space Commerce selected Kayhan as a data quality monitor for its Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS) Consolidated Pathfinder programme in 2024.[^osc-pathfinder-2024] Total funding raised stands at approximately $11M across three rounds through September 2023.[^seed-ext-2023]

Kayhan Space is not a sensor manufacturer, constellation operator, or data product distributor. Its relevance to the EO-Atlas catalogue is as a software infrastructure vendor serving smallsat and commercial EO operators who appear elsewhere in the catalogue, including constellation operators dependent on collision avoidance tools as their fleets grow.

description:
SSA and space traffic coordination (STC) software vendor for satellite operators. Products: Satcat Product Suite (unified SSA/STC platform), formerly Pathfinder (collision avoidance). Customers: commercial and government satellite operators. US commercial.

sources:
[{"id":"osc-pathfinder-2024","url":"https://space.commerce.gov/office-of-space-commerce-announces-commercial-partners-for-new-tracss-pathfinder-project/","title":"Office of Space Commerce: Commercial Partners for New TraCSS Pathfinder Project","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"satcat-launch-2025","url":"https://www.prweb.com/releases/kayhan-space-launches-satcat-product-suite-the-industrys-first-unified-space-intelligence-and-operations-platform-302366200.html","title":"Kayhan Space: Satcat Product Suite launch announcement, PRWeb","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"seed-ext-2023","url":"https://payloadspace.com/kayhan-space-closes-7m-seed-extension-updates-pathfinder/","title":"Payload Space: Kayhan Space closes 7M seed extension, updates Pathfinder","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"pathfinder-launch-2022","url":"https://www.satellitetoday.com/technology/2022/08/09/kayhan-space-debuts-spaceflight-safety-platform-pathfinder/","title":"Via Satellite: Kayhan Space debuts spaceflight safety platform Pathfinder","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"breaking-defense-2022","url":"https://breakingdefense.com/2022/10/kayhan-space-building-momentum-and-dod-interest-with-collision-avoidance-software/","title":"Breaking Defense: Kayhan Space building momentum and DoD interest with collision avoidance software","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wikipedia-kayhan","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kayhan_Space","title":"Wikipedia: Kayhan Space","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Discrepancy noted: HQ cited as Boulder by Wikipedia (community tier) vs Broomfield CO by OSC September 2024 announcement (agency-doc tier). Broomfield used in body as more recent agency-doc source. Funding figure: Payload Space (third-party, Sep 2023) cites $11M across three rounds; CB Insights (aggregator, 2024) cites $12M across four rounds. $11M used in body as more precisely documented; CB Insights extra round not corroborated.


atlas_id: 5b2559cb-9b77-4d66-915c-b555a32f411d
slug: kp-labs
status: live
name: KP Labs
aliases: ["KP LABS"]
kind: commercial
country: Poland
website: https://kplabs.space
operator_domains: ["kplabs.space"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
KP Labs (KP Labs Sp. z o.o.) is a Polish private space technology company founded in 2016 in Gliwice, Poland, by graduates of the Silesian University of Technology.[^kp-about] The company designs and manufactures onboard data processing units (DPUs), flight software, AI algorithms, and cloud validation infrastructure for nano and small satellites, and operates Intuition-1, its own 6U hyperspectral CubeSat in orbit since November 2023.[^kp-about][^eoportal]

KP Labs' core hardware product line spans three DPU tiers targeting different satellite classes. The Antelope DPU (PC/104, 160 GOPS, Zynq UltraScale+ ZU2-ZU5) targets CubeSats and completed an 8-week in-orbit demonstration in 2023. The Leopard DPU (PC/104, 3 TOPS demonstrated in orbit, 5-20 W, Zynq UltraScale+ ZU6/9/15EG) targets micro and mini satellites and is the onboard processor on Intuition-1, where it runs the Xilinx Vitis AI framework to execute quantised convolutional neural networks for cloud detection, image segmentation, and hyperspectral data compression in real time.[^eoportal][^leopard-page] The Lion DPU (ADHA 3U module, Kintex UltraScale KU060, up to 30 W, SpaceWire and SpaceFiber interfaces) targets medium and large satellites and carries an ESA Mission Class III/IV rating.[^lion-page]

Intuition-1 is the company's primary flight-heritage demonstrator. Launched 9 November 2023 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 (Transporter-9) rideshare into a 535 km SSO at 97.5 deg inclination, the 6U CubeSat (12 kg, bus by AAC Clyde Space) carries the Eagle Hyperspectral Imager (192 bands, 465-940 nm, 25 m GSD, 40 km swath) and a Leopard DPU.[^eoportal] The mission is funded by Poland's National Centre for Research and Development (2023-2027). ESA Phi-lab contributed machine learning pipeline development through the Genesis FutureEO activity, and ESA classifies Intuition-1 as a Phi-lab-enabled satellite.[^esa-philab] The Leopard DPU demonstrated uninterrupted deep-learning inference in orbit over its first year, reducing scene data volumes from approximately 7 GB to 70 MB through onboard AI processing.[^kp-intuition1]

On the software side, Oryx is KP Labs' mission and payload flight software stack, flown on Intuition-1. The Herd is an algorithm suite with flight heritage on Intuition-1 and ESA's Phi-sat-2 (launched August 2024); it covers CNN-based cloud detection, vegetation indices, semantic segmentation, object detection, hyperspectral classification, and satellite telemetry anomaly detection.[^theherd]

Smart Mission Lab (SML) is a Hardware-as-a-Service cloud platform developed under the ESA InCubed SMEaaS contract, launched commercially in March 2025. It provides remote access to flight-representative Antelope, Leopard, and Lion DPU hardware for pre-flight algorithm validation. The InCubed contract (prime contractor: KP Labs) closed on 28 May 2025 with all deliverables accepted.[^kp-incubed]

KP Labs received the inaugural ESA Supplier Performance Award (Innovation) at ESA Industry Space Days in September 2024, recognising the high volume of innovative proposals submitted over three years.[^esa-award] The company also contributes AI algorithms to ESA's M-Argo asteroid CubeSat mission and developed the GLOWS Lyman-alpha photometer instrument for NASA's IMAP heliosphere mission (in collaboration with CBK PAN) since 2021.[^kp-about]

description:
Polish onboard satellite data processing and AI company headquartered in Gliwice, founded 2016 as a Silesian University of Technology spinout. Polish Ministry of Science R&D Centre designation. Smart Mission Ecosystem product line: Leopard DPU (flagship onboard data processing unit for micro/mini/CubeSat-class, PC-104 compatible, deep neural network inference for real-time data reduction and object detection, compatible with the Simera Sense HyperScape100), Lion DPU (50-500 kg satellite class), The Herd algorithm suite for onboard image correction and EO analytics, Oasis EGSE for ground-side validation, and Smart Mission Lab cloud platform for AI/DPU validation with access to space-grade DPUs within 48 hours. 7 active space missions with collaborations including ESA, NASA, OHB, AAC Clyde Space, and OpenCosmos. Intuition-1 (6U hyperspectral CubeSat, SpaceX Transporter-9 November 2023) is the key flight-heritage demonstrator. ESA Supplier Performance Award (Innovation) 2024.

sources:
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atlas_id: 94a0abc9-7e35-405f-8c72-35859347ef3b
slug: ksat
status: live
confidence: 0.85
verification_status: verified
name: KSAT (Kongsberg Satellite Services)
aliases: ["KSAT","Kongsberg Satellite Services"]
kind: commercial
country: Norway
website: https://www.ksat.no
operator_domains: ["ksat.no"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
KSAT (Kongsberg Satellite Services) is a Norwegian commercial ground station network operator and EO analytics service provider, headquartered in Tromsø and incorporated in 2002. The company traces its operational heritage to the Tromsø Telemetry Station inaugurated in 1967 and the Svalbard Satellite Station (SvalSat) established at Plataaberget in 1997.[^ksat-about]

KSAT is owned equally (50/50) by Space Norway AS, a Norwegian state enterprise, and Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace AS, a subsidiary of the publicly listed Kongsberg Gruppen technology group.[^ksat-about] The company employs more than 600 staff, the majority at Tromsø headquarters.[^ksat-about]

The ground segment infrastructure is the company's structural asset. KSAT operates a global network of several hundred antennas across 40+ locations spanning polar to equatorial latitudes.[^ksat-about] SvalSat, at 78 degrees North on Spitsbergen, hosts more than 100 antennas and provides a contact window on every orbit for polar-orbiting EO satellites.[^svalsat-wiki] The Troll Satellite Station at 72 degrees South in Antarctica, operational since 2007, provides complementary southern polar coverage.[^ksat-about] Together, SvalSat and Troll enable near-continuous downlink coverage for sun-synchronous and polar-orbiting missions. The main network supports X-band, S-band, Ka-band, and other frequency bands and serves traditional large EO platforms, communications satellites, and science missions across LEO, MEO, GEO, and HEO.

KSATlite is KSAT's dedicated service tier for small satellites and constellations. Celebrating its tenth operational year in April 2026, KSATlite operates 135 antennas across 26 globally distributed stations and serves over 150 satellite operators for Earth observation, satellite communications, and IoT applications.[^ksatlite-page] The service is API-driven and fully automated, supporting S-band, X-band, and Ka-band contacts.[^ksatlite-page]

Beyond downlink and mission operations, KSAT provides EO analytics services including environmental monitoring (oil spill detection with more than 20 years of operational history, fisheries surveillance, InSAR land deformation, and forestry monitoring) and maritime situational awareness via its Vake platform, which fuses SAR satellite imagery and AIS data to detect and track dark vessels.[^ksat-env]

description:
Norwegian commercial ground station network operator and EO analytics service provider, headquartered in Tromsø. Operates a global network of several hundred antennas across 40+ locations spanning polar to equatorial latitudes, with flagship sites at SvalSat (78 N, Svalbard, 100+ antennas) and Troll (72 S, Antarctica). Provides mission operations, TT&C, downlink, and data delivery services for EO, communications, and smallsat operators via KSATmax (full-service) and KSATlite (automated, constellation-scale). Owned 50/50 by Space Norway AS and Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace AS.

sources:
[{"id":"ksat-about","url":"https://www.ksat.no/about-us","title":"KSAT, About Us","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ksatlite-page","url":"https://www.ksat.no/ground-network-services/ksatlite/","title":"KSAT, KSATlite service","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ksat-env","url":"https://www.ksat.no/earth-observation/environmental-monitoring/","title":"KSAT, Environmental Monitoring","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"svalsat-wiki","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svalbard_Satellite_Station","title":"Wikipedia, Svalbard Satellite Station","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: c4557429-3dd7-4c16-a599-23777bd94db9
slug: kuva-space
status: live
name: Kuva Space
aliases: ["Kuva Space Oy"]
kind: commercial
country: Finland
website: https://kuvaspace.com
operator_domains: ["kuvaspace.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Kuva Space (legal name: Kuva Space Oy) is a Finnish commercial hyperspectral Earth observation company headquartered in Espoo, Finland. Founded in 2016 as Reaktor Space Lab, a spin-off from software consultancy Reaktor in collaboration with Aalto University satellite researchers, the company rebranded as Kuva Space in September 2021 after pivoting from hardware contracting to a data-driven insights-as-a-service model.[^kuva-home][^kuva-16-6m]

Kuva operates the Hyperfield constellation, a commercial hyperspectral smallsat programme. The constellation's first generation comprises 6U XL CubeSats (12 kg) carrying a patented piezo-actuated Fabry-Perot interferometer (PFPI) hyperspectral imager co-developed with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland.[^eoportal-hyperfield] The instrument operates as a tunable bandpass filter across 475-950 nm (VNIR), acquiring up to 160 spectral bands at 25 m GSD and 50 km swath.[^eoportal-hyperfield] The tunable acquisition mode concentrates imaging exposure on a narrower spectral slice per step, improving per-band SNR compared to simultaneous pushbroom architectures, at the cost of requiring multiple acquisition passes to cover the full spectral range.

Hyperfield-1A launched August 16, 2024 on SpaceX Transporter-11, and Hyperfield-1B launched June 23, 2025 on SpaceX Transporter-14, both from Vandenberg Space Force Base.[^eoportal-hyperfield][^kuva-1b-launch] Both satellites are operational as of mid-2026. A second generation of 70 kg microsatellites (Hyperfield-2) is planned for H2 2026, adding SWIR coverage (400-1650 nm), 15 m GSD, onboard GPU processing, AIS receivers, and propulsion capability for 2-6 satellites in the first tranche.[^kuva-satellites-page]

The constellation targets 100 satellites by 2030 for sub-daily global monitoring. Kuva's business model is annual subscription or licensing for processed insights (agriculture, aquaculture, environmental monitoring, maritime domain awareness, security/defense) delivered within minutes of acquisition via the Kuva Sense analytics platform. The company does not sell raw imagery.

Kuva holds a EUR 5M, five-year Copernicus Contributing Mission contract from ESA (June 2023), making it the designated commercial hyperspectral data provider to the Copernicus programme.[^esa-ccm] The company has raised approximately EUR 22.5M in total funding from Voima Ventures, Nordic Foodtech VC, Earth VC, Springvest, VTT, ESA InCubed, and Business Finland as of early 2024.[^kuva-16-6m] Kuva established a Fairfax, Virginia office in early 2024 to pursue US government and commercial customers, with board member Jerry Welsh (former ICEYE US CEO) leading the effort.[^breaking-defense-us]

description:
Kuva Space Oy is a Finnish commercial hyperspectral Earth observation company operating the Hyperfield smallsat constellation from Espoo, Finland. The company uses a patented piezo-actuated Fabry-Perot interferometer payload on 6U CubeSat platforms, providing tunable VNIR hyperspectral data (475-950 nm, up to 160 bands, 25 m GSD) as processed insights via an annual subscription model. Founded in 2016 as Reaktor Space Lab (Reaktor/Aalto University spin-off), rebranded 2021. Two Gen-1 satellites operational (2024, 2025); Gen-2 microsatellites with SWIR and onboard processing planned for H2 2026. ESA Copernicus Contributing Mission contract holder (EUR 5M, 2023-2028).

sources:
[{"id":"kuva-home","url":"https://kuvaspace.com","title":"Kuva Space, company home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-hyperfield","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/hyperfield","title":"eoPortal, Hyperfield constellation mission profile","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-ccm","url":"https://kuvaspace.com/en/resources/press-release-kuva-space-awarded-e5m-commercial-contract-to-be-sole-provider-of-hyperspectral-data-services-for-the-copernicus-program","title":"Kuva Space press release, EUR 5M Copernicus CCM contract","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"kuva-16-6m","url":"https://kuvaspace.com/en/resources/kuva-space-raises-e16-6m-funding-round-to-launch-its-microsatellite-constellation-and-observe-the-molecular-composition-of-any-material-on-earth","title":"Kuva Space press release, EUR 16.6M funding round","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"kuva-1b-launch","url":"https://kuvaspace.com/en/resources/kuva-space-launches-hyperfield-1b-satellite","title":"Kuva Space press release, Hyperfield-1B launch","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"kuva-satellites-page","url":"https://kuvaspace.com/en/technology/satellites","title":"Kuva Space, next-gen hyperspectral satellite fleet technology page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"breaking-defense-us","url":"https://breakingdefense.com/2024/02/finnish-hyperspectral-satellite-firm-kuva-moves-into-us-market/","title":"Breaking Defense, Kuva Space moves into US market","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Fact sheet 2026-05-24. Sources: eoPortal Hyperfield page (tier 2 aggregator, post-launch), ESA InCubed portfolio (agency), Kuva press releases (operator-press), BreakingDefense (third-party). Discrepancies: (1) Gen 1 spectral range 475-950nm / 160 bands used (current operational); earlier 2021 press cited 400-1100nm / 50 bands -- pre-flight spec. (2) Launch date 1A: Aug 16, 2024 (SpaceX manifest) vs Aug 19 in Kuva PR. (3) Launch date 1B: Jun 23, 2025 (SpaceX manifest) vs Jun 24 in Kuva PR. (4) VTT is co-developer + investor, not spin-off parent (spawn prompt was incorrect; Reaktor is the spin-off parent). Unverified: SNR quantified figure; CH4 detection Gen 1 (VNIR-only, implausible via direct spectroscopy); NATO DIANA specific selection; H1 2025 funding round. Methane detection claimed by ESA CCM contract -- applies to Gen 2 SWIR only.


atlas_id: 3f19d698-a2e5-4e25-8136-fbc03d3c5384
slug: loft-orbital
status: live
name: Loft Orbital
aliases: ["Loft Orbital Solutions"]
kind: commercial
country: United States
website: https://www.loftorbital.com
operator_domains: ["loftorbital.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Loft Orbital is a US-French space infrastructure company that operates the YAM (Yet Another Mission) series of multi-payload smallsats and provides mission-as-a-service (MaaS) for commercial, government, and defense customers. Founded in January 2017 by Pierre-Damien Vaujour (CEO), Alex Greenberg (COO), and Antoine de Chassy (President), all formerly at Spire Global, the company abstracts satellite operations behind two software layers: the Hub universal payload adapter, which standardises hardware integration across bus platforms, and Cockpit, a mission control interface accessible via web UI or REST API.[^loft-home]

The YAM satellite series, operated in low Earth orbit at roughly 540 km altitude, has carried payloads for customers spanning Earth observation, maritime domain awareness, edge AI, and defense. YAM-8, launched March 15, 2025 on SpaceX Transporter-13, introduced the Longbow platform, an adaptation of the Airbus Arrow 150 bus developed under ESA GSTP and CNES co-funding.[^esa-gstp][^yam8-blog] Earlier YAM missions used prior bus configurations. YAM-9, launched November 28, 2025, hosts Wyvern's Dragonette-005 hyperspectral camera and demonstrates the next-generation Hub Compute architecture with networked heterogeneous processing units.[^yam9-blog]

Loft operates as an infrastructure intermediary, procuring standardised buses (Airbus Longbow, LeoStella) rather than manufacturing them, and provides integration, launch campaign management, and on-orbit operations. As of January 2025, the company had logged over $500 million in cumulative bookings across more than 30 satellite programs, with named programs including a 10-satellite constellation for EarthDaily Analytics, hyperspectral payload hosting for Wyvern and Esper, and a multi-sensor LEO constellation for defense AI company Helsing scheduled for 2026 launch.[^tc-series-c][^helsing-pr]

In January 2026, Loft was named prime contractor for DESIR, France's first sovereign space-based radar imaging demonstrator, in a consortium with Thales Alenia Space and TEKEVER France. The satellite will use the Longbow platform; initial operational service is targeted for early 2029.[^desir-pr] Loft also operates through Loft Federal, a FOCI-mitigated US subsidiary serving classified national security programs, and Orbitworks, a joint venture with UAE-based Marlan Space established in August 2024 targeting 500 kg-class satellite production in Abu Dhabi.[^orbitworks-pr]

Loft closed a Series C round of EUR 170 million in January 2025, led by Tikehau Capital and Axial Partners with participation from Bpifrance, Temasek, and others, bringing total funding to approximately $330 million.[^tc-series-c] The Series C valuation was not formally disclosed; reports placed it above $1 billion based on company and investor communications.[^sifted-series-c]

description:
US space infrastructure operator providing hosted-payload and virtual-mission services through the Cockpit SDK platform. Founded 2017. Closed a USD 170M Series C in January 2025 at a unicorn valuation. Now prime on the French DESIR programme and a Helsing-led EU sovereign mission. As of early 2026, more than 30 payload customers are on the waitlist for upcoming spacecraft slots, making the company inbound-constrained rather than demand-constrained. Discovery via conferences, press, and contact form; no public pricing. Customer-facing technology stack is the Cockpit REST API and the HubKit SDK for post-contract integration.

sources:
[{"id":"loft-home","url":"https://www.loftorbital.com","title":"Loft Orbital, home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"yam8-blog","url":"https://loftorbital.com/yam-8-entering-the-longbow-era/","title":"Loft Orbital, YAM-8: Entering the Longbow Era","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"yam9-blog","url":"https://loftorbital.com/yam-9-benchmarking-the-future-of-ai-enabled-space-infrastructure/","title":"Loft Orbital, YAM-9: Advancing Missions, Compute, and Innovation in Orbit","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-gstp","url":"https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Space_Engineering_Technology/Shaping_the_Future/GSTP_co-funds_development_for_new_Loft_Orbital_satellite_platform","title":"ESA, GSTP co-funds development for new Loft Orbital satellite platform","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"tc-series-c","url":"https://techcrunch.com/2025/01/15/loft-orbital-lands-a-fresh-170-million-after-logging-over-500-million-of-bookings/","title":"TechCrunch, Loft Orbital lands a fresh $170M after logging over $500M of bookings","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"sifted-series-c","url":"https://sifted.eu/articles/loft-orbital-170m-series-c-news","title":"Sifted, French space tech Loft Orbital hits billion-dollar valuation with EUR170m raise","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"desir-pr","url":"https://loftorbital.com/loft-selected-as-prime-contractor-for-frances-first-space-based-radar-imaging-program/","title":"Loft Orbital press release, DESIR prime contractor selection","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"helsing-pr","url":"https://loftorbital.com/helsing-and-loft-orbital-join-forces-to-deploy-europes-first-ai-powered-multi-sensor-satellite-constellation-for-governmental-defense-and-security-applications/","title":"Loft Orbital press release, Helsing partnership","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"orbitworks-pr","url":"https://loftorbital.com/loft-marlan-space-launch-first-satellite-production-company-in-middle-east/","title":"Loft Orbital press release, Orbitworks JV with Marlan Space","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Platform assignment for YAM-3, YAM-5, YAM-6 in D1 missions table shows platform=longbow-bus but Longbow debuted on YAM-8 (March 2025). Earlier YAMs used LeoStella or unspecified earlier bus. Correct mission platform FKs for YAM-3, YAM-5, YAM-6 before those mission bodies are written. Cockpit-sdk product has kind=consortium-platform; the product is a mission control SaaS, closer to analysis-service in spirit. Worth reviewing at product edit time.


atlas_id: 28336c7a-e4db-4057-89e6-34aec32b3dd2
slug: mapbiomas
status: live
verification_status: verified
name: MapBiomas Network
aliases: ["MapBiomas","MapBiomas Brasil","MapBiomas Network"]
kind: consortium
country: Brazil
website: https://mapbiomas.org
operator_domains: ["mapbiomas.org"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
MapBiomas is an open-science consortium founded in 2015 from a seminar convened by Brazil's Climate Observatory to address how annual land use and land cover (LULC) maps could be produced across Brazil at scale, speed, and low cost.[^mapbiomas-about] The network operates as a distributed collaboration of universities, NGOs, and technology companies with no single legal entity or equity structure. Coordination is led by an independent scientific team including Tasso Azevedo (General Coordination), Julia Shimbo (Scientific Coordination), Marcos Rosa (Technical Coordination), and Carlos Souza Jr. (Technical-Scientific Coordination).[^mapbiomas-team]

The core technical infrastructure is Google Earth Engine, which provides cloud compute and access to the full Landsat archive from 1985 onward.[^mapbiomas-about] Annual LULC maps are produced at 30-metre resolution using a Random Forest classifier trained per biome by domain expert teams.[^mapbiomas-method] Up to 105 spectral metrics per pixel are derived annually from Landsat multispectral bands and calculated indices. Brazil's territory requires approximately 380 Landsat scenes per year; the full national dataset covers more than 9 billion pixels.[^mapbiomas-method] The latest annual LULC release, Collection 10.1 (February 2026), covers the period 1985 to 2024.[^mapbiomas-collection101]

Beyond the core annual LULC series, MapBiomas Brasil operates a suite of thematic monitoring systems: MapBiomas Alerta (deforestation alert validation at 3.7 m using Planet imagery, covering all six Brazilian biomes)[^mapbiomas-alerta], a Water module, Fire module (annual and monthly burned areas), Soil, Mining, Pasture, Agriculture, Atmosphere, and Climate Risk layers. A Rural Credit Monitor cross-references land cover with agricultural financing data to flag environmental compliance issues.

The MapBiomas model has been replicated across South America and Southeast Asia. Active national networks span Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela, plus regional biome initiatives covering the Pan-Amazon, Atlantic Forest, and Chaco. MapBiomas Indonesia operates LANDY (LULC mapping), FIRE (burned area monitoring), and ALERTA (deforestation validation) for the Indonesian archipelago, operated by a coalition of Indonesian civil society organizations including Auriga, HAKA, Hutan Institute, and others.[^indonesia-mapbiomas] The network spans South America and Indonesia.

All MapBiomas data, maps, methods, and code are publicly available at no cost via the MapBiomas Platform, Google Earth Engine toolkit, GEE data assets, and direct GeoTIFF download. Users include researchers, policymakers, civil society organizations, and companies engaged in environmental compliance and supply chain due diligence.

description:
Multi-institution consortium coordinating annual land-cover mapping and alert systems across Brazil and Latin America. Members include IPAM Amazonia, Imazon, ISA, SOS Mata Atlantica, UFRGS, LAPIG, Geodatin, ArcPlan, The Nature Conservancy, Imaflora, and approximately 30 additional research and NGO partners. INPE contributes DETER and PRODES data feeds and participates in the Scientific Advisory Committee but is not an operating institution. The consortium has no single institutional operator or legal registration; coordination is led by an independent scientific team (general lead Tasso Azevedo, scientific lead Julia Shimbo, technical lead Marcos Rosa). Administrated through a consortium coordination secretariat funded by grants and philanthropic donors.

sources:
[{"id":"mapbiomas-team","url":"https://brasil.mapbiomas.org/en/equipe","title":"MapBiomas Team page, brasil.mapbiomas.org","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"mapbiomas-about","url":"https://brasil.mapbiomas.org/en/o-projeto","title":"About MapBiomas, O Projeto page, brasil.mapbiomas.org","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"mapbiomas-alerta","url":"https://alerta.mapbiomas.org/en/quem-somos","title":"About MapBiomas Alerta, Quem Somos, alerta.mapbiomas.org","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"mapbiomas-method","url":"https://brasil.mapbiomas.org/en/metodo","title":"MapBiomas methodology page, brasil.mapbiomas.org","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"mapbiomas-collection101","url":"https://brasil.mapbiomas.org/en/2026/02/09/mapbiomas-publica-colecao-10-1-de-mapas-anuais-de-cobertura-e-uso-da-terra-no-brasil/","title":"MapBiomas Collection 10.1 announcement, February 2026, brasil.mapbiomas.org","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"indonesia-mapbiomas","url":"https://indonesia.mapbiomas.org","title":"MapBiomas Indonesia, product and co-creator overview","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Collection numbering: main annual LULC series uses C1-C10.1; thematic modules (Water, Fire, Soil, etc.) have independent version numbering. No registered legal entity; coordination secretariat hosted under Climate Observatory umbrella but MapBiomas is operationally independent. Africa initiative could not be confirmed from primary source (ECONNREFUSED 2026-05-24). EUDR compliance role is community-stated; no tier-1 EU document confirmed. Solved company role unconfirmed.


atlas_id: 6c638481-1fac-4250-b7d6-44a97a525af2
slug: meti
status: live
name: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
aliases: ["METI","MITI"]
kind: agency
country: Japan
website: https://www.meti.go.jp
operator_domains: ["meti.go.jp"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
research_notes: see full fact sheet at vision-architecture/atlas-research/meti
body:
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) is Japan's central government ministry for industrial policy, trade, energy, and natural resources, established on 6 January 2001 from its predecessor Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) under the Central Government Reform [^wiki-meti]. METI's statutory mandate includes "stable and efficient development of mineral and energy resources," which is the explicit policy foundation for its portfolio of satellite Earth observation programmes [^wiki-meti].

METI is not a space agency. It does not build or operate spacecraft. Instead, METI functions as programme funder and policy authority, contracting execution to Japan Space Systems (JSS), a General Incorporated Foundation established under METI supervision through the 2012 merger of three predecessor METI-affiliated foundations [^wiki-jss]. JSS manages METI's EO programme portfolio including data distribution and project operations.

METI's longest-running EO instrument is ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer), a joint programme with NASA launched aboard the Terra spacecraft in December 1999 [^wiki-aster]. ASTER comprises 14 spectral bands across VNIR, SWIR, and TIR, a multispectral instrument, not hyperspectral. METI funded the instrument through JAROS (Japan Resources Observation System Organization) and coordinated development across four Japanese industrial primes: NEC (VNIR), Mitsubishi Electric (SWIR), Fujitsu (TIR), and Hitachi (system integration). NASA operates the Terra spacecraft and distributes ASTER data freely through LP DAAC since April 2016. The SWIR channel has been non-operational since April 2008.

METI's hyperspectral instrument, HISUI (Hyperspectral Imager Suite), launched aboard SpaceX CRS-19 on 5 December 2019 and was installed on the Japan Experiment Module Exposed Facility (JEM EF) of the International Space Station [^jspacesystems-hisui]. HISUI delivers 185 contiguous spectral bands from 400 to 2500 nm, covering the full VNIR and SWIR range diagnostic for mineral and vegetation analysis. AIST (National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology), a METI-affiliated national R&D agency, led instrument design and development; JSS manages project operations and data distribution; JAXA provides ISS accommodation under the JEM EF interface agreement [^jspacesystems-hisui]. METI's resource exploration mandate is the direct funding rationale: the SWIR channel covers diagnostic absorption features for alteration minerals (hydroxyl clays, carbonates, sulphates) relevant to mineral exploration and geological mapping.

HISUI data is distributed via Tellus (tellusxdp.com), a Japanese satellite data platform initiative launched by METI and operated by Sakura Internet. Access is oriented toward Japanese-affiliated organisations; international access through the public portal is limited. Radiometric calibration updates through at least February 2026 confirm active operations beyond the instrument's nominal 3-year mission.

METI also oversaw the ASNARO (Advanced Satellite with New system Architecture for Observation) programme, a series of small EO satellites demonstrating commercial viability, executed by JSS and NEC. ASNARO-1 (sub-metre optical) launched 2014 and ASNARO-2 (X-band SAR) launched 2018; both were subsequently transferred to Vietnamese operator VNSC as part of Japan's capacity-building cooperation.

From an EO-Atlas perspective, METI is a programme funder and policy authority whose EO instruments land in the catalogue as sensor products (HISUI) or instrument nodes (ASTER), with METI as the upstream company FK target. METI itself does not distribute data directly to end users; distribution runs through JSS, LP DAAC (ASTER), or Tellus (HISUI).

description:
Japan's central government ministry for industrial policy, trade, energy, and natural resources (founded 2001 from MITI). Programme authority and funder for HISUI hyperspectral ISS instrument, ASTER multispectral instrument (joint with NASA), and ASNARO small-satellite EO demonstration series, all executed through Japan Space Systems (JSS), a METI-supervised foundation. Also initiated the Tellus satellite data platform (operated by Sakura Internet).

sources:
[{"id":"wiki-meti","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Economy,_Trade_and_Industry","title":"Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-jss","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Space_Systems","title":"Japan Space Systems, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-aster","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Spaceborne_Thermal_Emission_and_Reflection_Radiometer","title":"Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"jspacesystems-hisui","url":"https://www.jspacesystems.or.jp/en/project/observation/hisui/","title":"HISUI project page, Japan Space Systems","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: a9c80e1f-a829-4ece-a687-9277079d350c
slug: nanoavionics
status: live
name: NanoAvionics
aliases: ["NA"]
kind: commercial
country: Lithuania
website: https://nanoavionics.com
operator_domains: ["nanoavionics.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
NanoAvionics is a Lithuanian smallsat platform manufacturer and mission integrator, founded in 2014 as a spin-off from Vilnius University and operating since September 2022 as a subsidiary of Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace (KDA), with management retaining a 23% stake.[^nanoavionics-about] The company does not sell satellite imagery or data; its revenue comes from building platforms, selling subsystems, and integrating complete missions for paying customers.[^nanoavionics-mission-services]

The product line spans nanosatellite buses in four standard form factors (M3P 3U, M6P 6U, M12P 12U, M16P 16U) and the MP42 microsatellite bus, which extends the range to approximately 115-220 kg.[^nanoavionics-about] The M6P platform, introduced in 2018, established the company's commercial presence; the MP42, first launched in April 2022 on a SpaceX Transporter rideshare, marked NanoAvionics's entry into the microsatellite segment.[^nanoavionics-blog-mp42-selfie] All buses integrate an ADCS (reaction wheels, magnetorquers, star trackers), an on-board computer, electrical power system with GaAs solar panels, and UHF/S-Band communications. NanoAvionics manufactures approximately 80% of its satellite subsystems in-house and sells subsystem components separately for integration into third-party designs.[^nanoavionics-home]

Mission services extend beyond hardware: NanoAvionics procures launch slots, manages deployer integration, handles frequency allocation and satellite registration, and operates satellites through its proprietary Mission Control Software with access to over 200 ground stations worldwide and company-owned UHF and S-Band stations in Lithuania.[^nanoavionics-mission-services] Customers have included NASA, ESA, Thales Alenia Space, ONERA (FlyLab satellites, 2026), Eycore (Polish SAR satellite, 2026), and a 280-satellite broadband constellation contract with Meridian Space/SpinLaunch (EUR 122.5M, 2025).[^nanoavionics-news] As of 2026 the company reports 50+ satellites launched and 300+ in production, with 220+ engineers across facilities in Vilnius and Kaunas (Lithuania), Maryland (USA), and Oxfordshire (UK).[^nanoavionics-about]

Kongsberg's acquisition positioned NanoAvionics within KDA's broader space portfolio alongside KSAT (Kongsberg Satellite Services), with a strategic partnership between the two entities formalised in April 2026 for ground station and mission operations integration.[^nanoavionics-news] NanoAvionics maintains its brand identity and Vilnius headquarters as an autonomous subsidiary.

description:
Lithuanian small satellite bus manufacturer and mission integrator, founded 2014 as a Vilnius University spin-off and now a subsidiary of the KONGSBERG Group. End-to-end mission provider: manufactures CubeSat and microsatellite buses (M3P 3U, M6P 6U, M12P 12U, M16P 16U, MP42 microsatellite to 115 kg), integrates payloads, coordinates launches, and operates missions. Agnostic supplier position: NanoAvionics does not sell its own satellite data. 150+ commercial missions delivered, sold to 50+ countries, Q1 2024 average satellite downtime 0.8%. KONGSBERG Group ownership provides industrial manufacturing scale and an April 2026 strategic partnership with KSAT for ground station and mission operations integration.

sources:
[{"id":"nanoavionics-about","url":"https://nanoavionics.com/about/","title":"NanoAvionics, About page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nanoavionics-mission-services","url":"https://nanoavionics.com/mission-services/","title":"NanoAvionics, Mission Services","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nanoavionics-subsystems","url":"https://nanoavionics.com/subsystems/","title":"NanoAvionics, Subsystems product page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nanoavionics-home","url":"https://nanoavionics.com","title":"NanoAvionics, home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nanoavionics-blog-mp42-selfie","url":"https://nanoavionics.com/blog/how-did-we-capture-the-mp42-small-satellite-selfie-in-space/","title":"NanoAvionics blog, MP42 selfie capture","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nanoavionics-blog-mp42-debris","url":"https://nanoavionics.com/blog/nanoavionics-mp42-satellite-survives-impact-with-object-in-orbit/","title":"NanoAvionics blog, MP42 debris survival","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nanoavionics-news","url":"https://nanoavionics.com/news/","title":"NanoAvionics, News archive","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wikipedia-nanoavionics","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NanoAvionics","title":"Wikipedia, NanoAvionics article","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
CEO discrepancy: nanoavionics.com names Atle Wollo as current CEO; Wikipedia names Vytenis J. Buzas. Resolution: Wollo is post-2022 acquisition CEO; Buzas was founder/pre-acquisition CEO; Wikipedia is stale. Body uses Wollo. MP42 mass discrepancy: Wikipedia states up to 115 kg; brochure cover states 220 kg; LinkedIn states 10-500 kg. All operator-asserted, no datasheet accessible. Body states approximately 115-220 kg. Unverified: bus specs (all models, mass, dimensions, power, ADCS pointing accuracy) -- product catalogue gated. Blue Moon platform specs -- brochure gated. Acquisition price -- not disclosed publicly.


atlas_id: fa86c0f5-a8a9-47eb-ba21-92b69962f767
slug: nasa-jpl
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
name: NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
aliases: ["JPL","NASA/JPL","Jet Propulsion Laboratory"]
kind: research-institute
country: United States
website: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov
operator_domains: ["jpl.nasa.gov"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: agency-doc
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) administered by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) under contract for NASA. Founded on 31 October 1936 on a 168-acre site in La Canada Flintridge, California (commonly referenced with its Pasadena mailing address), JPL operates as NASA's lead center for several families of Earth observation missions and for robotic planetary exploration.

JPL's institutional structure distinguishes it from NASA's directly operated field centers. Caltech holds and manages the NASA management contract (currently running through September 2028), and JPL staff are employed by Caltech rather than as federal civil servants. This FFRDC arrangement, confirmed on the NSF Master Government List of FFRDCs as of February 2026, affords JPL a degree of research flexibility not available to direct government units, while keeping it firmly within the NASA mission architecture.[^nsf-ffrdc]

In Earth observation, JPL leads or co-leads a diverse mission portfolio spanning soil moisture, greenhouse gas monitoring, thermal sensing, imaging spectroscopy, gravimetry, radar altimetry, and synthetic aperture radar. The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite, launched January 2015, has delivered continuous L-band radiometry of global soil moisture since April 2015.[^smap-jpl] SMAP soil moisture products are archived at the NSIDC DAAC; L-band radar data at the Alaska Satellite Facility DAAC. On the International Space Station, JPL operates ECOSTRESS (land surface temperature, 70 m resolution, approved through FY2026 with potential extension to FY2029)[^ecostress-jpl] and EMIT, a VSWIR imaging spectrometer (380-2500 nm) mapping surface mineral dust composition.[^emit-jpl]

JPL manages atmospheric carbon monitoring through the OCO-2 satellite (launched July 2014, continuous operations) and OCO-3 (ISS-mounted, operational since 2019), which adds a Snapshot Area Map mode for targeted emission-source scans and solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence measurement.[^oco3-jpl] Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR), aboard NASA's Terra satellite since 1999, provides nine-angle simultaneous imaging across four spectral bands for aerosol and cloud characterisation.[^misr-jpl] The GRACE Follow-On (GRACE-FO) pair, launched May 2018 in partnership with Germany's GFZ, continues monitoring groundwater storage, ice mass, and sea-level change via gravity anomaly tracking.[^grace-jpl]

The most recent addition is NISAR, a joint NASA-ISRO synthetic aperture radar mission launched 30 July 2025 on an ISRO GSLV Mark II vehicle. JPL leads the NASA contribution, delivering the L-band SAR and mission systems; ISRO contributed the S-band SAR and launch. NISAR entered science operations in January 2026, providing global surface deformation observations every approximately six days.[^nisar-nasa] NASA-side NISAR data flows through the Alaska Satellite Facility DAAC; ISRO distributes through Bhoonidhi.

For airborne science, JPL develops and operates the AVIRIS family, the Airborne Visible/InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer lineage comprising the classic AVIRIS (224 channels, 400-2500 nm), AVIRIS-NG, and the current AVIRIS-3, deployed from multiple NASA aircraft platforms for imaging spectroscopy research campaigns globally.[^aviris-jpl]

JPL also hosts the Physical Oceanography Distributed Active Archive Center (PO.DAAC), a NASA EOSDIS DAAC distributing ocean physics, cryosphere, and surface water datasets from missions including SWOT, the JASON altimetry series, and GRACE-FO.

With a workforce of approximately 5,500 (following 2024-2025 reductions) and an annual budget of approximately USD 2.4 billion (FY2022 figure), JPL operates at the intersection of NASA mission execution, fundamental Earth science, and technology development, serving as both an instrument builder, mission lead, and data distribution node for the global EO community.

sources:
[{"id":"nsf-ffrdc","url":"https://ncses.nsf.gov/resource/master-gov-lists-ffrdc","title":"NSF NCSES: Master Government List of Federally Funded Research and Development Centers","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"smap-jpl","url":"https://smap.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/description/","title":"JPL SMAP: Mission Description","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nisar-nasa","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/nisar/mission-overview/","title":"NASA Science: NISAR Mission Overview","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"emit-jpl","url":"https://earth.jpl.nasa.gov/emit/","title":"JPL EMIT: Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ecostress-jpl","url":"https://ecostress.jpl.nasa.gov/","title":"JPL ECOSTRESS: Ecosystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"oco3-jpl","url":"https://ocov3.jpl.nasa.gov/science/","title":"JPL OCO-3: Science Overview","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"misr-jpl","url":"https://misr.jpl.nasa.gov/","title":"JPL MISR: Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"grace-jpl","url":"https://grace.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/grace-fo/","title":"JPL GRACE-FO: Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"aviris-jpl","url":"https://aviris.jpl.nasa.gov/","title":"JPL AVIRIS: Airborne Visible/InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: ac3fe985-e5f5-46be-8dfc-e102793a8cf0
slug: nasa
status: live
name: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
aliases: ["NASA"]
kind: agency
country: USA
website: https://www.nasa.gov
operator_domains: ["nasa.gov"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: agency-doc
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) is the United States' independent federal space agency, established 1 October 1958 under the National Aeronautics and Space Act. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., it operates through six mission directorates; Earth observation programs fall under the Science Mission Directorate's Earth Science Division, which manages a fleet of more than 20 satellites in orbit as of 2026.[^nasa-earth-science]

NASA's largest EO partnership is with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS): the two agencies jointly manage the Landsat program. NASA funds and builds spacecraft while USGS operates the satellites and archives data at the EROS Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Landsat 8 (launched 2013) and Landsat 9 (launched 2021) are the current operational pair, providing 30-meter multispectral coverage with an eight-day repeat cycle when combined.[^landsat-program] Data access is free and open, a policy formalised in 2008.

NASA developed MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer), flying on Terra (1999) and Aqua (2002), which established the daily global surface observation record still used for land cover, fire, sea surface temperature, and aerosol products. VIIRS, the follow-on instrument, flies on the joint NASA-NOAA Suomi NPP mission and the operational NOAA JPSS series (NOAA-20, NOAA-21), continuing this observational record.[^terra-mission][^aqua-mission]

On the International Space Station, NASA operates three EO instruments: GEDI (Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation, 2018), a lidar measuring forest canopy height and biomass; ECOSTRESS (2018), a thermal radiometer detecting plant water stress at field scale; and EMIT (2022), an imaging spectrometer mapping surface mineral composition in arid regions and detecting methane and carbon dioxide point sources.[^gedi-overview]

The Harmonized Landsat-Sentinel (HLS) product, developed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and produced at Marshall Space Flight Center, combines Landsat 8/9 and ESA Sentinel-2 observations into a unified 30-meter analysis-ready surface reflectance time series with approximately 1.4-day global revisit.[^hls-gsfc]

NASA co-operates the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite (launched 2020) in partnership with ESA, EUMETSAT, CNES, NOAA, and the European Commission for continuous sea-level monitoring; Sentinel-6B launched in November 2025. NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar), launched 30 July 2025, is a dual-frequency L- and S-band SAR developed jointly with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), with data archived at the Alaska Satellite Facility DAAC.[^nisar-mission]

Gravitational field observations come from the GRACE-FO mission (launched 2018), a partnership between NASA and GFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences, Helmholtz Association), which measures water mass redistribution including groundwater, ice sheets, and sea level change. SMAP (Soil Moisture Active Passive, 2015) provides global soil moisture and freeze/thaw maps via its L-band radiometer. ICESat-2 (2018) carries the ATLAS photon-counting lidar for ice sheet, glacier, and land elevation monitoring.[^smap-mission][^grace-fo]

NASA distributes all Earth observation data openly and at no cost through EOSDIS, a network of twelve Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs) hosted at partner institutions. Key archives include LP DAAC (land processes, operated jointly with USGS; >14 petabytes), PO.DAAC at JPL (physical oceanography), ASF DAAC at the University of Alaska (SAR), and LAADS DAAC at GSFC (MODIS and VIIRS global products).[^daacs]

NASA-JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) is catalogued as a separate EO-Atlas entity (slug: `nasa-jpl`). JPL is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center managed by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) under a NASA contract. It designs and operates several NASA EO missions, including ECOSTRESS, EMIT, SMAP, GRACE-FO, and Sentinel-6 data products, but is not a NASA organisational unit.

description:
US federal civilian space agency, established October 1958 under the National Aeronautics and Space Act, headquartered in Washington DC. Operates Earth observation missions through 20 field centres, primarily Goddard Space Flight Center (Terra, Aqua, GEDI, Landsat 8/9 space segment) for forestry-relevant work. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL, separate EO-Atlas slug nasa-jpl) handles distinct radar and OPERA programmes. NASA is not a commercial manufacturer; for hardware-builder FKs see Ball Aerospace (acquired by BAE Systems 2023) on OLI and OLI-2.

sources:
[{"id":"nasa-about","url":"https://www.nasa.gov/about/","title":"About NASA","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"nasa-centers","url":"https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/","title":"NASA Centers and Facilities","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"landsat8-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/landsat-8","title":"Landsat 8 Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"landsat9-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/landsat-9","title":"Landsat 9 Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"terra-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/terra/","title":"Terra Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"aqua-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/aqua/","title":"Aqua Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"gedi-overview","url":"https://gedi.umd.edu/mission/mission-overview/","title":"GEDI Mission Overview, University of Maryland","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"modis-about","url":"https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/about/","title":"About MODIS, NASA GSFC","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-18"},{"id":"nasa-earth-science","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/earth-science/","title":"NASA Earth Science Division, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"landsat-program","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/landsat","title":"Landsat Mission Overview, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hls-gsfc","url":"https://hls.gsfc.nasa.gov/","title":"Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2, NASA GSFC","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nisar-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/nisar/","title":"NISAR Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"smap-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/smap/","title":"SMAP Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"grace-fo","url":"https://gracefo.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/overview/","title":"GRACE-FO Mission Overview, JPL","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"daacs","url":"https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/eosdis/daacs","title":"NASA DAACs, Earthdata","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"lp-daac","url":"https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/centers/lp-daac","title":"Land Processes DAAC, NASA Earthdata","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"podaac","url":"https://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/","title":"Physical Oceanography DAAC, JPL","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ecostress-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/ecostress/","title":"ECOSTRESS Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"emit-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/emit/","title":"EMIT Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"icesat2-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/icesat-2/","title":"ICESat-2 Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"sentinel6-mission","url":"https://science.nasa.gov/mission/sentinel-6/","title":"Sentinel-6 Mission, NASA Science","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: ea4304d4-a9fc-449d-bccd-a452ccb25d77
slug: nlsa
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
name: Netherlands Space Agency (NLSA)
aliases: ["NSO","Netherlands Space Office","NLSA"]
kind: agency
country: NL
website: https://nlsa.nl
operator_domains: ["nlsa.nl","spaceoffice.nl","netherlandsspaceoffice.nl"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
The Netherlands Space Agency (NLSA) is the Dutch national government's space agency, operating from The Hague. Established in 2009 as the Netherlands Space Office (NSO) through a merger of the Netherlands Agency for Aerospace Programmes (NIVR) with elements of KNMI and SRON, the organisation was renamed NLSA on 3 March 2026 following the adoption of the Dutch Long-Term Space Agenda.[^nlsa-launch]

NLSA's primary functions are advising the Dutch government on space policy, representing the Netherlands within ESA and other international organisations, and managing the national space programme budget. For the 2026-2028 period the Dutch Cabinet committed EUR 344.3 million to ESA, of which EUR 40-50 million is directed to ESA Earth Observation programmes.[^esa-contribution]

The agency's most prominent EO contribution is the Tropomi (TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument) aboard ESA's Copernicus Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite, launched in October 2017. NSO negotiated and managed the Dutch national contribution of EUR 78 million for the instrument, coordinating a consortium of SRON (immersed grating optics and algorithm development), TNO (telescope and spectrometer systems), KNMI (post-launch scheduling), and Airbus Defence and Space (instrument prime).[^tropomi-agreement][^tropomi-pm] SRON's immersed grating technology enabled a 40-times size reduction versus prior instrument generations. Tropomi measures atmospheric trace gases (methane, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and formaldehyde) at unprecedented spatial resolution, supporting air quality monitoring, ozone and UV tracking, and climate applications. Dutch technology contributions continue in the successor Sentinel-5 instrument aboard MetOp-SG A1, launched 2024.

NLSA is distinct from the research and industrial organisations it coordinates: SRON and TNO are independent Dutch research institutes that build instruments; NLSA provides programme management, funding, and policy direction. KNMI, the national meteorological institute, is a key user and co-operator of atmospheric EO data.

description:
Dutch national space agency, operating under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy. Coordinates Dutch participation in ESA optional programmes (GSTP, InCubed, ARTES), manages national space programmes including the User Support Programme for Dutch Earth observation users and the InstrumentenPlatform, issues NSO/NLSA delegation letters for ESA programmes, and authorises ESA Business Incubation Centre admission for Dutch startups. Major Dutch EO partner programmes include Sentinel-5P TROPOMI (Dutch instrument PI consortium led by SRON and KNMI) and the upcoming Tango atmospheric methane mission.

sources:
[{"id":"nlsa-launch","url":"https://www.nlspacecampus.eu/news/succesful-launch-of-the-netherlands-space-agency/","title":"NL Space Campus, Successful launch of the Netherlands Space Agency","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-contribution","url":"https://europeanspaceflight.com/the-netherlands-commits-to-maintain-esa-contribution-levels-through-2028/","title":"European Space Flight, Netherlands commits to maintain ESA contribution levels through 2028","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"tropomi-agreement","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/Agreement_between_the_Netherlands_and_ESA_signed_for_Sentinel-5_Precursor_instrument","title":"ESA, Agreement between the Netherlands and ESA signed for Sentinel-5 Precursor instrument","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"tropomi-pm","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/Sentinel-5P/Harry_Foerster_Netherlands_Space_Office_Tropomi_programme_manager","title":"ESA, Harry Foerster Netherlands Space Office Tropomi programme manager","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 5235730c-199d-465c-a285-530bf8813f50
slug: open-cosmos
status: live
name: Open Cosmos
aliases: ["OpenCosmos","Open Cosmos Ltd"]
kind: commercial
country: United Kingdom
website: https://www.open-cosmos.com
operator_domains: ["open-cosmos.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Open Cosmos is a UK-based satellite prime contractor and EO data platform operator, incorporated in 2015 and headquartered in Didcot, Oxfordshire.[^companies-house] The company designs, builds, launches, and operates satellites ranging from 3U CubeSats to ~100-kilogram microsatellites, serving sovereign government and commercial customers seeking end-to-end mission services.

Its principal service offering is OpenOrbit, which covers assembly, integration and testing, launch campaign management, in-orbit operations, and data delivery for customer missions.[^open-cosmos-about] Alongside this, OpenConstellation provides a shared satellite fleet infrastructure allowing multiple organisations to access Earth observation data through a mutualised model. The DataCosmos platform extends this to multi-source data delivery: it aggregates imagery from Open Cosmos-operated missions, Sentinel, Landsat, SpaceWill, Geosat, and other providers, accessible via STAC API, Cloud Optimised GeoTIFF, Python and Jupyter notebook integration, and an AI application layer covering cloud detection, building mapping, and carbon monitoring.[^datacosmos-page]

Open Cosmos holds two major sovereign contracts that anchor its commercial position. In May 2024, ESA awarded it a EUR 60 million contract on behalf of the Hellenic Government to build a seven-satellite Earth observation constellation featuring very-high-resolution optical, multispectral, and hyperspectral payloads plus IoT and AIS receivers, with launch targeted for the second half of 2026.[^greece-contract] In November 2024, ESA signed a EUR 34.6 million contract for the NanoMagSat Scout mission: three satellites at 545 km altitude carrying absolute magnetometers, high-frequency magnetometers, Langmuir probes, and dual GNSS receivers to monitor Earth's magnetic field, with first launch expected late 2027.[^nanomagsat-esa]

The company closed a $50 million Series B round in September 2023 led by ETF Partners, Trill Impact, and A&G Energy Transition Tech Fund, bringing total external funding to approximately $57 million.[^series-b-pr] The company reports EBITDA-positive status since 2020, though this figure is self-reported and not drawn from audited accounts. As of early 2025, the company employs approximately 145 people across its UK, Spanish, Portuguese, and Greek entities.

In January 2026, Open Cosmos launched the first two satellites of ConnectedCosmos, a LEO connectivity constellation using optical inter-satellite links and Ka-band spectrum to deliver point-to-point broadband and direct-to-device IoT services for European government and commercial customers.[^connectedcosmos]

Existing EO-Atlas missions operated or built by Open Cosmos include MENUT (a 6U CubeSat for Catalonia, launched January 2023), Phisat-2 (an ESA AI Earth observation demonstrator), ALISIO-1, MANTIS, PLATERO, HAMMER, 6GStarLab, and several IoT/connectivity payloads.

description:
UK small satellite mission prime targeting sovereign and regional government customers. Notable contracts include the Greece EUR 60M sovereign EO programme and the NanoMagSat ESA Earth Explorer 10 mission. Expanding into LEO connectivity via the ConnectedCosmos business line. Operates DataCosmos, a multi-source EO data aggregation platform with STAC and COG access plus Python and Jupyter notebooks integration. Runs the OpenConstellation consortium model under which multiple sovereign and commercial customers share a federated satellite fleet.

sources:
[{"id":"companies-house","url":"https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/09704443","title":"Open Cosmos Ltd, Companies House: incorporation and registered address","tier":"legal-text","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"series-b-pr","url":"https://www.open-cosmos.com/news/open-cosmos-raises-50m-from-leading-impact-investors-to-grow-its-leadership-in-accessible-sustainable-space-tech-and-satellite-data","title":"Open Cosmos, Series B $50M press release, September 2023","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"greece-contract","url":"https://www.open-cosmos.com/news/esa-selects-open-cosmos-to-build-optical-constellation-for-greece","title":"Open Cosmos, ESA Greece optical constellation contract announcement, May 2024","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nanomagsat-esa","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/FutureEO/ESA_awards_development_contract_for_NanoMagSat","title":"ESA, NanoMagSat development contract award, November 2024","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"open-cosmos-about","url":"https://www.open-cosmos.com/about","title":"Open Cosmos, about page: leadership, offices, legal entities","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"datacosmos-page","url":"https://www.open-cosmos.com/datacosmos","title":"Open Cosmos, DataCosmos product page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"connectedcosmos","url":"https://www.satellitetoday.com/connectivity/2026/03/02/open-cosmos-names-connectedcosmos-its-new-leo-constellation-for-europe/","title":"Via Satellite, ConnectedCosmos LEO constellation announcement, March 2026","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: ca06df59-1fdd-4c58-a610-80834b2a3d23
slug: orbital-sidekick
status: live
name: Orbital Sidekick
aliases: ["OSK","Orbital Sidekick Inc"]
kind: commercial
country: United States
website: https://www.orbitalsidekick.com
operator_domains: ["orbitalsidekick.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Orbital Sidekick (OSK) is a US commercial hyperspectral Earth-observation company founded in 2016 and headquartered in San Francisco. OSK operates the GHOSt (Global Hyperspectral Observation Satellite) constellation, comprising six microsatellites carrying a proprietary VIS-SWIR hyperspectral imager across a 400-2500 nm range from a 525 km sun-synchronous orbit. The first two satellites (GHOSt-1 and GHOSt-2) launched April 2023 on a SpaceX Transporter-7 rideshare, followed by GHOSt-3 in June 2023 and GHOSt-4 and GHOSt-5 in March 2024. All five are operational as of 2026-05-24; a sixth satellite (GHOSt-6) had not yet launched as of that date. Each satellite is built on the Corvus-XL smallsat platform by Astro Digital and masses approximately 91 kg.[^eoportal-ghost]

The GHOSt payload resolves 512 contiguous spectral bands (GHOSt 1-3) or 468 bands (GHOSt 4-5, advanced focal plane variant) at 8.3 m multispectral GSD and 3 m panchromatic GSD.[^eoportal-ghost][^osk-spie-2024] This spectral resolution enables material discrimination across the SWIR diagnostic window (2100-2500 nm), including clay, carbonate, and sulphate mineral signatures relevant to mining exploration, as well as hydrocarbon absorption features used for pipeline corrosion and seep detection.

The SIGMA (Spectral Intelligence Global Monitoring Application) platform is OSK's commercial interface to the GHOSt archive: customers contract for tasked acquisitions, archive search, automated change-detection alerts, and processed spectral analytics. Primary commercial markets are oil and gas pipeline integrity monitoring, methane mapping, and mining and mineral exploration. OSK also holds a $16M multi-year STRATFI contract with the US Department of the Air Force (via AFVentures), and is backed by In-Q-Tel, the US government-linked CVC.[^eoportal-ghost]

GHOSt's constellation approach distinguishes OSK from single-satellite hyperspectral operators: five operational satellites enable tasking flexibility and temporal change detection that a single demonstrator cannot support. The closest commercial comparables are Pixxel (Firefly constellation, also VIS-SWIR but smaller GSD) and SatVu (thermal, different spectral domain). GHGSat targets methane specifically with narrower spectral precision; OSK covers a broader SWIR palette suited to mineralogy and infrastructure monitoring.

description:
US commercial hyperspectral Earth-observation company headquartered in San Francisco. Operates the GHOSt (Global Hyperspectral Observation Satellite) constellation of six technically identical microsatellites carrying a VIS-SWIR hyperspectral imager (512 bands, 8.3 m multispectral GSD, 3 m panchromatic). Defence-adjacent business model: contracts with US DoD, USAF, Space Force, and the NRO Strategic Commercial Enhancements (SCE) programme, plus commercial energy-infrastructure and mining buyers. In-Q-Tel backed. SIGMA (Spectral Intelligence Global Monitoring Application) is the customer-facing tasking, archive, and analytics platform on top of GHOSt acquisitions. Heritage from the HEIST ISS-hosted hyperspectral instrument (2019) and the Aurora precursor satellite, with GHOSt payloads built proprietary to OSK on Astro Digital Corvus-XL platforms.

sources:
[{"id":"osk-home","url":"https://www.orbitalsidekick.com","title":"Orbital Sidekick company home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-ghost","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/ghost","title":"GHOSt constellation, eoPortal Directory","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"osk-spie-2024","url":"https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3019571","title":"Spectral and radiometric calibration of the GHOSt hyperspectral payload, SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing 2024","tier":"peer-reviewed","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"osk-linkedin","url":"https://www.linkedin.com/company/orbital-sidekick/","title":"Orbital Sidekick, LinkedIn company page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"gunter-ghost1","url":"https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/ghost-1.htm","title":"GHOSt-1, Gunter's Space Page","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"sfn-t7","url":"https://spaceflightnow.com/2023/04/15/spacex-launches-transporter-7-rideshare-mission/","title":"SpaceX Transporter-7 rideshare, Spaceflight Now","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Discrepancies: (1) satellite mass 85 kg (Gunter) vs 91.4 kg (eoPortal) -- use 91.4 kg; (2) band count per-instance variation: GHOSt 1-3 = 512 bands, GHOSt 4-5 = 468 bands advanced FPA. UNVERIFIED: swath width (no source), GHOSt-6 launch date (slipped from 2024 target), NRO/SCE contract (stated in description, not tier-1 confirmed), total equity funding, SNR values (SPIE paywalled), Aurora retired status, HEIST specs.


atlas_id: 552c3857-78de-41ac-8df7-a3b122150edb
slug: pixxel
status: live
name: Pixxel
aliases: ["Pixxel Space Technologies"]
kind: commercial
country: India
website: https://www.pixxel.space
operator_domains: ["pixxel.space"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Pixxel is an Indian-American commercial Earth observation company founded in 2019 and headquartered in Bengaluru, India, with US operations based in El Segundo, California. The company designs, manufactures, and operates the Firefly hyperspectral smallsat constellation, and provides data analytics through its Aurora platform.

The Firefly constellation completed its first operational phase in August 2025, with six satellites in a 565 km sun-synchronous orbit. The initial three satellites (Firefly 1, 2, 3) launched on SpaceX Transporter-12 in January 2025 and achieved first-light confirmation in March 2025. Three more (Firefly 4, 5, 6) launched on SpaceX Falcon 9 (NAOS mission) on 26-27 August 2025. Each Firefly satellite carries a VNIR hyperspectral imager covering 470-900 nm across 135 bands at a 5.4 m ground sampling distance over a 40 km swath. Band width is 2-11 nm and imagery is captured at 10-bit dynamic range. The six-satellite constellation delivers a revisit interval of at least four days per point.

Pixxel designed its own hyperspectral payload and built the Firefly satellites at its Megapixxel manufacturing facility in Bengaluru, opened in January 2024. Atmospheric correction uses piSOFIT, Pixxel's adaptation of NASA JPL's open-source ISOFIT optimal-estimation model, which segments imagery into superpixels and applies a neural-network MODTRAN emulator for surface reflectance retrieval.

The company's Aurora analytics platform provides a no-code interface for accessing Pixxel imagery alongside open-source EO datasets, with ready-to-use spectral indices and models targeting agriculture, mining, energy, and environmental monitoring applications. Data is also available via distribution partners including SkyFi and UP42.

Pixxel has secured two contracts with the US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO): a five-year contract awarded in March 2023 under the Strategic Commercial Enhancements Broad Agency Announcement for hyperspectral remote sensing demonstration, and a further contract under the Strategic Commercial Enhancements Commercial Solutions Opening awarded in May 2026 to integrate Firefly hyperspectral data into the NRO's remote sensing architecture. The Indian Air Force is also listed as a government customer. NASA lists Pixxel as a Commercial Smallsat Data Acquisition (CSDA) program vendor.

The company has raised $95 million across all rounds to date (as of December 2024). The Series B totalling $60 million was led by Google (Google for India Digitalisation Fund) in June 2023, with a $24 million extension in December 2024 bringing in M&G Catalyst and Glade Brook Capital Partners.

The next constellation phase, Honeybee, is planned from 2026 and will extend coverage into the shortwave infrared (SWIR) spectrum. Honeybee Zero (HB0), a technology demonstrator already registered in the EO-Atlas missions table, is targeted for Q2-Q3 2026 launch and will cover 400-2550 nm at 8 m GSD. Honeybee Phase 1 satellites (four planned) are targeted for Q3-Q4 2027 with 260 bands across both VNIR and SWIR at 5 m GSD.[^pixxel-support-docs][^pixxel-firefly-product][^pixxel-about]

description:
Indian-American commercial hyperspectral Earth observation operator. Founded 2019 in Bengaluru by Awais Ahmed and Kshitij Khandelwal; dual HQ in Bengaluru and California. Approximately 95 million USD raised through 2025. NASA Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program vendor. Product line spans four generations: retired technology demonstrators (TD-1 Anand, TD-2 Shakuntala, 2022), the operational Firefly constellation of six VNIR hyperspectral satellites (FFLY-1 to FFLY-6, launched 2025), and the in-development Honeybee VSWIR programme (HB0 planned 2026, baseline Honeybee post-HB0). Customer base includes Rio Tinto and a growing roster of mining, agriculture, and defence buyers.

sources:
[{"id":"pixxel-support-docs","url":"https://docs.pixxel.space/documentation/satellite_and_imagery/constellation_overview","title":"Pixxel constellation overview, technical specifications (v2025)","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"pixxel-firefly-product","url":"https://www.pixxel.space/firefly","title":"Firefly constellation product page, Pixxel","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"pixxel-about","url":"https://www.pixxel.space/about-us","title":"About Pixxel, company background and founding information","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: d829a1ab-52fa-4b76-8e53-e3fe60c8dada
slug: planet-labs
status: live
name: Planet Labs PBC
aliases: ["Planet Labs","Planet"]
kind: commercial
country: US
website: https://www.planet.com
operator_domains: ["planet.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Planet Labs PBC (NYSE: PL) is a commercial Earth observation company headquartered in San Francisco, California, founded in December 2010 and publicly listed in December 2021 via SPAC merger.[^wiki-planet] The company operates a large commercial EO satellite constellation delivering multispectral, very-high-resolution, and hyperspectral imagery through a multi-tenant SaaS platform.[^planet-company]

The PlanetScope constellation, based on Planet's Dove satellite design, provides near-daily global monitoring over all landmasses at 3-meter ground sample distance.[^docs-planetscope] The current operational fleet uses the SuperDove (PSB.SD) generation, carrying eight spectral bands from coastal blue (443 nm) to near-infrared (865 nm) at 525 km orbital altitude. Two earlier Dove generations (PS2 Dove Classic and PS2.SD Dove-R) are available as historical archives; they are radiometrically distinct from SuperDove imagery and require Planet's harmonization tool for cross-generation time-series work.

The SkySat constellation, acquired from Google (via Terra Bella / Skybox Imaging) in April 2017, provides 50-centimeter resolution imagery with up to ten daily tasking passes per location.[^docs-skysat][^wiki-skysat] The Pelican constellation is Planet's next-generation very-high-resolution offering, providing 50-centimeter imagery in Generation 1 (commercial operations from 2025) and targeting 30-centimeter in Generation 2, with on-orbit AI processing via NVIDIA Jetson hardware.[^docs-pelican] Pelican features an 8-kilometer swath and a Cassegrain telescope with 4.03-meter effective focal length.

Tanager-1, launched August 16, 2024 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base, is a hyperspectral satellite developed with Carbon Mapper, NASA JPL, and philanthropic partners.[^wiki-tanager] The instrument covers 380 to 2500 nm across 426 bands at 5 nm spacing, at 30-meter GSD and 18-kilometer swath, using a mercury-cadmium-telluride detector.[^docs-tanager] The mission targets methane and carbon dioxide point-source detection, with an open data catalog available for research use.

Planet serves government, defense, intelligence, agriculture, forestry, finance, insurance, maritime, and sustainability sectors. A dedicated division, Planet Federal, manages US government and defense relationships. For FY2025 (year ending January 31, 2025), Planet reported revenue of $244.35 million and an operating loss of $116.12 million.[^stockanalysis]

description:
US commercial Earth observation operator, NYSE: PL, headquartered in San Francisco. Largest commercial satellite constellation operator by satellite count. Operates the PlanetScope SuperDove constellation (~130+ smallsats, 8 bands, 3 m GSD, daily revisit), SkySat very-high-resolution constellation (~15 satellites, 50 cm GSD, acquired from Terra Bella / Skybox), Pelican (sub-metre VHR with NVIDIA Jetson on-orbit edge compute), and Tanager-1 (hyperspectral, 426 bands, launched August 2024 in Carbon Mapper partnership). The PlanetScope brand spans three materially different sensor generations (PS2, PS2.SD, PSB.SD/SuperDove) with different spectral response functions; Planet ships a public harmonization tool to cross-calibrate older PS2 data to SuperDove for the four shared RGBNIR bands, which is the canonical operator-published acknowledgment of the cross-generation incompatibility problem that motivates third-party calibration infrastructure.

sources:
[{"id":"wiki-planet","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_Labs","title":"Planet Labs, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"planet-company","url":"https://www.planet.com/company/","title":"Planet Labs PBC, company overview","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"docs-planetscope","url":"https://docs.planet.com/data/imagery/planetscope/","title":"PlanetScope imagery documentation, Planet Labs","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"docs-skysat","url":"https://docs.planet.com/data/imagery/skysat/","title":"SkySat imagery documentation, Planet Labs","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-skysat","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SkySat","title":"SkySat, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"docs-pelican","url":"https://docs.planet.com/data/imagery/pelican/","title":"Pelican imagery documentation, Planet Labs","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-tanager","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanager-1","title":"Tanager-1, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"docs-tanager","url":"https://docs.planet.com/data/imagery/tanager/","title":"Tanager imagery documentation, Planet Labs","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"stockanalysis","url":"https://stockanalysis.com/stocks/pl/financials/","title":"Planet Labs PBC (PL), financial data, StockAnalysis","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 486c77ba-d628-474b-ae54-e30a8a55c49b
slug: satelligence
status: live
name: Satelligence
aliases: ["Satelligence B.V."]
kind: commercial
country: Netherlands
website: https://satelligence.com
operator_domains: ["satelligence.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-17T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Satelligence is a Dutch commercial EO analytics company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands. The company produces satellite-based supply-chain intelligence for agricultural commodity buyers, traders, and financial institutions seeking to demonstrate deforestation-free sourcing and comply with EU sustainability regulations.[^about-page][^funding-2020]

The platform ingests open satellite imagery, primarily Sentinel-1 C-band SAR and Sentinel-2 multispectral data from the EU Copernicus programme supplemented by Landsat and NICFI high-resolution imagery, and applies machine learning to generate weekly deforestation alerts and plot-level risk scores for agricultural concessions and supply-chain networks.[^radd-paper][^eudr-page] Sentinel-1's all-weather imaging capability is central to operations in cloud-prone tropical forest regions; Satelligence co-developed the RADD (Radar for Detecting Deforestation) Sentinel-1 alert system with Wageningen University and WRI, which feeds the Global Forest Watch platform.[^radd-paper]

The company offers three main service lines: a core deforestation monitoring platform covering palm oil, soy, cocoa, coffee, cattle, rubber, and wood; Deepview, a supply-chain risk propagation tool that maps producer-trader-manufacturer relationships to identify high-risk tiers within complex value chains; and a biomass module providing aboveground carbon change estimates at supply-chain level for Scope 3 emissions reporting.[^incubed-deepview][^incubed-biomass] All three are subscription-based SaaS products.

For buyers subject to the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), the platform handles end-to-end due diligence: plot geolocation upload, satellite-based risk assessment benchmarked against the EUDR cutoff date (31 December 2020), case tracking with audit-ready logging, and direct submission of Due Diligence Statements to the EU TRACES registry.[^eudr-page] Satelligence is directly engaged in EU regulatory pilots and confirmed as a provider to Competent Authorities and producer governments.

Clients include multinational consumer goods companies (Mondelez, Unilever, Bunge, Cargill, PepsiCo, Wilmar, Neste) and financial institutions using the platform for ESG portfolio deforestation risk screening (Rabobank, Robeco, IFC).[^funding-2020][^cargill] The company operates approximately 50 staff across 9 offices globally.

Satelligence raised $2.3 million in a seed round in November 2020 from 4impact and the European Commission Horizon 2020 programme.[^funding-2020] Two subsequent product development projects were co-funded by ESA InCubed: Deepview (2021) and the Satelligence Biomass module (2023-2024).[^incubed-biomass]

description:
Dutch SaaS company providing satellite-based supply-chain deforestation monitoring and EUDR compliance services. Consumes open satellite data (Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2, Landsat, PlanetScope) and produces audit-grade plot-level risk intelligence. Not an EO operator or instrument manufacturer. Co-developer of the RADD Sentinel-1 alert system with Wageningen University.

sources:
[{"id":"about-page","url":"https://satelligence.com/about-us/","title":"Satelligence: About Us","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eudr-page","url":"https://satelligence.com/eudr/","title":"Satelligence: EUDR compliance platform","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"radd-paper","url":"https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/abd0a8","title":"Forest disturbance alerts for the Congo Basin using Sentinel-1, Reiche et al. 2021","tier":"peer-reviewed","accessed":"2026-05-17"},{"id":"funding-2020","url":"https://satelligence.com/satelligence-raises-2-3m-deforestation-solutions/","title":"Satelligence raises $2.3M: operator press release","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"cargill","url":"https://www.cargill.com/2023/satelligence-deploys-anti-deforestation-solutions","title":"Satelligence deploys anti-deforestation solutions across Cargill supply chains","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-17"},{"id":"incubed-biomass","url":"https://incubed.esa.int/portfolio/satelligence-biomass/","title":"Satelligence Biomass, ESA InCubed portfolio","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"incubed-deepview","url":"https://incubed.esa.int/incubed-helps-launch-satelligences-deepview-monitoring-service-2/","title":"InCubed helps launch Satelligence Deepview monitoring service","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 9cbdc808-970d-4e86-854c-522653bebba8
slug: satellogic
status: live
name: Satellogic
aliases: ["Satellogic Inc.","SATL","Aleph-1"]
kind: commercial
country: UY
website: https://satellogic.com
operator_domains: ["satellogic.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Satellogic (NASDAQ: SATL) is a vertically integrated commercial Earth observation operator founded in Argentina in 2010 by Emiliano Kargieman and Gerardo Richarte. The company designs, manufactures, launches, and operates its own sub-meter multispectral satellite constellation, the Aleph-1 fleet, from its primary manufacturing facility in Montevideo, Uruguay.[^satl-about]

The Aleph-1 constellation comprised more than 57 NewSat satellites as of mid-2026, spanning multiple hardware marks operating in sun-synchronous orbits at 475-600 km altitude.[^eoportal-newsat] Per-mark capability differs materially: the Mark IV baseline carries four-band (RGB + NIR, 450-900 nm) multispectral imagery at 0.99 m GSD and 5 km swath; the Mark V introduced upgraded cameras, computers, and subsystems yielding 0.7 m GSD and 6.7 km swath.[^eoportal-newsat] The Mark V-B (first launched January 2023) further updated the multispectral and hyperspectral cameras, though the manufacturer has not published differentiated resolution or band-count specifications for this mark. The Mark VI variant adds inter-satellite links and is deployed in the Slingshot maritime intelligence programme. An on-orbit hyperspectral payload covers the VNIR range (approximately 460-830 nm) at 30 m GSD and 150 km swath with up to 32 user-configurable bands per acquisition.[^eoportal-newsat] This VNIR-only coverage is narrower in spectral range than full-spectrum hyperspectral instruments that extend into the SWIR. Full-motion video capability at 1 m monochromatic resolution is available across the operational fleet.[^eoportal-newsat]

Satellogic operates as a public company following a January 2022 SPAC merger listing on NASDAQ, and redomiciled from the British Virgin Islands to Delaware on March 26, 2025 to align with US government contracting requirements.[^satl-delaware] Full-year 2025 revenue reached 7.7 million, a 38% increase over 2024, with the first positive operating cash flow recorded in Q1 2026.[^satl-fy2025]

The company's primary growth vector is government and defense tasking. In December 2024, Satellogic entered a tasking, data licensing, and distribution agreement with Maxar Intelligence (rebranded Vantor since October 2025) granting Vantor exclusive rights to task the Aleph-1 constellation for US government national security missions.[^maxar-partnership] Satellogic also supports a US Office of Naval Research maritime intelligence programme (Slingshot) using ISL-equipped Mark VI satellites, expanding to eight dedicated assets by 2027.[^satl-onr]

Two next-generation programmes are in development: NextGen, a 30 cm-class, non-ITAR, AI-enabled platform with a first unit launched October 2025 and operational service expected by 2027; and Merlin, a planned daily-global-coverage constellation at 1 m GSD across ten Sentinel-2-aligned spectral bands with first launch targeted for October 2026 and full capability in H1 2027.[^satl-nextgen][^satl-merlin]

description:
Commercial EO operator and manufacturer. Operates the Aleph-1 sub-meter multispectral constellation (57+ NewSat satellites). Vertically integrated design, manufacture, and operations. NASDAQ: SATL.

sources:
[{"id":"satl-about","url":"https://satellogic.com/company/about-us/","title":"Satellogic: About Us","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-newsat","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/satellogic","title":"eoPortal, Satellogic NewSat (Aleph-1 Constellation)","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"satl-delaware","url":"https://satellogic.com/news/press-releases/satellogic-finalizes-move-to-u-s-jurisdiction-to-strengthen-market-position-and-investor-access/","title":"Satellogic: Finalizes Move to US Jurisdiction","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"satl-fy2025","url":"https://investors.satellogic.com/news-releases/news-release-details/satellogic-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2025-financial","title":"Satellogic: Q4 and Full Year 2025 Financial Results","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"maxar-partnership","url":"https://satellogic.com/news/press-releases/maxar-intelligence-and-satellogic-announce-tasking-partnership-to-support-national-security-missions/","title":"Maxar Intelligence and Satellogic: Tasking Partnership for National Security Missions","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"satl-onr","url":"https://www.stocktitan.net/news/SATL/satellogic-expands-partnership-with-idt-and-u-s-office-of-naval-n3xak21az16t.html","title":"Satellogic: Slingshot ONR programme expansion","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"satl-nextgen","url":"https://satellogic.com/news/press-releases/satellogic-launches-very-high-resolution-nextgen-satellite-platform-for-sovereign-ai-first-earth-observation-missions/","title":"Satellogic: NextGen Satellite Platform Launch","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"satl-merlin","url":"https://satellogic.com/news/press-releases/satellogic-introduces-merlin-constellation-for-daily-global-monitoring-at-one-meter-resolution/","title":"Satellogic: Merlin Constellation Introduction","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
HSI band count discrepancy: eoPortal cites 29; Satellogic developer docs cite 32. Body uses 32 (operator-engineering source wins). Mark V GSD/swath sourced from eoPortal community-tier only; no Satellogic operator datasheet confirming. Mark V-B differentiated specs not published as of 2026-05-24.


atlas_id: 79b2ee7e-7907-4470-aa3f-a41230b2f153
slug: scanway
status: live
name: Scanway
aliases: ["Scanway S.A.","Scanway Spolka Akcyjna"]
kind: commercial
country: Poland
website: https://scanway.pl
operator_domains: ["scanway.pl"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Scanway S.A. is a Polish optical instrument manufacturer headquartered in Wroclaw, specialising in the design and production of compact optical payloads for smallsats and scientific missions. The company builds the SOP (Scanway Optical Payload) family of telescopes, spanning 50 mm to 450 mm aperture, for Earth observation and planetary imaging applications. All instruments are designed and manufactured in-house using ITAR-free components, targeting the growing European and global smallsat market.

Four SOP instruments have achieved flight heritage as of 2026. The SOP 3U/50 flew on STAR VIBE (January 2023), Scanway's own first in-orbit demonstration mission on a 6U CubeSat, validating Earth observation and satellite self-inspection capabilities at TRL-9. The SOP 1U/65 flew on the ESA-partnered OTTER mission (2022), a DLR-led CubeSat demonstrating optical vessel-position verification. The SOP 120 is the payload for the PIAST dual-use nanosatellite constellation (Polish Ministry of Defense / WAT / CBK PAN), operational in orbit for national Earth observation. The SOP 200, the largest domestically designed EO telescope in Poland at the time of delivery, flew on EagleEye (launched August 16, 2024), a microsatellite achieving approximately 1 metre GSD from 350 km altitude in VIS and NIR bands.

Scanway's contracted pipeline extends to lunar and planetary missions. The SOP 120 has been adapted for the Chors lunar orbiter mission (Intuitive Machines, 2025-2027) as part of the Lunar Data Network, achieving 3.2 m GSD from lunar orbit. The SOP 300 is selected for the Mani lunar photometric mapper (University of Copenhagen, ESA Terrae Novae programme, Phase A). The SOP 450 is the highest-aperture instrument in development, targeting 0.8 m GSD with combined VIS/NIR and SWIR channels for the SEMOVIS mission (Marble Imaging, ESA InCubed programme, planned Q1 2026 launch). A camera system was also delivered for the YPSat payload on Ariane 6's inaugural flight (July 2024) for fairing-separation documentation.

Customers include ESA, DLR, Intuitive Machines (US), Nara Space Technology (South Korea), Marble Imaging, and Polish national defence and research institutions. The company reported 2025 revenue of approximately 21.4 million PLN (+80% year-on-year). Scanway debuted on the GPW NewConnect alternative market in October 2023 and transferred to the GPW Main Market (ticker: SCW) on March 27, 2026.[^scanway-home][^eagleeye-page][^starvibe-page][^piast-page][^otter-page][^chors-page][^semovis-page][^mani-page][^ypsat-page]

description:
Polish imaging payload company headquartered in Wroclaw. Designs and builds optical imaging instruments for smallsats, primarily compact telescopes and VNIR imaging systems for Earth observation and on-orbit inspection use cases. Operates at the imaging-payload layer of the smallsat supply chain alongside Simera Sense, Headwall Photonics, and KP Labs. Listed on Polish stock exchange.

sources:
[{"id":"scanway-home","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/","title":"Scanway, home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eagleeye-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/eagleeye/","title":"Scanway, EagleEye mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"starvibe-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/star-vibe/","title":"Scanway, STAR VIBE mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"piast-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/piast/","title":"Scanway, PIAST mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"otter-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/otter/","title":"Scanway, OTTER mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"chors-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/chors/","title":"Scanway, Chors mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"semovis-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/semovis/","title":"Scanway, SEMOVIS mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"mani-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/mani/","title":"Scanway, Mani mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ypsat-page","url":"https://scanway.pl/en/ypsat/","title":"Scanway, YPSat mission","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: e6a19ac3-5b4a-4ea6-abc9-cbd9e1b1c118
slug: simera-sense
status: live
name: Simera Sense
aliases: ["Simera"]
kind: commercial
country: Belgium
website: https://www.simera-sense.com
operator_domains: ["simera-sense.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Simera Sense is a Belgian optical payload manufacturer providing compact imaging instruments for nano-, micro-, and small satellites. Founded in 2018 in Leuven, Belgium, the company is privately held under Simera Holdings, a South African technology investment firm. Its engineering roots trace to the South African small satellite programme; the Belgian headquarters was established to serve the growing European and global commercial smallsat market.[^simera-about]

The company product range centres on the xScape platform family. The xScape50 (1U, 30 m GSD at 500 km) addresses wider-swath mass-market applications. The xScape100 is a 1.5U optical platform with three spectral variants: MultiScape100 (8-band multispectral with digital TDI), TriScape100 (tri-spectral), and HyperScape100 (VNIR hyperspectral, 460-860 nm, 32 user-configurable bands from 400 available spectral positions via a Continuously Variable Optical Filter). All 1.5U variants share a 4.75 m GSD at 500 km over a 19.4 km swath, with a 580 mm focal length and 95 mm aperture optical train.[^hyperscape-page] The xScape200 (12U, 1.5 m GSD at 500 km, 14 km swath) targets higher-resolution requirements.[^xscape100-page]

The company reported 24 payloads in orbit as of February 2025, scaling toward 50+ by mid-2026 across a customer base exceeding 50 organisations.[^latconnect-article] Named engagements include an xScape100 payload for an ISISpace 6U CubeSat mission (2019), xScape200 payloads for the LatConnect60 SWIRSAT mission (launch December 2026), and a HyperScape100 combined with a KP Labs Leopard DPU for the OPS-SAT VOLT technology demonstrator led by Craft Prospect under ESA (planned mid-2026).[^kplabs-mou] Infinite Orbits has contracted Simera Sense to develop an SSA payload for the Orbit Guard mission under the French CNES France 2030 programme.[^infinite-orbits-pr]

In March 2024, Simera Sense closed a EUR 13.5M growth round led by NewSpace Capital with participation from Knife Capital and additional investors, funding expanded European production facilities and development of higher-resolution and short-wave infrared camera products.[^funding-2024] In May 2026 the company launched the SSA Scape100 Full Motion camera, a space-based Space Situational Awareness product derived from the xScape100 optical platform, with a flight model targeted for Q2 2027.[^ssa-launch]

Operations span four countries: Belgium (HQ and primary manufacturing), South Africa (origin site), France (Toulouse subsidiary, opened June 2024), and the United Kingdom.

description:
Commercial optical payload manufacturer for nano-, micro-, and small satellites, headquartered in Leuven, Belgium with offices in France, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Heritage from the South African small satellite industry (SunSat / SumbandilaSat programme). Two product lines: the xScape multispectral and RGB / video payloads (xScape50 1U at 30 m GSD, xScape100 1.5U at 4.75 m, xScape200 12U at 1.5 m) and the HyperScape100 hyperspectral payload at 1.5U volume (VNIR 460-860 nm with a continuously variable optical filter exposing up to 400 available bands at 442-884 nm of which 32 can be configured per capture, 4.75 m GSD at 500 km, 19.4 km swath, 12-bit). 50+ clients worldwide; EUR 13.5M growth round backed by NewSpace Capital and Knife Capital.

sources:
[{"id":"simera-about","url":"https://www.simera-sense.com/about/","title":"Simera Sense, about","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hyperscape-page","url":"https://www.simera-sense.com/hyperscape100/","title":"HyperScape100, Simera Sense product page","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"xscape100-page","url":"https://www.simera-sense.com/products/xscape100/","title":"xScape100, Simera Sense product page","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"funding-2024","url":"https://simera-sense.com/news/simera-sense-raises-growth-capital/","title":"Simera Sense raises growth capital, Simera Sense news","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"latconnect-article","url":"https://simera-sense.com/news/simera-sense-to-deliver-a-high-resolution-optical-payload-to-latconnect60/","title":"Simera Sense to deliver optical payload to LatConnect60, Simera Sense news","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"kplabs-mou","url":"https://simera-sense.com/news/kp-labs-and-simera-sense-advance-ai-optical-payload-missions/","title":"KP Labs and Simera Sense advance AI optical payload missions, Simera Sense news","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"infinite-orbits-pr","url":"https://simera-sense.com/news/infinite-orbits-selects-simera-sense-to-supply-space-based-space-situational-awareness-payload-with-orbit-guard-mission-as-part-of-the-cnes-and-france-2030-program/","title":"Infinite Orbits selects Simera Sense for SSA payload, Simera Sense news","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ssa-launch","url":"https://simera-sense.com/news/simera-sense-launches-ssa-scape100-full-motion-camera-to-address-european-resilience-and-space-security-capabilities/","title":"Simera Sense launches SSA Scape100 Full Motion camera, Simera Sense news","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Flight heritage count discrepancy: 24 payloads in orbit (Feb 2025, LatConnect60 press) vs 50+ launched (home page, mid-2026). Different dates and likely different tallying methods (in orbit vs shipped). No single tier-1 enumeration of missions found. Belgian KBO number not located. UK office city not confirmed. TriScape100 band config not found in public sources.


atlas_id: 944025fc-9320-4f3c-a49a-f05ed716e7db
slug: sodern
status: live
name: Sodern
aliases: ["EADS Sodern"]
kind: commercial
country: FR
website: https://sodern.com
operator_domains: ["sodern.com","sodern-us.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Sodern is a French manufacturer of space optronics and neutron technology instruments, headquartered at 20 Avenue Descartes, Limeil-Brevannes, near Paris. Founded in 1962 within Philips' Laboratory of Electronics and Applied Physics and incorporated as an independent legal entity in 1973, the company has operated for over sixty years across two distinct technology domains.[^sodern-home]

Ownership is held 90% by ArianeGroup (the Airbus-Safran joint venture that produces Ariane launch vehicles) and 10% by the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). The company employs over 450 people, approximately 60% of whom are engineers.[^sodern-about]

Sodern's primary space product is the star tracker, a sensor that determines spacecraft attitude by imaging and matching star fields against an onboard catalogue. Three product families address the full market range. The Auriga is a compact off-the-shelf tracker optimised for small satellites from 6U CubeSats upward and for large constellations; it has been flight-proven since 2019 on the EutelSat OneWeb constellation and delivered two optical heads for the Firefly Blue Ghost 1 lunar lander in 2025.[^auriga-page] The Hydra serves institutional and scientific missions requiring higher accuracy: it has flown on NASA Europa Clipper, NASA Lucy, ESA JUICE, and multiple geostationary weather and communications satellites.[^hydra-page] The Horus targets single-field-of-view applications on telecommunications platforms. Across all three families, Sodern reports more than 2,000 units in flight as of January 2026, with customers including Airbus Defence & Space, Thales Alenia Space, NASA, ESA, and CNES.

In January 2026 Sodern announced the opening of Sodern America, a wholly owned US subsidiary in Englewood, Colorado, designed to produce Auriga star trackers domestically for American customers. The US market accounts for approximately one-third of Sodern's space revenue.[^sodern-america-news]

Alongside its space optronics business, Sodern manufactures sealed neutron tube generators and associated analysis systems for industrial and security applications, including on-line cross-belt analysers for cement, coal, and mining industries, borehole logging instruments for oil-field applications, and explosive-detection systems. Over 250 cross-belt analysers operate across more than 40 countries.[^neutron-page]

description:
French manufacturer of space optronics (star trackers, cameras) and neutron technology instruments. ArianeGroup 90% / CEA 10% subsidiary. Headquartered in Limeil-Brevannes, France; US subsidiary Sodern America in Englewood, Colorado from 2026.

sources:
[{"id":"sodern-home","url":"https://sodern.com/en","title":"Sodern: Space Optronics and Neutron Technology, home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"sodern-about","url":"https://sodern.com/en/about","title":"Sodern: About","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"auriga-page","url":"https://sodern.com/en/ranges/auriga","title":"Sodern: Auriga star tracker product range","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"hydra-page","url":"https://sodern.com/en/ranges/hydra","title":"Sodern: Hydra star tracker product range","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"neutron-page","url":"https://sodern.com/en/missions/neutron-technology","title":"Sodern: Neutron technology applications","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"sodern-america-news","url":"https://sodern.com/en/news/sodern-announces-the-opening-of-sodern-america-in-the-united-states","title":"Sodern: Sodern America opening announcement","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 1d90ca2a-6471-428f-b02e-0d79728f8482
slug: spacecific
status: live
name: Spacecific
kind: commercial
country: Netherlands
website: https://www.spacecific.com
operator_domains: ["spacecific.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Spacecific B.V. is a Dutch deep-tech startup founded in Nijmegen and spun out of the Radboud Radio Lab at Radboud University. The company applies signal-processing methods from radio astronomy to the problem of tracking sounding rockets during flight without relying on GPS.[^spacecific-website][^ru-article]

Its flagship product, Track Your Rocket (TYR), is a ground-based localization system that deploys portable receiver stations equipped with digital phased arrays around a launch site. Each sounding rocket carries a compact RF transmitter in the license-free ISM band; the ground stations capture and synchronize these signals to reconstruct the rocket's trajectory, orientation, and dynamics in real time. The method mirrors distributed interferometric array techniques used in radio astronomy, enabling the system to operate without cloud infrastructure and in remote, infrastructure-limited environments. TYR completed two documented field tests in 2025: a May 2025 validation with Dutch sounding rocket manufacturer T-Minus Engineering, and a September 2025 deployment during a student team launch organized by DARE at TU Delft.[^spacecific-tyr-page]

Beyond sounding rocket tracking, Spacecific has explored applying the same RF localization approach indoors under the name Spacecific Localization System (SLS), targeting security applications in laboratories, chemical facilities, and other environments where the presence of mobile wireless devices must be monitored or restricted. This application line received a Gelderland MIT feasibility grant in 2023 and remains at the study stage.[^rvo-mit-grant][^gelderland-article]

The company is backed by a EUR 100,000 loan from regional development agency Oost NL and smaller grant funding; it also generates revenue through RF and embedded electronics consulting services. Co-founders Reinier Seuren and Benno Driessen lead the company from the Nijmegen Science Park.[^spacecific-website] A 2024 Radboud University article also named Rik van de Wetering as part of the founding team;[^ru-article] his current role is not listed on the company website.

TYR is a ground tracking service for sounding rockets and sits adjacent to EO launch infrastructure rather than within the core Earth Observation sensor or data-product domain.

description:
Dutch RF localization startup (Nijmegen, founded 2024). Spinoff from Radboud Radio Lab via the REXUS sounding-rocket programme. Flagship product Track Your Rocket (TYR) provides GPS-independent localization for sounding rockets using distributed phased-array interferometry in the ISM band. Secondary feasibility-stage product Spacecific Localization System (SLS) targets indoor RF device tracking. Partners include T-Minus Engineering, Radboud Radio Lab, Lumiad, and Oost NL.

sources:
[{"id":"spacecific-website","url":"https://www.spacecific.com","title":"Spacecific: official website, company and product overview","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"spacecific-tyr-page","url":"https://www.spacecific.com/tyr","title":"Spacecific, Track Your Rocket: product specifications and system description","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ru-article","url":"https://www.ru.nl/en/about-us/news/spacecific-students-working-on-a-commercial-rocket-localization-system","title":"Radboud University: Spacecific students working on a commercial rocket localization system","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"rvo-mit-grant","url":"https://projecten.rvo.nl/nl/projecten/72739","title":"RVO projecten, MIT_2023_0029: Regio Gelderland, Spacecific Localization System","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"gelderland-article","url":"https://www.gelderland.nl/themas/economie/inspirerende-ondernemers/van-raket-opsporen-naar-telefoon-in-een-broekzak-vinden","title":"Provincie Gelderland: van raket opsporen naar telefoon in een broekzak vinden","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: c56646f5-25aa-4446-96d1-b239eac603e6
slug: spacex
status: live
name: Space Exploration Technologies Corp.
aliases: ["SpaceX"]
kind: commercial
country: United States
website: https://www.spacex.com
operator_domains: ["spacex.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
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]

description:
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.

sources:
[{"id":"wiki-f9","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_9","title":"Falcon 9, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"elonx-missions","url":"https://www.elonx.net/spacex-smallsat-rideshare-missions/","title":"SpaceX Smallsat Rideshare Missions, ElonX","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nse-pricing","url":"https://newspaceeconomy.ca/2026/02/27/spacex-rideshare-pricing-as-of-february-2026-what-it-costs-whats-included-and-how-buyers-budget-a-mission/","title":"SpaceX Rideshare Pricing as of February 2026, New Space Economy","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-starlink","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Starlink","title":"Starlink, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 9fdbd8bc-3197-4685-88b3-886e6e2ca17a
slug: specim
status: live
name: Specim
aliases: ["Specim, Spectral Imaging Ltd"]
kind: commercial
country: Finland
website: https://www.specim.com
operator_domains: ["specim.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Specim, Spectral Imaging Oy Ltd is a Finnish hyperspectral instrument manufacturer founded in Oulu in 1995 by three researchers from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. The company commercialised push-broom hyperspectral imaging technology developed at VTT, establishing one of the earliest commercial hyperspectral camera product lines. Specim became part of the Konica Minolta Group in December 2020, acquired through Konica Minolta Sensing Europe BV, and continues to operate from its Oulu facilities under CEO Tapio Kallonen.

Specim's product range covers the full spectral span from the visible through thermal infrared, organised across five platform families. The FX Series (FX10, FX17, FX50) addresses industrial machine-vision applications, covering food quality inspection, plastics recycling, and pharmaceutical sorting, with compact form factors and high frame rates suited to inline conveyor deployment. The SX25, launched in September 2025, extends this with a high-resolution SWIR camera covering 960-2500 nm. The AFX Series (AFX10, AFX17) integrates camera, computer, and GNSS/IMU into compact all-in-one enclosures for drone-borne surveys, targeting precision agriculture and vegetation mapping. The Specim IQ is a portable push-broom camera for field use, with on-device processing and an app ecosystem, deployed in plant phenotyping, archaeological analysis, and food inspection.

For Earth observation research and calibration/validation, the Aisa airborne series is the primary platform. The AisaFENIX covers the full VNIR and SWIR spectrum (400-2500 nm) in a single continuous image using a dual-spectrograph optical design, and has been widely adopted by research institutions and survey companies as a reference instrument for airborne campaigns. The AisaIBIS, developed together with Forschungszentrum Juelich and known as Hyplant in the research community, served as the airborne demonstrator for the ESA FLEX (Fluorescence Explorer) mission from 2012, providing sun-induced fluorescence measurements over large areas as preparation for the spaceborne FLEX instrument. [^hyplant-esa] The AisaOWL extends coverage into the thermal infrared (7.7-12.3 um). Specim's direct space heritage is limited: the company is an airborne and ground-based instrument supplier, not a satellite sensor manufacturer. Its EO relevance is primarily through airborne reference instruments used in cal/val and science campaigns for spaceborne hyperspectral missions.

Markets served span food processing, plastic recycling, forestry, environmental monitoring, mining, precision agriculture, pharmaceuticals, cultural heritage, law enforcement, and defense. Software products include SpecimINSIGHT for data analysis, CaliGeo PRO for airborne georeferencing, and the Lumo SDK for integration development. [^specim-software]

description:
Finnish hyperspectral imaging instrument manufacturer founded 1995, headquartered in Oulu. Produces hyperspectral cameras for airborne, laboratory, industrial inline, and ground-based applications. Product lines span VNIR (FX10, FX17), full VNIR-SWIR (AisaFENIX, AisaIBIS), SWIR (FX50), and dedicated lines for industrial sorting and quality control. Specim is one of the three major commercial hyperspectral camera manufacturers alongside HySpex (Norway) and Headwall Photonics (US). For Earth observation it serves as an airborne and ground-based reference instrument, with AisaFENIX widely used for cal/val of spaceborne hyperspectral data.

sources:
[{"id":"hyplant-esa","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Glowing_plants_a_sign_of_health","title":"ESA, Glowing plants a sign of health","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"specim-software","url":"https://www.specim.com/software/","title":"Specim, hyperspectral imaging software","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Acquisition year corrected from early 2024 (spawn prompt error) to December 2020 (Konica Minolta Sensing Europe BV); confirmed by spectroscopyeurope.com, imveurope.com, Konica Minolta newsroom. Employee count discrepancy: Wikipedia ~90 (2024) vs aggregators 68-73; Wikipedia preferred.


atlas_id: 8dada695-4eb4-4810-a7d2-8c01e49b9f57
slug: spectraworks
status: live
name: SpectraWorks
kind: commercial
country: Netherlands
website: https://spectraworks.nl
operator_domains: ["spectraworks.nl"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
SpectraWorks B.V. is a Dutch deep-tech company headquartered in Noordwijk, Netherlands, focused on calibration infrastructure for Earth observation. Founded in 2026 (KvK 42018290), the company's primary technology is RefCal, a calibration transfer architecture designed to make spectral measurements from different sensors, platforms, and time periods mutually comparable, traceable, and suitable for regulatory and scientific use.[^sw-home]

RefCal v1 was in testing as of mid-2026, with patents filed. The company also operates EO-Atlas (eo-atlas.org), an open catalogue of EO sensors, missions, data products, companies, standards, and topics.[^sw-home]

SpectraWorks is developing a suite of applied services built on its calibration layer, including per-supplier deforestation verification (targeting EUDR compliance), ongoing EUDR and CSRD monitoring subscriptions, a wholesale calibration API for compliance platforms, and payload pre-launch spectral characterisation services.[^sw-products] The company has publicly described plans for HORUS-1, a planned calibration-grade hyperspectral satellite intended to serve as an orbital reference anchor, though no launch contract or confirmed specifications had been publicly disclosed as of mid-2026.[^sw-home]

No funding rounds or named customer relationships had been publicly announced as of 2026-05-24.

description:
SpectraWorks B.V. is a Dutch deep-tech building cross-sensor spectral calibration infrastructure for Earth observation. Operates RefCal (calibration methodology) and is preparing the HORUS-1 orbital payload as a Tier 1 reference anchor.

sources:
[{"id":"sw-home","url":"https://www.spectraworks.nl","title":"SpectraWorks: homepage and about page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"sw-products","url":"https://www.spectraworks.nl/products","title":"SpectraWorks: products page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 91a34756-fdd6-4169-8756-2cb87db3b3c5
slug: spire-global
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
name: Spire Global
aliases: ["Spire","Spire Global Inc"]
kind: commercial
country: United States
website: https://www.spire.com
operator_domains: ["spire.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Spire Global, Inc. (NYSE: SPIR) is a US commercial smallsat operator and space data company headquartered in Vienna, Virginia, incorporated in Delaware in August 2012. The company designs, manufactures, and operates the LEMUR (Low Earth Multi-Use Receiver) constellation of 3U CubeSat nanosatellites in low Earth orbit, having deployed more than 200 LEMUR satellites since inception across 43 or more launch campaigns on ten distinct launch vehicles.[^10k-fy2025]

The LEMUR platform is a configurable nanosatellite bus providing power, pointing, data communications, and onboard processing, enabling multiple sensor payloads to operate from a common infrastructure. Two data collection technologies form the core of Spire's current commercial offering after the April 2025 divestiture of its maritime business.

The **Weather and Climate** product line uses GNSS Radio Occultation (GNSS-RO): onboard receivers track GPS and GLONASS signals as they refract through Earth's atmospheric limb, producing vertical profiles of temperature, pressure, and water vapor at 50 Hz sampling.[^ecmwf-spire] These profiles are assimilated by major numerical weather prediction (NWP) centres including ECMWF and NOAA's GFS, with demonstrated improvements in tropical humidity forecasts. Complementary GNSS Reflectometry (GNSS-R) yields surface-level data including soil moisture, ocean wind speed, wave roughness, and flooding extent. Spire supplies GNSS-RO data to NOAA under its Commercial Data Buy programme and to NASA under the CSDA programme.

The **Aviation** product line captures ICAO-standard Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) signals from space, providing global aircraft position and status coverage including oceanic areas where ground-based ADS-B is absent. Amadeus selected Spire for real-time aircraft tracking data integration in May 2026.

**Space Services** constitutes the third pillar, offering third parties a turnkey path to orbit: Spire designs, builds, launches, and operates satellites carrying customer payloads, with access to its proprietary ground station network, cloud infrastructure, and Constellation Management Platform. Commercial customers include Lacuna Space (IoT CubeSat constellation). Government customers include the US Space Force under the STEP 2.0 IDIQ (ten-year, $237M ceiling)[^spire-stepforce] and the Government of Canada under the WildFireSat wildfire-monitoring prime contract (Can$72M, via Spire Global Canada).[^10k-fy2025] A satellite manufacturing facility opened in Munich in May 2026 to serve European sovereign customers.

Spire completed the sale of its commercial maritime AIS business, including exactEarth Ltd, to Kpler Holding SA on April 25 2025 for gross proceeds of approximately $238.9M, using the proceeds to retire all outstanding debt.[^kpler-close] Certain US federal government maritime operations were retained and not included in the sale. As of end-2025 the company had 377 employees across 9 countries, with offices in Vienna (VA), San Francisco, Boulder, Glasgow, Luxembourg, Munich (Taufkirchen), Singapore, and Cambridge (Ontario). Approximately 43% of 2025 revenue derived from three government customers per the 10-K FY2025 filing.[^10k-fy2025]

Theresa Condor became CEO on January 1 2025, succeeding co-founder Peter Platzer who became Executive Chairman.[^spire-ceo-press] Celia Pelaz (ex-HENSOLDT) joined as COO and Gabriel Oehme (ex-Airbus) as Chief Transformation Officer, both effective January 6 2025.

description:
US commercial smallsat operator and space data company, NYSE: SPIR. Operates the LEMUR constellation of 3U CubeSat nanosatellites collecting GNSS-RO atmospheric profiles (weather/climate), ADS-B aircraft positions (aviation), and hosted payloads for third parties (Space Services). Maritime AIS business sold to Kpler in April 2025. Headquartered in Vienna, Virginia; offices across 9 countries.

sources:
[{"id":"10k-fy2025","url":"https://ir.spire.com/sec-filings/all-sec-filings/content/0001193125-26-116169/spir-20251231.htm","title":"Spire Global 10-K, FY2025 Annual Report","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"kpler-close","url":"https://www.kpler.com/blog/kpler-completes-acquisition-of-spire-maritime-strengthening-maritime-intelligence-capabilities","title":"Kpler, acquisition of Spire Maritime completed April 25 2025","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"spire-ceo-press","url":"https://spire.com/press-release/spire-global-appoints-theresa-condor-as-ceo-and-taps-aerospace-industry-veterans-for-executive-team/","title":"Spire Global, Theresa Condor appointed CEO January 2025","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ecmwf-spire","url":"https://www.ecmwf.int/en/newsletter/169/meteorology/assimilating-spire-and-cosmic-2-data-ifs","title":"ECMWF Newsletter 169, assimilating Spire and COSMIC-2 data into IFS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"spire-stepforce","url":"https://spire.com/press-release/spire-global-selected-for-us-space-force-contract-with-237-million-ceiling/","title":"Spire Global, US Space Force STEP 2.0 IDIQ contract, 37M ceiling","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Discrepancies vs spawn prompt: (1) Maritime buyer is Kpler Holding SA, NOT EarthDaily Analytics -- EarthDaily is a separate Canadian EO analytics company. (2) Maritime closing date was April 25 2025, not March 2025. (3) Fleet size: >200 deployed historically; 10-K FY2025 projects >75 operational by end of 2026 -- current operational count is smaller than historical peak. (4) Commercial AIS sold with maritime unit; body uses past tense for AIS commercial operations. (5) Sale price discrepancy: SEC 8-K reported ~$233.5M net of transaction costs; 10-K FY2025 reports ~$238.9M gross proceeds. Both correct from different accounting bases. Body uses gross proceeds figure.


atlas_id: 762af2f0-d16f-42d2-9382-f68536e77a4b
slug: sron
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
name: SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research
aliases: ["SRON","Space Research Organisation Netherlands"]
kind: research-institute
country: Netherlands
website: https://www.sron.nl
operator_domains: ["sron.nl"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research is the Dutch national institute for space research and an institutional member of NWO-I, the institute organisation of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).[^sron-about] Operating from facilities in Leiden and Groningen, SRON conducts research and develops scientific instruments across two primary domains: Earth observation and astrophysics.

In Earth observation, SRON is best known as co-developer and co-Principal Investigator (co-PI) of the Tropomi (TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument) aboard ESA's Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite, launched 2017.[^eoportal-s5p] Within the Tropomi consortium (Airbus Netherlands as prime contractor, TNO as lead optical designer, KNMI as overall scientific PI), SRON contributed the immersed diffraction grating for the short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) spectrometer channel and the readout electronics for the SWIR methane detector.[^sron-sentinel5-mission] The immersed grating, lines etched into a silicon wafer set inside a prism, enables denser wavelength dispersion than air-gap gratings, reducing the SWIR channel's physical volume while improving spectral separation. SRON holds scientific leadership of the SWIR channel, covering the CH4, CO, and H2O data products derived from it.[^sron-sentinel5-mission]

SRON extended the same immersed grating technology to the Sentinel-5 UVNS instrument aboard MetOp-SG A, launched 2025.[^sron-metop-sg] The instrument covers 270-2385 nm across UV, visible, NIR, and SWIR channels; SRON's contribution again targets the SWIR grating component.

For NASA's PACE mission, launched 2024, SRON co-developed SPEXone, an aerosol polarimeter observing in five viewing directions across 385-770 nm.[^sron-spexone] SPEXone measures polarised sunlight to characterise atmospheric aerosol distributions and their role in cloud formation, narrowing uncertainty in climate models for aerosol cooling effects.

SRON's technology capabilities include cryogenic detector systems to 0.1 Kelvin, precision immersed grating fabrication, multi-angle polarimetric telescope design, nanotechnology cleanrooms, and space qualification of electronic and mechanical subsystems.

description:
Dutch national institute for space research, affiliated with the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO). Develops scientific instruments for ESA and NASA missions, with particular strength in optical design, detector technology, cryogenic instrumentation, and space qualification. SRON is the principal investigator institute for Sentinel-5 Precursor TROPOMI and the upcoming Sentinel-5 UVNS spectrometers, and contributes to a range of Earth observation, astrophysics, and exoplanet missions including Athena, METIS for ELT, and ARIEL.

sources:
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atlas_id: 111ac268-d501-4b35-9af4-c502a6f00b9e
slug: thales-alenia-space
status: live
name: Thales Alenia Space
aliases: ["TAS","Thales Alenia Space S.A.S."]
kind: commercial
country: France
website: https://www.thalesaleniaspace.com
operator_domains: ["thalesaleniaspace.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Thales Alenia Space is a joint venture between Thales Group (67%) and Leonardo S.p.A. (33%), incorporated in 2007 from the former Alcatel Alenia Space. Headquartered in Cannes, France, it operates 17 industrial sites across nine European countries, with major facilities in Cannes and Toulouse (France), Rome, Turin, and L'Aquila (Italy), and Madrid (Spain).[^tas-who-we-are] The company employs approximately 8,500 people (2022) and reported consolidated revenues of EUR 2.36 billion in 2025.[^tas-who-we-are]

Thales Alenia Space is one of Europe's two principal large satellite prime contractors, alongside Airbus Defence and Space. Its business spans telecommunications, Earth observation, navigation, defence, and space exploration. Together with Telespazio, it forms the Space Alliance, offering end-to-end satellite services.[^tas-who-we-are]

In Earth observation, TAS operates across two distinct structural roles: full platform prime and instrument-level subcontractor. On the ESA Copernicus Sentinel-1 programme, TAS-Italy (Rome) serves as spacecraft platform prime, responsible for the PRIMA bus, system integration, and the SAR antenna transmit/receive modules; the C-band SAR instrument is a subcontract to Airbus DS.[^eoportal-s1][^tas-pr-s1d] On Sentinel-3, TAS-France (Cannes) holds the overall satellite prime contract (EUR 305 million, signed April 2008), with responsibility extending to the OLCI and SRAL instruments; the MWR microwave radiometer is supplied by Airbus DS as subcontractor.[^wiki-s3][^eoportal-s3]

For Italy's COSMO-SkyMed programme, TAS-Italy acts as industrial prime for both generations. The first-generation constellation of four X-band SAR satellites (CSK-1 through CSK-4, launched 2007-2010) was manufactured under ASI contract; the second-generation (CSG) programme, also awarded to TAS-Italy by ASI (phase-B contract 2011), delivers substantially improved 0.35-metre spotlight resolution.[^eoportal-csk][^eoportal-csg][^tas-pr-csg3] CSG-3 launched January 2026, with CSG-4 in development.

Beyond operational constellations, TAS holds prime contracts for three of the six Copernicus Expansion missions, CIMR, ROSE-L, and CHIME, and contributes payloads to CRISTAL and CO2M.[^wiki-tas] It is also prime contractor for the Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) meteorological satellites.[^wiki-tas] In altimetry, TAS supplied the Poseidon-4 radar altimeter for Sentinel-6B, where Airbus DS is satellite prime.[^tas-pr-s6b]

description:
Franco-Italian satellite systems integrator and prime contractor, joint venture between Thales Group (67 percent) and Leonardo (33 percent), headquartered at the Cannes Mandelieu Space Center. Approximately 8,000 employees across 14 sites in 7 countries; consolidated revenue about EUR 2.36 billion in 2025. One of Europe's three largest space manufacturers alongside Airbus DS and OHB. Builds satellites for operators including ESA, ASI, and EUMETSAT; does not operate missions itself. Prime contractor on Sentinel-3 (all units), Cosmo-SkyMed (both generations), Meteosat, Euclid, and the Copernicus Expansion missions CIMR, ROSE-L, and CHIME. Subcontractor (P-band feed array) on ESA's BIOMASS, where Airbus DS UK holds the prime contract.

sources:
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atlas_id: d1ed9d07-2562-405c-91b7-14094ee72284
slug: tno
status: live
verification_status: sw-reviewed
name: TNO
kind: research-institute
country: Netherlands
website: https://www.tno.nl
operator_domains: ["tno.nl"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
TNO (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Toegepast Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek) is a Dutch independent applied research organisation operating under the TNO Act. Its Space and Scientific Instrumentation directorate is based at Stieltjesweg, Delft, and has contributed precision optical instrumentation to ESA Copernicus and other major space programmes for more than three decades.[^tno-eo-overview]

TNO developed the UVN-OBM (Ultraviolet Visible Near-infrared Optical Bench Module) for Tropomi, the atmospheric trace-gas sensor aboard ESA's Sentinel-5P satellite. The UVN-OBM integrates the shared telescope, calibration unit, and three of the instrument's four spectrometer channels. Key enabling technologies include freeform optics and immersed grating technology.[^tno-tropomi] Tropomi launched in October 2017 and has operated continuously at 824 km altitude, delivering daily global maps of ozone, nitrogen dioxide, methane, sulfur dioxide, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide at 7x7 km resolution.

For Sentinel-5 aboard MetOp-SG A1, TNO developed the UV1 spectrometer (270-310 nm) and two high-resolution optical telescopes with nanometer-smooth mirror surfaces. Instruments are being produced in triplicate to support the 21-year constellation lifetime.[^tno-sentinel5] Sentinel-5 launched in August 2025 on Ariane 6.

For EarthCARE, TNO designed and manufactured the VNS module of the Multi Spectral Imager (MSI), covering visible, near-infrared, and shortwave-infrared bands, in cooperation with Surrey Satellite Technology.[^tno-earthcare] EarthCARE launched in May 2024.

TNO also leads optical system development for the TANGO nanosatellite pair, carrying Spectrolite compact instruments for CO2, CH4, and NOx monitoring at ~300 m spatial resolution, with direct heritage from Tropomi technology.[^tno-tango]

Beyond Earth observation, TNO has contributed optical designs to JWST/MIRI and the Gaia astrometry mission, and develops laser satellite communication terminals and optical ground telescope systems. Its Stieltjesweg campus in Delft houses the Centre for Optics Manufacturing and the Instrument Manufacturing Delft precision engineering facility.

TNO is distinct from SRON (an NWO-funded research institute focused on space science) and from NLSA (the Netherlands Space Agency responsible for national space policy and funding coordination). TNO's role is applied technology development and instrument realisation for ESA and other space agencies.

aliases:
["Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research","Nederlandse Organisatie voor Toegepast Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek"]

description:
Dutch independent applied-research organisation under the TNO Act. Distinct from SRON (NWO-I science institute) and KNMI (meteorology). Major instrument contributor to ESA Earth observation missions: built the UVN-OBM (telescope, calibration unit, and 3 of 4 spectrometer channels) for Tropomi on Sentinel-5P; UV1 spectrometer (270-310 nm) plus 2 high-resolution optical telescopes for Sentinel-5 on MetOp-SG A1 (Airbus DS holds the UVNS prime); VNS module for EarthCARE MSI. Space and Scientific Instrumentation directorate based at Stieltjesweg, Delft.

sources:
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atlas_id: 838498ca-b7b4-4ac7-99b7-d96508aec37e
slug: trioptics
status: live
name: TRIOPTICS
aliases: ["TRIOPTICS GmbH"]
kind: commercial
country: Germany
website: https://www.trioptics.com
operator_domains: ["trioptics.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
TRIOPTICS GmbH is a German precision optical metrology and manufacturing equipment company, headquartered in Wedel near Hamburg and operating as a subsidiary of Jenoptik AG since September 2020. Founded on 1 December 1991 by Eugen Dumitrescu and two partners, the company grew to approximately 500 employees across subsidiaries in Europe, Asia, and North America.[^trioptics-about]

The company designs and manufactures instrumentation used to test, align, and qualify optical elements during production; it does not manufacture optical components or satellite hardware itself. Its product families span modulation transfer function (MTF) testing (ImageMaster series), lens centration and alignment (OptiCentric series), active camera module alignment (ProCam), wavefront measurement (WaveMaster), and lens-in-cell production tooling (ATS).[^trioptics-products]

In the Earth observation supply chain, TRIOPTICS instruments are used by optical instrument prime contractors during payload manufacturing and acceptance. The ImageMaster Universal and HR TempControl support MTF testing of satellite optics across the UV-to-LWIR spectral range (200-13,000 nm) and across thermal qualification ranges (-40C to +120C).[^trioptics-aerospace] OptiCentric systems, with centration precision below 0.1 micrometres, are used for alignment of space optics in VIS and IR, including large-aperture catadioptric telescope assemblies (configurations up to 800 mm diameter).[^trioptics-opticentric]

Jenoptik AG, listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (SDAX), acquired TRIOPTICS in a two-step transaction announced July 2020 and fully completed December 2021. At acquisition, TRIOPTICS reported 2019 revenue of approximately EUR 80 million with a 27% EBITDA margin, having grown at 17% CAGR over four preceding years. More than half of revenue was generated in Asia.[^jenoptik-adhoc]

description:
German optical metrology and test equipment manufacturer headquartered in Wedel, near Hamburg. Specialises in optical alignment, MTF testing, lens centration measurement, and quality control instrumentation across defence, automotive, semiconductor, consumer optics, and space sectors. Product line includes ImageMaster MTF benches, OptiCentric centration instruments, and a range of dedicated metrology tools that anchor the optical QA chain for instrument manufacturers globally. One of the principal optical metrology vendors alongside Optikos and Image Engineering.

sources:
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atlas_id: abb0f1c2-f9ca-418f-bd54-87b4e7ba95e6
slug: umd
status: live
name: University of Maryland
aliases: ["UMD","UMCP","University of Maryland College Park"]
kind: research-institute
country: US
website: https://geog.umd.edu
operator_domains: ["umd.edu"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
The University of Maryland (UMD), a public research university founded in 1856 and located in College Park, Maryland, operates the Global Land Analysis & Discovery (GLAD) laboratory within its Department of Geographical Sciences.[^umd-about][^gee-v113] GLAD is the primary research unit relevant to EO-Atlas: it produces satellite-derived global land cover and forest change datasets that underpin operational forest monitoring worldwide.

GLAD's foundational output is the Hansen Global Forest Change dataset, a joint product of UMD, Google, USGS, and NASA.[^gee-v113] First published in 2013, the dataset maps annual global forest loss and gain at 30-metre resolution from Landsat imagery, covering 2000-2025 in its current version (v1.13).[^hansen2013][^gee-v113] The 2013 Science paper introducing the dataset has accumulated over 14,000 citations, establishing the methodology as the reference approach for global-scale forest cover change monitoring.

Building on this foundation, GLAD operates two near-real-time forest disturbance alert systems. The GLAD-L alert system uses Landsat imagery to detect tropical forest disturbance at 30-metre resolution.[^hansen2016] The GLAD-S2 alert system extends this to 10-metre resolution using Sentinel-2 data, expanding detection sensitivity to smaller clearing events. Both are distributed via the Global Forest Watch platform (operated by WRI) and via the GLAD Earth Engine application portal.

UMD researchers also contributed to the RADD (Radar for Detecting Deforestation) alert system, which uses Sentinel-1 SAR data to detect disturbance through cloud cover. RADD is led by Wageningen University and Research (WUR); the UMD contribution was methodological rather than operational leadership.[^reiche2021]

The GLAD lab is led by Professor Matthew C. Hansen and Research Professor Peter V. Potapov.[^hansen2016][^gee-v113] Both are affiliated with the Department of Geographical Sciences at UMD and have co-authored the primary peer-reviewed papers underpinning all major GLAD products.

description:
US public research university (Maryland flagship). Home of the GLAD lab (Global Land Analysis and Discovery), which produces the GLAD-L, GLAD-S2, and DIST-ALERT deforestation alert algorithms and the Hansen annual global forest change dataset, distributed via WRI's Global Forest Watch platform. Does not operate satellites; consumes open Landsat and Sentinel-2 data.

sources:
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atlas_id: e24a9afe-0d22-4daa-af5b-d906d8147bf1
slug: unfccc
status: live
name: UNFCCC Secretariat
aliases: ["UNFCCC","UN Climate Change"]
kind: agency
country: International
website: https://unfccc.int
operator_domains: ["unfccc.int"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-18T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
The UNFCCC Secretariat is the United Nations administrative body established under Article 8 of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, adopted 9 May 1992 in New York and in force from 21 March 1994.[^unfccc-treaty-un] Based on the UN Campus in Bonn, Germany since 1996, the secretariat supports approximately 450 staff and serves 198 parties across three treaty regimes: the Convention, the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, and the 2015 Paris Agreement.[^unfccc-secretariat-about]

The secretariat's institutional role is governance and facilitation, not data production. It supports the Conference of the Parties (COP) as supreme decision body, and the CMA (Paris Agreement) and CMP (Kyoto Protocol) as parallel treaty bodies, plus subsidiary bodies SBSTA and SBI. Executive Secretary Simon Stiell of Grenada has led the secretariat since August 2022.[^unfccc-secretariat-about]

Three UNFCCC-administered frameworks create direct demand for Earth observation data. The Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF), grounded in Article 13 of the Paris Agreement, requires all parties to submit Biennial Transparency Reports including national GHG inventory reports built on 2006 IPCC Guidelines.[^paris-agreement-page] The Global Stocktake (Article 14, Decision 19/CMA.1) reviews collective climate progress every five years; the first concluded at COP28 in 2023, and the second cycle runs 2026-2028. CEOS and CGMS deliver annual statements to the SBSTA and provide climate data records and Essential Climate Variables through a dedicated GST Portal to inform stocktake inputs.

The strongest explicit EO mandate in the UNFCCC framework is REDD+, which governs reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries.[^redd-platform-home] Under the Warsaw Framework for REDD+ (seven decisions at COP19, 2013), countries seeking results-based payments must establish national forest monitoring systems that use a combination of remote sensing and ground-based forest carbon inventory approaches, a direct policy requirement for satellite or airborne forest observation (Decisions 4/CP.15, 1/CP.16, 11/CP.19).[^redd-nfms] Measurement, reporting, and verification of forest-related emissions must satisfy Decision 14/CP.19. The UNFCCC operates the REDD+ Web Platform (mandated Decision 2/CP.13) to support country reporting.[^redd-warsaw-framework]

Readers encountering UNFCCC requirements in methodology or regulatory pages should distinguish: IPCC provides the scientific assessment layer and inventory guidelines; WMO and GCOS define Essential Climate Variables; CEOS/CGMS deliver the satellite data records; the UNFCCC Secretariat sets the treaty-level rules that make all of this necessary.

description:
UN treaty secretariat for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (adopted 1992, in force 1994). Administers the Warsaw Framework for REDD+ (COP 19, 2013), the methodological framework that national forest reference levels and forest monitoring systems must follow to access results-based payments for deforestation emission reductions. Does not operate satellites or produce EO data; mandates national forest monitoring systems that must use remote sensing combined with ground-based inventory.

sources:
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atlas_id: 8b6b6544-fffb-4012-af5f-b0799bb68f3d
slug: usgs
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: researched
name: U.S. Geological Survey
aliases: ["USGS","USGS EROS"]
kind: agency
country: USA
website: https://www.usgs.gov
operator_domains: ["usgs.gov"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Interior, established by Congress in 1879 to provide science and information on natural resources and natural hazards. Its Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota is the operational hub of the joint USGS-NASA Landsat program and a major repository for land imagery globally.

Within the Landsat program, NASA procures spacecraft and instruments, manages launch, and oversees initial orbital checkout; USGS then assumes operational control of the spacecraft, runs the EROS ground segment, processes imagery to Collection 2 specifications, and distributes data globally at no cost. That cost-free model has been in place since 2008, when USGS made the full Landsat archive freely downloadable, a policy that structurally enables major land-monitoring products including the GLAD forest-alert system (University of Maryland), the Hansen Global Forest Change dataset, and Brazil's PRODES deforestation monitoring.

Collection 2 products span three tiers. Level-1 data covers Landsat 1 through 9. Level-2 science products (Surface Reflectance, SR, and Surface Temperature, ST) are available globally for Landsat 4 through 9 from 1982 to present, delivered as Cloud Optimized GeoTIFFs within 24 hours of scene acquisition. Level-3 U.S. Analysis Ready Data (ARD) comply with CEOS ARD standards and are tiled for immediate continental-scale analysis. Access is through EarthExplorer (graphical interface across 120+ datasets), a machine-to-machine JSON API, and direct AWS cloud access via STAC.

At EROS, USGS co-operates the Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC) jointly with NASA. Established in 1990, LP DAAC distributes more than 14 petabytes of land remote sensing data including ASTER, MODIS, VIIRS, ECOSTRESS, GEDI, EMIT, and Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 products. USGS also leads the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) consortium, which produces the National Land Cover Database (NLCD), an annual 30-metre land-cover classification for the coterminous United States derived from Landsat and supplementary Sentinel-2 imagery.

description:
US federal scientific agency, bureau of the Department of the Interior, founded 1879. Agency HQ at Reston, Virginia; Landsat operational HQ at the Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Co-manages the Landsat program with NASA, with NASA procuring spacecraft and instruments, managing launch, and overseeing initial orbital checkout, while USGS assumes operational control thereafter, runs the ground segment, processes data to Collection 2 specifications, and distributes globally at no cost. The 2008 USGS free and open Landsat data policy is the structural enabler of GLAD-L, Hansen Global Forest Change, and PRODES.

sources:
[{"id":"usgs-about","url":"https://www.usgs.gov/about","title":"About USGS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"usgs-landsat-missions","url":"https://www.usgs.gov/landsat-missions","title":"Landsat Missions, USGS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"l9-roles","url":"https://www.usgs.gov/landsat-missions/landsat-9","title":"Landsat 9, USGS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"c2-products","url":"https://www.usgs.gov/landsat-missions/landsat-collection-2","title":"Landsat Collection 2, USGS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"data-access","url":"https://www.usgs.gov/landsat-missions/landsat-data-access","title":"Landsat Data Access, USGS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eros-center","url":"https://www.usgs.gov/centers/eros","title":"EROS Center, USGS","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"lp-daac","url":"https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/centers/lp-daac","title":"LP DAAC, NASA Earthdata","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nlcd-mrlc","url":"https://www.mrlc.gov/about","title":"About MRLC, mrlc.gov","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 458d388a-f7fb-4ebd-9cb1-3b26aa1e1849
slug: vantor
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: Vantor
kind: commercial
country: United States
website: https://www.vantor.com
operator_domains: ["vantor.com","maxar.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Vantor is a US commercial Earth observation operator and spatial intelligence company headquartered in Westminster, Colorado. Its corporate lineage runs from DigitalGlobe, founded in 1992, through the 2017 merger with MDA that created Maxar Technologies, Advent International's .4 billion private acquisition of Maxar in May 2023, and the subsequent September 2023 organisational split that separated imagery operations (Maxar Intelligence, now Vantor) from satellite manufacturing (Maxar Space Systems, now Lanteris Space Systems). Vantor adopted its current name on 1 October 2025.[^wiki-vantor]

The company operates the WorldView constellation, comprising five active satellites: WorldView-1 (50 cm panchromatic), WorldView-2 (46 cm pan, 8-band multispectral), WorldView-3 (31 cm pan, 29-band sensor including SWIR), GeoEye-1 (41 cm pan, 1.65 m multispectral), and WorldView Legion (a six-satellite high-resolution constellation fully deployed by 2025, offering up to 15 daily revisits at mid-latitudes at 30 cm multispectral resolution).[^wiki-wv-legion][^eoportal-wv3] This archive, accumulated across three decades of continuous imaging, is Vantor's primary commercial differentiator.

Customers span US and allied government agencies, with the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency as the dominant government customer under long-standing commercial imagery contracts, through commercial data resellers SkyFi and Apollo Mapping and direct enterprise users including Google and Lockheed Martin.[^wiki-vantor] Revenue was approximately 87.5 million in 2025, generated by roughly 1,900 employees.

Beyond raw imagery, Vantor positions itself as a spatial intelligence platform. Its software portfolio includes Vivid (global basemap and 3D terrain products), Tensorglobe (an AI-ready spatial intelligence platform combining multi-sensor data, launched October 2025), Cortex (analysis workbench), Raptor (GPS-resilient navigation for autonomous systems, launched February 2025), and Sentry (a surface-change monitoring system, launched June 2025). Imagery access for commercial buyers routes through the Vantor Hub catalogue and STAC API.

Vantor is wholly privately held by Advent International; no public equity exists. Satellite manufacturing is handled by its sister company Lanteris Space Systems under the same Advent ownership umbrella.

aliases:
["Vantor (ex-Maxar Intelligence)","Maxar Intelligence","DigitalGlobe","Maxar Technologies (Earth intelligence business)"]

description:
US commercial Earth-imaging operator, headquartered in Westminster, Colorado. Rebranded from Maxar Intelligence on 1 October 2025; the broader corporate lineage runs DigitalGlobe (1992), MDA acquisition forming Maxar Technologies (October 2017), Advent International private acquisition of Maxar (May 2023), and the September 2023 split into Maxar Space Systems (now Lanteris Space Systems) and Maxar Intelligence. Operator of WorldView Legion, WorldView-1/2/3, GeoEye-1, and historical IKONOS / QuickBird very-high-resolution Earth-imaging constellations. Revenue mix is government-prime-dominant (NGA, USSF) with a commercial direct channel via Vantor Hub (STAC API, credits, WorldView tasking suite) plus reseller partnerships with SkyFi and Apollo Mapping. The 20-year DigitalGlobe to Vantor archive is the company's primary commercial differentiator. For EO-Atlas FK purposes, Vantor is the manufacturer FK on WorldView-class sensor entities and operator FK on WorldView-class mission entities.

sources:
[{"id":"wiki-vantor","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vantor_(company)","title":"Vantor (company), Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wiki-wv-legion","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WorldView_Legion","title":"WorldView Legion, Wikipedia","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-wv3","url":"https://eoportal.org/satellite-missions/worldview-3","title":"WorldView-3, eoPortal Directory","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: e1a45555-9010-49a4-a464-b07ef33b95d1
slug: viavi-solutions
status: live
name: Viavi Solutions
aliases: ["Viavi","Viavi OSP","Optical Coating Laboratory","OCLI"]
kind: commercial
country: United States
website: https://www.viavisolutions.com
operator_domains: ["viavisolutions.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Viavi Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAV) is a US-listed optical components manufacturer whose Optical Security and Performance Products (OSP) division is one of the principal precision thin-film coating houses for space and aerospace instrumentation. The division traces its lineage to Optical Coating Laboratory Inc. (OCLI), founded in Santa Rosa, California in 1948 as one of the first commercial thin-film coating operations; JDSU acquired OCLI in 2000 and the OSP segment became part of Viavi Solutions when JDSU separated its network-test and optical-security businesses in August 2015.[^viav-jdsu-spinoff]

The EO-relevant product line centres on the OSP division's custom optical filter and coating capability, manufactured at the Santa Rosa facility (ITAR-compliant, ISO 9001, AS9100 certified) and at the newer Chandler, Arizona production site. The division covers the full spectral range from deep ultraviolet through long-wave infrared, with particular depth in the 0.75-5.0 um near- to mid-wave infrared band where spaceborne spectrometers typically operate.[^viav-spherex]

The flagship EO-instrument-relevant product is the Linear Variable Filter (LVF): a wedged bandpass filter providing position-dependent wavelength selectivity that enables compact, pushbroom-compatible spectrometers without moving parts. Viavi LVFs have accumulated multiple NASA deep-space flight programs: the LEISA instrument on New Horizons, the OVIRS spectrometer on OSIRIS-REx, and the MISE order sorting filter assembly on Europa Clipper (launched October 2024, MISE spectral range 0.8-5.0 um).[^viav-europaclip] The SPHEREx all-sky survey mission (launched March 2025) uses Viavi LVFs spanning 0.75-5.0 um alongside a dichroic beamsplitter that divides light between two detector banks.[^viav-spherex][^viav-osirisrex]

The division also produces Hyperspectral Filter Arrays (HFAs): monolithic pixel-level filter mosaics deposited directly on sensor wafers or glass substrates, covering 300 nm to 5 um in 16 to 300 discrete channels. This architecture is directly applicable to spaceborne focal-plane spectral sensing but has not been cited in a publicly disclosed Earth-observation flight mission as of May 2026.[^viav-osp-spectral]

Viavi OSP functions as a precision optical component supplier, relevant wherever a sensor or instrument entry cites thin-film filter, LVF, or beamsplitter components. OSP pricing and minimum-order scale are calibrated to NASA cost-plus and defence-prime programmes; commercial constellation customers are served by lower-cost alternatives at smaller volumes.

In fiscal year 2025 (ended June 28, 2025), the OSP segment reported revenue of USD 307.7 million with an operating margin of 36.5%, against total company revenue of USD 1.084 billion.[^viav-fy2025] The company employed approximately 3,600 people as of 2024.

description:
US precision optical coating manufacturer (NASDAQ: VIAV), OSP division. Founded 1948 as Optical Coating Laboratory (OCLI); JDSU acquired OCLI in 2000, became Viavi Solutions in August 2015. Fiscal year 2025: OSP revenue USD 307.7 million, operating margin 36.5% (total company revenue USD 1.084 billion). Products: Linear Variable Filters (LVF), dichroic beamsplitters, Hyperspectral Filter Arrays, custom coatings UV-LWIR. NASA flight heritage: OVIRS on OSIRIS-REx, LEISA on New Horizons, SPHEREx (2025), MISE on Europa Clipper (2024).

sources:
[{"id":"viav-jdsu-spinoff","url":"https://investor.viavisolutions.com/news-events/news-releases/news-details/2015/JDSU-Renamed-Viavi-After-Completing-Spinoff-of-Lumentum-08-03-2015/default.aspx","title":"Viavi Solutions, JDSU Renamed Viavi After Completing Spinoff of Lumentum","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24","publication_date":"2015-08-03"},{"id":"viav-spherex","url":"https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/viavi-delivers-precision-optics-for-nasas-groundbreaking-spherex-mission-302400570.html","title":"Viavi Solutions, VIAVI Delivers Precision Optics for NASA SPHEREx Mission","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24","publication_date":"2025-03-11"},{"id":"viav-europaclip","url":"https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/viavi-delivers-precision-components-for-nasas-europa-clipper-mission-302342976.html","title":"Viavi Solutions, VIAVI Delivers Precision Components for NASA Europa Clipper Mission","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24","publication_date":"2025-01-21"},{"id":"viav-osirisrex","url":"https://www.viavisolutions.com/en-us/viavi-optical-filter-technology-essential-component-nasas-osiris-rex-mission","title":"Viavi Solutions, VIAVI Optical Filter Technology is an Essential Component to NASA OSIRIS-REx Mission","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"viav-osp-spectral","url":"https://www.viavisolutions.com/en-us/osp/products/spectral-sensing-filters","title":"Viavi Solutions OSP, Spectral Sensing Filters product page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"viav-fy2025","url":"https://investor.viavisolutions.com/news-events/news-releases/news-details/2025/VIAVI-Announces-Fiscal-Fourth-Quarter-and-Fiscal-Year-2025-Results/default.aspx","title":"Viavi Solutions, Fiscal Year 2025 Q4 and Annual Results press release","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24","publication_date":"2025-08-05"}]

research_notes:
{"researched": "2026-05-24", "researcher": "atlas-researcher-research-7cc1", "discrepancies": ["OSP revenue/margin: D1 had ~300M/34%; FY2025 verified 307.7M/36.5% (SEC press release)", "HQ location: D1 says Milpitas CA; correct is Chandler AZ (since 2021); OSP manufacturing is Santa Rosa CA", "founded_year 1948 is OCLI predecessor; Viavi Solutions Inc. legal entity dates 2015"], "unverified": ["Large-scale optics 2.5m specific figure not found in tier 1-3 sources; use meter-class in prose", "No EO/Earth-observation satellite payload customer or mission publicly disclosed"], "key_sources": ["viav-fy2025", "viav-spherex", "viav-europaclip", "viav-osirisrex", "viav-jdsu-spinoff"]}


atlas_id: d3f5f00f-462a-4078-984a-c529618af8d2
slug: wageningen-university
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
name: Wageningen University and Research
aliases: ["WUR","Wageningen University","Wageningen UR"]
kind: research-institute
country: Netherlands
website: https://www.wur.nl/en
operator_domains: ["wur.nl"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Wageningen University and Research (WUR) is a Dutch public research university and non-profit research institute, operating as two co-managed legal entities, Wageningen University and Stichting Wageningen Research, under a shared Executive Board. Founded in 1876, WUR is headquartered in Wageningen, Netherlands, and is funded primarily by the Dutch state, NWO, EU Horizon programmes, and private sector contracts.

WUR's earth observation relevance is concentrated in the Laboratory of Geo-information Science and Remote Sensing (GRS lab), a unit of the Department of Environmental Sciences. The lab employs approximately 67 researchers and focuses on synthetic aperture radar, time series analysis, deforestation monitoring, and tropical forest dynamics.[^reiche-2021][^wur-reiche-profile]

The GRS lab is the lead developer of the RADD Forest Disturbance Alerts (Radar for Detecting Deforestation), a near-real-time forest monitoring system built on ESA Sentinel-1 C-band radar. Associate Professor Johannes Reiche is the corresponding author of the founding paper (Reiche et al. 2021, Environmental Research Letters) and leads the Radar Remote Sensing team within GRS. Professor Martin Herold, also GRS-affiliated, contributed senior oversight to RADD development.[^reiche-2021][^wur-reiche-profile]

The RADD algorithm applies pixel-specific Gaussian Mixture Models with Bayesian updating to Sentinel-1 VV and VH backscatter, detecting forest disturbances at 10-metre resolution regardless of cloud cover, a critical capability in humid tropical regions where optical sensors lose coverage for months at a time. At launch in 2021, coverage encompassed the Congo Basin across six countries; the system has since expanded to 44 countries across humid tropical forest biomes in South America, Central Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. Confirmed alerts (0.2 hectare minimum mapping unit) achieve 97.6 percent user accuracy and 95.0 percent producer accuracy in the Congo Basin benchmark, with 74 percent of core pixels confirmed within 24 days.[^reiche-2021][^gee-catalog-radd]

RADD alerts are available open-access (CC BY 4.0) on Global Forest Watch, Google Earth Engine, Sepal.io, and EarthMap. The World Resources Institute hosts RADD on its Global Forest Watch platform and co-facilitated the commodity-company funding coalition that supported initial development. Satelligence, a Dutch EO company with Wageningen alumni roots, handled operational scaling in Indonesia and Malaysia. The University of Maryland contributed as a co-author institution; WUR is the lead methodology originator.[^gfw-blog-2021][^wri-press-2019][^gee-catalog-radd]

Beyond RADD, the GRS lab leads the Forest Foresight predictive deforestation model and Reiche chairs the GFOI R&D group on deforestation alerts. Reiche also serves on the Sentinel-1 Next-Generation Mission Advisory Group representing the land EO community.[^wur-reiche-profile]

description:
Dutch public research university and non-profit research institute, ranked first globally in agriculture and forestry. Operates as two co-managed legal entities (Wageningen University and Stichting Wageningen Research) under a shared Executive Board. The Laboratory of Geo-information Science and Remote Sensing (GRS lab, led by Johannes Reiche) developed the RADD forest disturbance alert algorithm and the Forest Foresight predictive deforestation model. Not an EO operator or instrument manufacturer.

sources:
[{"id":"reiche-2021","url":"https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/abd0a8","title":"Forest disturbance alerts for the Congo Basin using Sentinel-1, Reiche et al. 2021 ERL 16(2):024005","tier":"peer-reviewed","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wri-press-2019","url":"https://www.wri.org/news/release-palm-oil-industry-jointly-develop-radar-monitoring-technology-detect-deforestation","title":"WRI press release, Palm Oil Industry to Jointly Develop Radar Monitoring Technology, 2019-10-31","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"gfw-blog-2021","url":"https://www.globalforestwatch.org/blog/data-and-tools/radd-radar-alerts/","title":"New Radar Alerts Monitor Forests Through the Clouds, GFW blog March 2021","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"gee-catalog-radd","url":"https://gee-community-catalog.org/projects/radd/","title":"RADD Forest Disturbance Alert, GEE Community Catalog","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wur-reiche-profile","url":"https://www.wur.nl/en/persons/dr-j-johannes-reiche","title":"Dr J (Johannes) Reiche, WUR staff profile","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 14515171-d659-43f6-aad6-867c9ec25868
slug: wri
status: live
name: World Resources Institute
aliases: ["WRI"]
kind: research-institute
country: USA
website: https://www.wri.org
operator_domains: ["wri.org","globalforestwatch.org","pro.globalforestwatch.org","landcarbonlab.org"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-17T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
World Resources Institute (WRI) is a Washington, D.C.-based independent nonprofit research organization, incorporated under US law as a 501(c)(3) with EIN 52-1257057. Founded in 1982 with MacArthur Foundation support, WRI studies and advances sustainable practices across food, forests, water, energy, cities, and climate policy. As of fiscal year 2024, WRI reported total revenues of $267 million and employs over 2,000 staff across offices in 12 countries.[^propublica-990][^wri-about]

In the Earth observation ecosystem, WRI functions as a platform operator and programme manager rather than a satellite operator or sensor-data producer. Its principal EO-facing product is Global Forest Watch (GFW), launched in its current interactive form on 19 February 2014 after a network-phase predecessor dating to 1997.[^gfw-launch-2014] WRI owns and operates the GFW platform and is responsible for integrating datasets contributed by independent research partners: the University of Maryland GLAD Lab produces the Hansen Global Forest Change annual baseline and the GLAD-L and GLAD-S2 near-real-time alert datasets; Wageningen University and Research produces the RADD Forest Disturbance Alerts (Sentinel-1); JAXA and JICA produce JJ-FAST; MapBiomas contributes regional land-cover layers. Google Earth Engine provides cloud compute capacity as a donated platform substrate.[^gfw-integrated-alerts][^gfw-launch-2014]

WRI's technical contribution on GFW is the integration layer: GLAD-L, GLAD-S2, RADD, and DIST-ALERT (the last from UMD and NASA) are resampled to 10 m, temporally deduplicated across a 180-day window, and combined into a unified confidence-tiered alert product. Alerts confirmed by two or more independent systems carry the highest confidence classification.[^gfw-integrated-alerts]

GFW Pro, launched 11 June 2019, is WRI's enterprise subscription platform for deforestation risk management in commodity supply chains. It layers the same alert datasets over user-uploaded farm polygons and supply-chain locations, adds an EUDR compliance module (using the Natural Lands Map as the 31 December 2020 baseline), and is used by over 1,000 organisations across agriculture, finance, and compliance sectors.[^wri-launch-2019]

The Land and Carbon Lab, co-convened by WRI and the Bezos Earth Fund since 2021, extends WRI's geospatial monitoring scope to non-forest ecosystems. Its research network of more than 200 scientists across 35+ institutions produces open datasets including the Global Tree Canopy Height map, Natural Lands Map, and Tropical Tree Cover. The Natural Lands Map feeds directly into GFW Pro's EUDR module.[^lcl-about]

description:
US 501(c)(3) nonprofit research and policy organization. Operates the Global Forest Watch (GFW) and GFW Pro platforms as the distribution layer for third-party deforestation alert systems (GLAD, RADD, DIST-ALERT, JJ-FAST). Not a satellite operator and not an alert algorithm producer.

sources:
[{"id":"propublica-990","url":"https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/521257057","title":"World Resources Institute, Nonprofit Explorer (Form 990, FY Sept 2024)","tier":"legal-text","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wri-about","url":"https://www.wri.org/about","title":"About WRI, World Resources Institute","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"gfw-launch-2014","url":"https://www.wri.org/news/release-global-forest-watch-dynamic-new-platform-protect-forests-worldwide","title":"Global Forest Watch, Dynamic New Platform to Protect Forests Worldwide, WRI press release 19 February 2014","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"gfw-integrated-alerts","url":"https://www.globalforestwatch.org/blog/data-and-tools/integrated-deforestation-alerts/","title":"Integrated deforestation alerts on Global Forest Watch","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wri-launch-2019","url":"https://www.wri.org/news/release-companies-can-now-quickly-and-accurately-monitor-deforestation-around-world","title":"WRI press release, GFW Pro launch 11 June 2019","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"lcl-about","url":"https://landcarbonlab.org/about/","title":"About, Land and Carbon Lab","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 46181808-80c5-43b8-97a7-0237b9d6211c
slug: wyvern
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: Wyvern
aliases: ["Wyvern Inc"]
kind: commercial
country: Canada
website: https://wyvern.space
operator_domains: ["wyvern.space"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Wyvern is a Canadian commercial hyperspectral Earth observation company headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta, founded in 2018 by four University of Alberta graduates: Chris Robson (CEO), Kurtis Broda, Kristen Cote, and Callie Lissinna.[^yc-profile] A Y Combinator W22 alumnus, the company raised approximately USD $18 million across eight rounds through October 2024, with investors including Uncork Capital, MaC Venture Capital, Squadra Ventures, and Y Combinator.[^techcrunch-6m] In February 2026, NordSpace Ventures made an undisclosed strategic investment to accelerate Wyvern's next-generation Rosette programme.[^nordspace-invest]

Wyvern's hyperspectral imagery reaches customers through two infrastructure arrangements. The first three satellites, Dragonette-001, -002, and -003, were built and are owned by AAC Clyde Space under a GBP 8.4 million Space Data as a Service contract signed in June 2021.[^aac-sda-contract] Under that arrangement, AAC Clyde Space designed, manufactured, and operates the three 6U EPIC VIEW CubeSats (marketed by AAC Clyde Space as EPICHyper-1, -2, and -3), while Wyvern subscribes to the imagery data for four years with annual extension options. Dragonette-001 launched on SpaceX Transporter-7 in April 2023; -002 and -003 followed in June and November 2023.[^aac-epichyper1-launch] The three CubeSats capture VNIR hyperspectral imagery, though spectral configurations differ between satellites: Dragonette-001 covers 23 bands from 503 to 799 nm while -002 and -003 each cover 32 bands from 445 to 880 nm.

From 2025, Wyvern transitioned to Loft Orbital's Mission as a Service platform. Dragonette-004 flew as a hosted payload on Loft Orbital's YAM-8 microsatellite, launched on SpaceX Transporter-13 in March 2025; Dragonette-005 followed on YAM-9 aboard Transporter-15 in November 2025.[^loft-partner-announce] The YAM-hosted satellites offer substantially larger imaging and downlink capacity than the 6U CubeSats and deliver imagery at 5.3 m ground sampling distance across 31 VNIR bands.[^wyvern-product-guide] Dragonette-006 is planned for 2026 on the same platform. With four satellites operational, the constellation achieves a 1.6-day average revisit at the equator and covers 82 degrees north to 82 degrees south.

Wyvern's primary customer markets are mining and mineral prospecting, agriculture, forestry and ESG reporting, energy, and defence.[^wyvern-tech] In September 2025, Wyvern signed a distribution partnership with Nara Space for Asia-Pacific market access. The company also operates an Open Data Program providing free archive imagery for research and development uses. Wyvern's next-generation Rosette constellation, targeting 110-plus spectral bands across VNIR and SWIR (440 to 2500 nm), is in development, with NordSpace envisioning future Rosette payloads launched on Canadian rockets from Canadian soil.

description:
Canadian commercial hyperspectral Earth observation company, headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta. Y Combinator alumni; approximately USD 21M raised. Explicit mining-vertical positioning (Olympic Dam imagery on website). Operates the Dragonette constellation: three Gen 1 / Gen 1b 6U CubeSats launched 2023 (Dragonette-001 at 23 bands 503-799 nm; -002 and -003 at 32 bands 445-880 nm; spectrally not interchangeable across the two generations), plus Dragonette-004 and -005 on a different Loft Orbital platform with larger imaging and downlink capacity. The upcoming Rosette satellites extend coverage into SWIR via deployable optics, targeting rare earth element detection, tailings analysis, and GHG super-emitter mapping. Open data programme; CEO Chris Robson.

sources:
[{"id":"yc-profile","url":"https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/wyvern","title":"Y Combinator, Wyvern company profile (W22 batch)","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"techcrunch-6m","url":"https://techcrunch.com/2024/10/17/hyperspectral-imagery-startup-wyvern-looks-to-raise-us-presence-with-6m-raise/","title":"TechCrunch, Wyvern USD $6M raise, US expansion (Oct 2024)","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nordspace-invest","url":"https://betakit.com/nordspace-launches-venture-arm-with-strategic-investment-in-wyvern/","title":"BetaKit, NordSpace Ventures launch with Wyvern investment (Feb 2026)","tier":"third-party","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"aac-sda-contract","url":"https://www.aac-clyde.space/articles/aac-clyde-space-closes-space-data-as-a-service-contract-with-wyvern","title":"AAC Clyde Space, SDaaS contract with Wyvern announcement (GBP 8.4M, June 2021)","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"aac-epichyper1-launch","url":"https://www.aac-clyde.space/articles/aac-clyde-space-sdaas-satellite-epichyper-1-successfully-launched-on-spacex-rocket","title":"AAC Clyde Space, EPICHyper-1 launch on SpaceX Transporter-7 (April 2023)","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"loft-partner-announce","url":"https://loftorbital.com/yam-9-benchmarking-the-future-of-ai-enabled-space-infrastructure/","title":"Loft Orbital, YAM-9 mission page including Dragonette-005","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wyvern-product-guide","url":"https://guide.wyvern.space/data-product-guide/technical-specifications/dragonette-constellation/","title":"Wyvern Data Product Guide, Dragonette constellation technical specifications","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"wyvern-tech","url":"https://www.wyvern.space/technology","title":"Wyvern: hyperspectral satellite technology specs","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]

research_notes:
Per-satellite spectral variation: D-001 23 bands 503-799 nm; D-002/003 32 bands 445-880 nm; D-004/005 31 VNIR bands 5.3 m GSD. Funding: ~USD $18M confirmed through Oct 2024 per aggregators; operator cites ~$21M (may include undisclosed NordSpace Feb 2026 strategic). Wyvern is data-service operator; AAC Clyde Space owns Gen 1 CubeSats; Loft Orbital operates YAM bus.


atlas_id: 72af6d10-ff6a-4275-b355-75ad67cde725
slug: zeiss
status: live
name: Carl Zeiss AG
aliases: ["Zeiss","Carl Zeiss"]
kind: commercial
country: Germany
website: https://www.zeiss.com
operator_domains: ["zeiss.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Carl Zeiss AG is a German precision-optics conglomerate headquartered in Oberkochen, Baden-Wurttemberg, founded in 1846 by Carl Zeiss in Jena. The company is wholly owned by the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung, a non-profit foundation established in 1889 by physicist Ernst Abbe, which also owns Schott AG, a major manufacturer of optical glass. Neither company is publicly traded; the foundation's statutes prohibit dividend distribution to external shareholders and mandate reinvestment in R&D and employee welfare.[^zeiss-stiftung-wiki]

In the fiscal year ending 30 September 2025, Zeiss reported revenue of EUR 11.9 billion across 46,622 employees in approximately 50 countries.[^zeiss-fy2425-pr] Four segments are roughly co-equal contributors: Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology (EUR 5.1 billion, the largest by revenue, +23% YoY driven by demand for High-NA EUV lithography optics), Medical Technology (EUR 2.7 billion), Industrial Quality and Research (EUR 2.3 billion), and Consumer Markets (EUR 1.6 billion). R&D investment at 15% of revenue (EUR 1.73 billion) reflects the company's foundation-driven reinvestment model.

Within the EO-Atlas context, two Zeiss divisions are relevant. The **Industrial Quality and Research** division produces coordinate measuring machines and optical metrology systems used as qualification equipment by aerospace prime contractors during satellite payload manufacturing and integration. Zeiss metrology is industry-standard tooling in European space manufacturing; Zeiss is the equipment vendor, not a direct mission participant. The **Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology** division (operating as Zeiss SMT GmbH) supplies projection optics for ASML's deep-ultraviolet and extreme-ultraviolet lithography scanners.[^asml-wiki] Zeiss SMT and ASML form a technically interdependent pair: ASML holds a minority equity stake in Zeiss SMT and the two together are the sole suppliers of EUV chip-making optics. The ultra-precision optical surface and coating techniques developed for EUV lithography are the same manufacturing capability base relevant to space telescope mirror production, representing heritage crossover rather than a direct EO product line.

Zeiss has historical space optics heritage: the company supplied camera optics for NASA's Apollo lunar program.[^zeiss-wiki] Whether Zeiss has supplied flight-qualified optical elements for specific EO satellite missions, including claimed Sentinel programme or James Webb Space Telescope involvement, has not been substantiated by ESA procurement documentation or primary technical records available at time of writing.

description:
German precision-optics conglomerate founded in 1846. Wholly owned by the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung foundation. Operates across four divisions: Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology (EUV lithography optics for ASML), Medical Technology, Industrial Quality and Research (metrology systems used as qualification equipment in satellite payload manufacturing), and Consumer Markets. Not an EO operator or data provider; positioned as a precision-optics equipment supplier and heritage optical manufacturer.

sources:
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atlas_id: a1a2b945-7b8b-4a23-affe-31d2f4aa9aa4
slug: aac-clyde-space
status: live
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: AAC Clyde Space
aliases: ["AAC Clyde Space AB","Clyde Space","ÅAC Microtec"]
kind: commercial
country: Sweden
website: https://www.aac-clyde.space
operator_domains: ["aac-clyde.space"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
AAC Clyde Space AB (publ) is a Swedish small satellite manufacturer and operator listed on Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market, Stockholm (ticker: AAC). The group was formed in 2019 from the merger of ÅAC Microtec AB (Uppsala, founded 2005 as an Angstrom Laboratory spin-off) and Clyde Space Ltd (Glasgow, founded 2005), and has since grown through five further acquisitions: SpaceQuest (USA, 2020), Hyperion Technologies (Netherlands, 2020), Omnisys Instruments (Sweden, 2021), AAC Space Africa (Cape Town, 2021, greenfield), and Spacemetric AB (Sweden, 2024).[^aac-home][^wiki-aac]

The group operates three go-to-market motions. The subsystem component catalogue (electrical power systems, ADCS, propulsion, on-board computers, and communications hardware) addresses the wider small satellite market and includes the Starbuck-Nano CubeSat EPS (TRL 9, flown since 2014) and Hyperion-derived ADCS and propulsion units.[^aac-home] Prime contracting covers full mission design, manufacture, launch, and operations for customers who do not wish to own assets; the EPIC VIEW (6U and 16U-class) and EPIC LINK (6U/8U) platforms are the vehicle families for this line. Space-Data-as-a-Service (SDaaS) positions AAC as the satellite owner-operator, with customers subscribing to data products rather than purchasing hardware.

The SDaaS model is exemplified by the Wyvern agreement (2021, GBP 8.4M over four years): AAC owns and operates three EPICHyper 6U satellites carrying hyperspectral payloads and delivers imagery to Wyvern for agricultural applications.[^wyvern-contract] The VIREON constellation, launched March 2026 on SpaceX Transporter-16, extends this model with 16U-class satellites providing 7-band multispectral imagery at 1.5 m GSD from 500 km SSO for land management and agricultural monitoring.[^vireon-page]

The group's subsystem supplier AAC Omnisys (Gothenburg, acquired 2021) is a specialised developer of passive microwave radiometers, with heritage on ESA's Arctic Weather Satellite and MetOp-SG. In March 2026 AAC Omnisys was awarded a EUR 76.3M subcontract from OHB Sweden to deliver 20 microwave radiometer instruments for EUMETSAT's EPS-Sterna weather satellite programme, a contract that management states triples the order backlog.[^eps-sterna-nasdaq]

As of Q1 2025 the group employed 214 people; FY 2025 revenue was SEK 310.8M. In December 2025 Bonnier Capital became the largest shareholder following a strategic unit investment of up to SEK 140 million.[^bonnier-press]

description:
AAC Clyde Space AB (publ) is a Swedish small satellite manufacturer and SDaaS operator listed on Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market, Stockholm. The group operates three commercial lines: a subsystem component catalogue, full-satellite prime contracting, and Space-Data-as-a-Service where AAC owns and operates satellites and sells data subscriptions. Key programmes include the VIREON multispectral constellation and the EUR 76.3M EPS-Sterna microwave radiometer subcontract via subsidiary AAC Omnisys.

sources:
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atlas_id: 2cfb78e8-4960-488c-bfba-194fc8cf0044
slug: admesy
status: live
confidence: high
verification_status: verified
name: Admesy B.V.
aliases: ["Admesy"]
kind: commercial
country: Netherlands
website: https://www.admesy.com
operator_domains: ["admesy.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Admesy B.V. is a Dutch manufacturer of precision optical measurement instruments, headquartered in Ittervoort, Limburg in the Netherlands. Founded in 2006 by former Philips engineers, the company designs and manufactures spectroradiometers, colorimeters, photometers, and 2D imaging colorimeters for display and light measurement applications in industrial production and R&D environments.[^admesy-about]

The product portfolio spans several instrument classes serving distinct measurement needs. The PCM2 and PCM2X series are high-speed display colorimeters for inline production testing, covering luminance ranges from below 0.00003 cd/m2 to 40,000 cd/m2 across model variants. The Neo series covers spectroradiometry with a visible range of 360-940 nm and a UV-NIR variant spanning 250-1100 nm. The Prometheus series provides both colorimeter and viewfinder spectrometer configurations, with the DMGS goniometric variant achieving wavelength accuracy below 0.1 nm. The Helios and Titan series offer 2D imaging colorimetry for spatial luminance and colour uniformity characterisation. The Hera series targets analytical spectroscopy via fibre coupling, and the Asteria series covers illuminance, flicker, and luminance measurement.[^admesy-products]

Admesy's primary market is display panel manufacturing: inline and quality-line testing for LCD, OLED, MicroLED, and QD-OLED production, with principal customers among large Asian consumer electronics producers. Secondary markets include automotive display integration, solid-state and architectural lighting production, and general analytical spectroscopy.[^admesy-applications]

The company operates an in-house cleanroom with an ion beam sputtering (IBS) optical filter coating machine used to manufacture the custom spectral filters built into its instruments. Each instrument is individually characterised against its own filter response on the production line.[^admesy-about] Admesy holds ISO 9001 certification and is a member of CIE, PhotonicsNL, SID, and SPIE. Its PCM2X-271 received the Display Week 2025 People's Choice Award in the Display Metrology category and the IMID Best Display Equipment Award from the Korea Display Industry Association in August 2025.[^admesy-news] Admesy instruments are integrated within Portrait Displays' Calman display calibration software, extending their reach to professional AV calibrators.

From an EO perspective, precision ground-reference spectroradiometers and colorimeters of the type Admesy manufactures are used in vicarious radiometric calibration campaigns, PICS (Pseudo-Invariant Calibration Site) ground-truth measurements, and pre- and post-launch laboratory characterisation of spaceborne optical instruments. The Neo UV-NIR covering 250-1100 nm and the Prometheus DMGS with sub-0.1 nm wavelength accuracy are representative of the precision reference instrument class used in this cal/val context.

description:
Dutch precision-spectrometer manufacturer, headquartered in Ittervoort, Limburg. Founded 2006 as a spin-out from Philips Heerlen. Produces high-accuracy spectroradiometers, colorimeters, photometers, and 2D imaging colorimeters for inline production environments, primarily for display manufacturing (LCD, OLED, MicroLED, QD-OLED), AV calibration, lighting, biomedical, and analytical applications. CEO Steven Goetstouwers. The company operates its own cleanroom facility and an in-house IBS optical coating machine (acquired 2020), where every filter that ships goes through the same coating line. The closed-loop feedback between each finished device measurement and the next batch's coating recipe is the company's structural differentiator: an embodied, accumulating learning-by-doing process that a coating service bureau does not replicate. Spectral range across standard products is 250 to 1100 nm (UV to NIR).

sources:
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atlas_id: 6b2ccb31-92e4-4f23-b33e-3bcb2072ba27
slug: airbus-ds
status: live
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: Airbus Defence and Space
aliases: ["Airbus DS","EADS Astrium","Astrium"]
kind: commercial
country: France / Germany
website: https://www.airbus.com/en/space
operator_domains: ["airbus.com","space-solutions.airbus.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Airbus Defence and Space (Airbus DS) is the Space Systems division of Airbus SE, formed in January 2014 through consolidation of EADS Astrium, Cassidian, and Airbus Military. This entry covers the Space Systems perimeter only.[^wikipedia-airbus-ds]

**Government EO programmes**

Airbus DS is the satellite prime contractor on two ESA Copernicus Sentinel missions: Sentinel-2 (multispectral optical constellation)[^esa-s2-facts] and Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich (ocean altimetry).[^esa-s6-facts] It is also prime for the ESA Earth Explorer BIOMASS mission (P-band SAR, launched April 2025).[^esa-biomass] On Sentinel-1 it is responsible for the C-band SAR instrument; Thales Alenia Space Italy is the satellite platform prime.[^esa-s1-facts] On Sentinel-3 it built the MWR (microwave radiometer) instrument only, with Thales Alenia Space France as the satellite platform prime (also responsible for OLCI and SRAL).[^esa-s3-facts] Work is split across Toulouse (spacecraft integration), Friedrichshafen, and Stevenage (instruments and subsystems).

**Commercial constellations and data**

Airbus DS owns and operates three commercial optical constellations. Pleiades Neo is the highest-resolution at 0.3 m; four satellites were planned, but Neo 5 and Neo 6 were lost in the December 2022 Vega-C launch failure. Two satellites (Neo 3 and Neo 4) remain operational.[^eoportal-pleiadesneo] Pleiades 1A/1B (0.5 m) and SPOT 6/7 (1.5 m) form the legacy optical archive. TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X are owned and operated by DLR, which retains scientific data rights; Airbus DS holds exclusive commercial exploitation rights for those satellites' data under a public-private partnership with DLR.[^dlr-tsx] The OneAtlas platform aggregates imagery from the Airbus-operated constellations into a subscription and API data service.[^airbus-eo-page]

**Position in the EO-Atlas catalogue**

Airbus DS appears as satellite prime on Sentinel-2, Sentinel-6, and BIOMASS, as instrument-only contributor on Sentinel-1 (C-SAR) and Sentinel-3 (MWR), as commercial-rights holder on TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X, and as operator and data distributor on Pleiades Neo, Pleiades 1A/1B, and SPOT 6/7.[^airbus-eo-page]

description:
Space Systems division of Airbus SE, formed 2014 from EADS Astrium, Cassidian, and Airbus Military. Prime contractor for ESA Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2, Sentinel-6, and BIOMASS; MWR subcontractor on Sentinel-3. Operates Pleiades Neo (2/4 operational post-Vega-C 2022), Pleiades 1A/1B, SPOT 6/7. Co-owns TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X with DLR via public-private partnership. OneAtlas commercial data platform.

sources:
[{"id":"wikipedia-airbus-ds","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus_Defence_and_Space","title":"Wikipedia, Airbus Defence and Space: corporate history, structure","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-s1-facts","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/Sentinel-1/Facts_and_figures","title":"ESA Copernicus, Sentinel-1: facts and figures","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-s2-facts","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/Sentinel-2/Facts_and_figures","title":"ESA Copernicus, Sentinel-2: facts and figures","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-s6-facts","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/Sentinel-6/Facts_and_figures","title":"ESA Copernicus, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich: facts and figures","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-biomass","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/FutureEO/Biomass","title":"ESA, Biomass mission overview","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"esa-s3-facts","url":"https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Copernicus/Sentinel-3/Facts_and_figures","title":"ESA Copernicus, Sentinel-3: facts and figures (MWR instrument)","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-pleiadesneo","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/pleiades-neo","title":"eoPortal, Pleiades Neo: constellation specs and launch history","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"dlr-tsx","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/projects-and-missions/terrasar-x","title":"DLR, TerraSAR-X: public-private partnership structure","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"airbus-eo-page","url":"https://www.airbus.com/en/space","title":"Airbus, Space: earth observation product overview","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 3861e7fc-d95d-4d3a-a66a-84f932962a49
slug: anywaves
status: live
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-24
name: Anywaves
aliases: ["AnyWaves"]
kind: commercial
country: France
website: https://anywaves.eu
operator_domains: ["anywaves.eu","anywaves.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Anywaves is a French antenna manufacturer founded in 2017 and headquartered in Ramonville-Saint-Agne (Toulouse area). The company designs and produces compact, ITAR-free antennas for small satellites operating in LEO, serving TT&C, data downlink, and navigation functions across S-band, X-band, Ka-band, and GNSS frequency ranges.[^anywaves-about]

The product line spans COTS and custom antenna solutions, all EN 9100 certified since 2021.[^anywaves-about] Key products include the S-Band TT&C Antenna (TRL 9, strong flight heritage), a range of compact X-band data downlink antennas including a dual-polarized 1U variant, and a GNSS All-Bands Antenna developed under an ESA NAVISP contract.[^anywaves-products] By April 2025 the company had delivered over 1,600 antennas across multiple LEO missions.[^anywaves-about]

Verifiable customer integrations include Nara Space's Observer-1A satellite (X-band antenna, confirmed on-orbit performance)[^nara-testimonial], the CNES CALLISTO reusable launcher demonstrator (S-Band Launcher Antenna, first CNES-responsible qualified product under the programme)[^callisto-testimonial], and the Maxar-primed US Space Development Agency Tranche 1 Tracking Layer, for which Anywaves received Maxar's 2023 Supplier Excellence Award.[^maxar-award] Additional disclosed customers include Loft Orbital, Thales Alenia Space, OHB Sweden, OneWeb Satellites, E-Space, Airbus Defence and Space, Lockheed Martin, and The Exploration Company.

In January 2026 Anywaves merged with EmTroniX, a Luxembourg-based space electronics company producing Software Defined Radios, LNBs, and FPGA/DSP payload subsystems.[^merger-announcement] The combined group of over 110 employees operates from France, Luxembourg, and the United States, with Nicolas Capet (Anywaves founder) as Chairman and Etienne Le Bras (former EmTroniX COO) as CEO of the Luxembourg entity.

Within the EO supply chain Anywaves occupies the antenna and RF subsystem segment for LEO smallsats, positioned downstream of bus manufacturers and upstream of mission operators, supplying the radio interface between spacecraft and ground.

description:
French antenna manufacturer headquartered in Toulouse. Designs and builds compact antennas for small satellites across S-band, X-band, and Ka-band. Targets Earth observation and high-data-rate smallsat missions that need miniaturised antenna solutions compatible with CubeSat through ESPA-class form factors. Member of the CNES smallsat ecosystem; subsidiary or close partner relationships across the French commercial space supply chain.

sources:
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atlas_id: 2ade4974-1251-42fa-8abd-4f530b645218
slug: asi
status: live
name: Agenzia Spaziale Italiana
aliases: ["ASI","Italian Space Agency"]
kind: agency
country: Italy
website: https://www.asi.it
operator_domains: ["asi.it","prisma.asi.it"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI) is Italy's national space agency, established 1 January 1988 as a public body (ente pubblico nazionale) under dual oversight of the Ministry of University and Research and the Ministry of Defence. Headquartered in Rome, ASI coordinates Italy's civil and dual-use space activities spanning Earth observation, human spaceflight, space science, and launch technology.

In Earth observation, ASI's primary operational assets are the COSMO-SkyMed dual-use SAR constellation and the PRISMA hyperspectral mission. COSMO-SkyMed spans two generations: the original four-satellite X-band SAR fleet (CSK, launched 2007-2010, manufactured by Thales Alenia Space Italia) and the second-generation CSG system, which delivers substantially improved resolution with spotlight modes reaching 0.35 m across-track and full PolSAR capability. As of January 2026, three CSG satellites are in orbit (CSG-3 launched 2026-01-03 via Falcon 9), with CSG-4 in development. Commercial data distribution is managed through e-GEOS, a joint venture between Telespazio (80%) and ASI (20%). Both COSMO-SkyMed generations and PRISMA serve as ESA Copernicus Contributing Missions.[^eoportal-csk][^asi-cosmo]

PRISMA (Hyperspectral Precursor of the Application Mission), launched March 2019 on a Vega rocket, is a 239-band imaging spectrometer covering 400-2505 nm at 30 m GSD across a 30 km swath, paired with a 5 m panchromatic channel. Its official designation as a "Precursor" reflects its technology demonstration role in pre-operational Italian hyperspectral capability. PRISMA had a planned 5-year design life from its March 2019 launch; according to ASI's website as of 2026-05-24, the mission continues to be presented as active, though no explicit life-extension announcement was confirmed in tier-1 sources.[^eoportal-prisma][^asi-prisma]

ASI is leading the IRIDE Earth observation programme, a constellation of constellations (six sub-constellations combining radar and optical sensors) funded through Italy's PNRR and managed by ESA, with phased launches through 2028. ASI also contributes scientific instruments to international missions (CSES-LIMADOU HEPD particle detector with China) and is developing CALIGOLA, an atmospheric Raman LIDAR mission in collaboration with NASA Langley.[^asi-iride]

In human spaceflight, Italian industry has contributed over 40% of the ISS's habitable volume, including Node-2 Harmony, Node-3 Tranquility, the Cupola, and the Leonardo Permanent Multipurpose Module. Italy maintains active collaborations with ESA, NASA, JAXA, CONAE, and CNSA.

description:
Italy's national space agency (ente pubblico nazionale), established 1988. Operates the COSMO-SkyMed dual-use X-band SAR constellation (CSK: 4 satellites 2007-2010; CSG: up to 4 satellites 2019-2026+, sub-meter spotlight) and PRISMA hyperspectral mission (239-band 400-2505 nm, 30 m GSD, launched 2019). Leads IRIDE multi-constellation EO programme (ESA-managed, PNRR-funded, deployments 2025-2028). COSMO-SkyMed and PRISMA are Copernicus Contributing Missions. e-GEOS (20% ASI, 80% Telespazio) distributes COSMO-SkyMed data commercially.

sources:
[{"id":"eoportal-csk","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/cosmo-skymed","title":"COSMO-SkyMed, eoPortal satellite missions","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"asi-cosmo","url":"https://www.asi.it/en/earth-science/cosmo-skymed/","title":"COSMO-SkyMed constellation, ASI Earth Science","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-prisma","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/prisma-hyperspectral","title":"PRISMA hyperspectral, eoPortal satellite missions","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"asi-prisma","url":"https://www.asi.it/en/earth-science/prisma/","title":"PRISMA mission overview, ASI Earth Science","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"asi-iride","url":"https://www.asi.it/en/earth-science/iride/","title":"IRIDE satellite constellation, ASI Earth Science","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: c406c44a-33fd-4eb7-abac-0bd13d9a559e
slug: bertin-winlight
status: live
name: Bertin Winlight
aliases: ["Winlight System","Bertin Technologies (Winlight division)"]
kind: commercial
country: France
website: https://www.bertin-winlight.com
operator_domains: ["bertin-winlight.com","winlight-system.com"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
Bertin Winlight is a French precision-optics manufacturer headquartered in Pertuis, France. Founded in 2001 as Winlight System by Daniel Soler and Philippe Godefroy, the company was acquired by Bertin Technologies Group in 2017 and rebranded Bertin Winlight. Bertin Technologies Group is majority-owned by FCDE and BNP Paribas Developpement since April 2022.[^bw-about]

Operating from a 2,200 m2 temperature-controlled production facility in Pertuis, the company designs and manufactures high-precision optical components, mirrors, lenses, prisms, and image slicers, in materials including low-expansion silica, Zerodur, ULE, and SiC, spanning millimetre-scale to 1.5 m aperture. Surface accuracy reaches 0.1 nm RMS for visible-range optics.[^bw-optical-components]

Bertin Winlight holds ISO 9001:2015 and EN9100 (achieved January 2024, aerospace and space quality standard) certifications for its Pertuis facility.[^bw-about]

The company's space portfolio spans science and Earth observation programmes. Confirmed EO-relevant deliveries include aspherical mirrors for the SuperCam instrument on NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, CHEMCAM optics on Curiosity, baseplate grinding for JWST's NIRSpec spectrometer, and optics for the VLT MUSE and Subaru PFS spectrographs.[^bw-space][^bw-news] Bertin Winlight also supplied mirrors for the UltraViolet Imager on ESA's SMILE satellite; SMILE is a magnetosphere and aurora science mission, not an Earth surface EO mission, so this delivery represents science optics supply rather than EO supply-chain participation.[^bw-space]

For the New Space EO market, Bertin Winlight offers SPEO, an integrated multispectral optical payload for smallsats. SPEO HR targets sub-0.5 m GSD with an 11 km swath in VNIR; SPEO MR adds SWIR capability. In July 2025, Bertin Technologies announced agreements with Hemeria (for its HP-EOS satellite range) and Promethee Earth Intelligence (for the Japetus constellation), with first SPEO payload delivery targeted for 2026.[^bw-hemeria]

description:
French optical systems manufacturer, part of the Bertin Technologies group. Designs and builds precision space optics, optical benches, and instrumentation for space and defence missions. Specialities include large mirror polishing, optical bench assembly, and complete optical subsystem integration for spaceborne spectrometers and imagers. European space supply chain peer of Sodern (star trackers), Zeiss (optical components), and Leonardo Optronics.

sources:
[{"id":"bw-about","url":"https://www.bertin-winlight.com/about-us/","title":"Bertin Winlight: About us","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"bw-space","url":"https://www.bertin-winlight.com/space/","title":"Bertin Winlight: Onboard instruments and OGSE for Space","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"bw-optical-components","url":"https://www.bertin-winlight.com/optical-components/","title":"Bertin Winlight: Optical components","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"bw-hemeria","url":"https://www.bertin-technologies.com/bertin-technologies-observation-spatiale-souveraine/","title":"Bertin Technologies: SPEO payload, Hemeria and Promethee partnership","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"bw-news","url":"https://www.bertin-winlight.com/news/","title":"Bertin Winlight: News archive","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 270b192f-b7eb-4d0d-9297-8d652664ee78
slug: ceos
status: live
name: Committee on Earth Observation Satellites
aliases: ["CEOS"]
kind: agency
country: International
website: https://ceos.org
operator_domains: ["ceos.org"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: agency-sourced
body:
The Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) is the primary intergovernmental forum for coordinating civil space-based Earth observation. Established in September 1984 following a G7 Economic Summit recommendation, CEOS brings together 34 full member agencies and 32 associates - 66 in total - including NASA, ESA, JAXA, ISRO, CNES, DLR, and most national civil space agencies.[^ceos-about]

CEOS does not operate satellites, manufacture sensors, or distribute data products. Its role is coordination and harmonisation: aligning EO requirements across member programmes, establishing interoperability standards, and providing validated calibration and validation frameworks that member agencies adopt.[^ceos-about]

The organisation operates through five working groups. The Working Group on Calibration and Validation (WGCV) is the standards authority for two EO-Atlas entries. Its Land Product Validation (LPV) subgroup, hosted at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, defines the Stage 0-4 validation hierarchy - the grading scale used across the EO-Atlas calibration layer to classify the maturity of satellite-derived land products.[^ceos-lpv] The Infrared and Visible Optical Sensors (IVOS) subgroup establishes calibration and validation requirements for optical satellite sensors, promoting international standardisation and inter-comparison across test sites.[^ceos-ivos]

CEOS also convenes ten virtual constellations - thematic coordination groups that align member agency satellite assets against shared observation objectives including ocean colour radiometry, land surface imaging, sea surface temperature, and atmospheric composition. The 39th CEOS Plenary, held in Bath in November 2025, added a Biodiversity Virtual Constellation and advanced the CEOS-ARD Strategy 2026.[^ceos-plenary-39]

Governance follows a rotating Chair model. Australia holds the Chair for 2026, succeeding the UK Space Agency. Norway is nominated for 2027. NASA assumed the Senior Interagency Team Chair from JAXA at the 39th Plenary.

description:
Intergovernmental coordination forum for civil space-based Earth observation, established September 1984. Brings together 66 member agencies and associates (NASA, ESA, JAXA, CNES, DLR, and most national civil space agencies) to harmonise EO requirements, validation frameworks, and data interoperability standards. CEOS does not operate satellites, manufacture sensors, or produce data products. Its Working Group on Calibration and Validation (WGCV) hosts the LPV (Land Product Validation) subgroup, which defines the Stage 0-4 land product validation hierarchy used as the authority framework for EO-Atlas calibration gradings.

sources:
[{"id":"ceos-about","url":"https://ceos.org/about-ceos/","title":"CEOS About, Committee on Earth Observation Satellites, mandate and overview","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ceos-lpv","url":"https://lpvs.gsfc.nasa.gov/","title":"CEOS LPV, Land Product Validation Subgroup, NASA GSFC","tier":"agency-doc","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ceos-ivos","url":"https://ceos.org/ourwork/workinggroups/wgcv/subgroups/ivos/","title":"CEOS WGCV IVOS, Infrared and Visible Optical Sensors subgroup","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"ceos-plenary-39","url":"https://earth.jaxa.jp/ceos-newsletter/2026/01/29/39th-ceos-plenary/","title":"CEOS Newsletter, 39th CEOS Plenary, Bath UK November 2025, JAXA on behalf of CEOS","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 0b2fb159-2174-4b71-a91f-8ff026bd9010
slug: cosine
status: live
verification_status: verified
last_reviewed_date: 2026-05-23
name: cosine Research BV
kind: commercial
country: Netherlands
website: https://www.cosine.eu
operator_domains: ["cosine.eu"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: agency-doc
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
cosine Research BV is a Dutch optical instrumentation company founded in 1998 and headquartered in Sassenheim, the Netherlands.[^cosine-news-ams] (Some secondary sources give the headquarters as Leiden or Warmond; the cosine.eu contact page lists postal address 2171 AH, which is Sassenheim municipality.[^cosine-contact]) The company develops mission-specific measurement systems across three domains: Remote Sensing, High-Energy Optics, and Inspection Systems. It sells payloads and systems to space agencies, satellite operators, and industrial customers, operating as a B2B instrument manufacturer rather than a satellite operator.[^cosine-contact]

The company's EO instrument heritage centres on the HyperScout family: compact hyperspectral imagers designed for CubeSat and small satellite integration. HyperScout 1, developed under ESA GSTP with a consortium including VITO, S&T, TU Delft, and VDL, flew on ESA's GomX-4B in 2018 at 500 km altitude, delivering 45-band VNIR imagery at 70 m GSD with real-time onboard processing.[^eoportal-gomx4] HyperScout 2, a dual-channel VNIR+TIR successor, flew on PhiSat-1 in 2020, adding a thermal infrared channel (8-14 um, 4 bands) and an AI inference capability for onboard cloud detection.[^eoportal-phisat1] eoPortal reports HyperScout 2 VNIR spectral resolution as 12 nm; academic literature gives 16 nm, and both figures remain in circulation with the discrepancy unresolved.[^eoportal-phisat1] Secondary sources claim ESA cross-calibration certification with Sentinel-2 for HyperScout 2; eoPortal and reachable ESA sources describe a planned cross-calibration strategy rather than completed certification, and the relevant ESA Phi-Lab page was unavailable as of 2026-05-23.[^eoportal-phisat1] A modified HyperScout 2 variant was also integrated into the Kanyini satellite for South Australia's space programme. HyperScout M, the most compact variant, launched in March 2024 as part of Thales Alenia Space IMAGIN-e external ISS payload and became operational in February 2026, producing Analysis Ready Data in orbit.[^cosine-news-imagin]

cosine High-Energy Optics division manufactures Silicon Pore Optics mirror modules for ESA NewAthena X-ray telescope, produced at a dedicated ISO Class 6 cleanroom at the BESSY II synchrotron facility in Berlin.[^cosine-news-berlin] A newer product, Valk, is a Very High Resolution EO sensor in development for Dutch Defence PANI-1 satellite, targeting ISR applications.[^cosine-news-4s]

The company operates through three legal entities: cosine Research BV (Dutch parent, Sassenheim), cosine GmbH (Berlin), and cosine Remote Sensing SRL (Benevento, Italy).[^cosine-contact]

aliases:
["cosine","cosine Measurement Systems","cosine Remote Sensing","cosine GmbH","cosine Remote Sensing SRL"]

description:
Dutch optical instrumentation company (founded 1998, Sassenheim NL). Manufactures compact hyperspectral and X-ray optical systems for space and industrial applications. EO product line: HyperScout family (HS1/HS2/M/S), TScout, Valk. Three legal entities: cosine Research BV (NL parent), cosine GmbH (DE), cosine Remote Sensing SRL (IT).

sources:
[{"id":"cosine-contact","url":"https://www.cosine.eu/contact/","title":"cosine Contact: legal entity names, addresses, VAT, KvK","tier":"operator-datasheet","accessed":"2026-05-23"},{"id":"eoportal-gomx4","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/gomx-4","title":"eoPortal: GomX-4B mission and HyperScout-1 specs","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-23"},{"id":"eoportal-phisat1","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/phisat-1","title":"eoPortal: PhiSat-1 mission and HyperScout-2 specs","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-23"},{"id":"cosine-news-imagin","url":"https://cosine.eu/news/hyperscout-m-operational-on-the-iss-and-delivering-data-for-the-imagin-e-mission/","title":"cosine news: HyperScout M operational on ISS","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-23"},{"id":"cosine-news-berlin","url":"https://cosine.eu/news/new-berlin-cleanroom-facility-boosts-readiness-for-europe-s-newathena-space-observatory/","title":"cosine news: Berlin cleanroom for NewAthena","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-23"},{"id":"cosine-news-4s","url":"https://cosine.eu/news/4s-symposium-2026-cosine-presenting-valk-and-very-high-resolution-imaging/","title":"cosine news: Valk VHR sensor and Dr Marco Esposito title","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-23"},{"id":"cosine-news-ams","url":"https://cosine.eu/news/cosine-at-the-first-edition-of-the-amsterdam-space-symposium/","title":"cosine news: Amsterdam Space Symposium (founding year 1998, Sassenheim HQ)","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-23"}]


atlas_id: 64857065-853d-4a26-a8e2-b9388afff255
slug: dlr
status: live
name: Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft- und Raumfahrt
aliases: ["DLR","German Aerospace Center","German Space Agency at DLR"]
kind: research-institute
country: Germany
website: https://www.dlr.de
operator_domains: ["dlr.de","enmap.org"]
last_verified_date: 2026-05-24
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
DLR, Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V., is Germany's federal research centre for aeronautics and space, organised as a non-profit registered association (e.V.) and a member of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres. [^dlr-about] Established in its current form in 1997 through the merger of the old Deutsche Forschungsanstalt fuer Luft- und Raumfahrt with the German Space Agency DARA, DLR carries an institutional lineage stretching back to the Aerodynamics Research Institute of 1907. Headquartered at Linder Hoehe in Cologne, it operates at 30 locations across Germany and employs 11,786 people with a total budget of EUR 1,701M in 2024. [^dlr-personnel][^dlr-financing]

DLR spans six research fields (aeronautics, space, energy, transport, security and defence, and digitalisation), making it structurally a national laboratory complex rather than a mission-execution agency in the ESA or NASA sense. Within DLR, the German Space Agency at DLR (approximately 350 staff, based in Bonn) executes the Federal Government's space strategy and manages Germany's contribution to ESA. [^dlr-about]

In the EO domain, DLR operates across three distinct roles. As mission operator and scientific authority, DLR operates TerraSAR-X (launched 2007) and TanDEM-X (launched 2010), a formation-flying X-band SAR pair under a public-private partnership with Airbus Defence and Space. DLR retains ownership, operations, and scientific data rights; Airbus DS holds exclusive commercial exploitation rights. [^dlr-tsx][^dlr-tdx] TanDEM-X produced the TanDEM-X Global DEM, a 12m resolution, approximately 1m vertical accuracy DEM covering 148 million km2 of land surface, completed 2016 and publicly released at 90m resolution in 2018. [^eoportal-tdx]

DLR also operates the EnMAP hyperspectral mission (launched 1 April 2022) via its Earth Observation Center at Oberpfaffenhofen. [^eoportal-enmap] EnMAP's 228-band HSI covers 420-2450 nm at 30m GSD; the satellite and instrument were built by OHB System AG under DLR system authority. [^dlr-enmap] EnMAP data is freely available to registered users.

DLR developed the DESIS VNIR hyperspectral instrument (402-1000 nm, 235 bands, 30m GSD), deployed to the ISS in June 2018 and operational until end-2023. [^dlr-eoc-desis]

As research and methodology authority, DLR's Remote Sensing Technology Institute (IMF) is the processing and validation authority for EnMAP. DLR's German Remote Sensing Data Center (DFD) archives and distributes EnMAP and DESIS data. DLR participates in CEOS and ESA programmes as a methodology contributor for SAR processing, imaging spectroscopy, atmospheric correction, and photogrammetry. [^dlr-eoc]

As data distributor, DLR operates the DLR Geoservice portal, distributing TanDEM-X DEM products, SRTM X-SAR, EnMAP, DESIS, Sentinel-2 (MAJA/WASP processed), Sentinel-5P TROPOMI, and additional archived datasets, predominantly free to registered users. [^dlr-geoservice]

description:
Germany's federal research centre for aeronautics and space, organised as a Helmholtz Association non-profit (e.V.) and headquartered in Cologne. Spans aeronautics, space, energy, transport, security, and digitalisation across 30 German locations with 11,786 staff (2024). Houses the German Space Agency at DLR (Bonn), which executes Germany's space strategy and national ESA contributions. Operates TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X X-band SAR satellites in partnership with Airbus Defence and Space, and the EnMAP hyperspectral satellite (228 bands, 420-2450 nm, 30 m GSD, launched April 2022) via its Earth Observation Center at Oberpfaffenhofen. Developed the DESIS VNIR hyperspectral instrument deployed to the ISS (2018-2023). Distributes EO data including TanDEM-X DEM products, EnMAP, and Sentinel-2 processed outputs via the DLR Geoservice portal.

sources:
[{"id":"dlr-about","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/about-us","title":"About DLR, dlr.de","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-19"},{"id":"dlr-personnel","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/about-us/dlr-in-figures/personnel","title":"DLR Personnel Figures, dlr.de","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-19"},{"id":"dlr-financing","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/about-us/dlr-in-figures/financing","title":"DLR Financing Overview, dlr.de","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-19"},{"id":"dlr-org","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/about-us/organisation","title":"DLR Organisation, dlr.de","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-19"},{"id":"eoportal-enmap","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/enmap","title":"EnMAP mission overview, eoPortal","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-19"},{"id":"enmap-org","url":"https://www.enmap.org","title":"EnMAP mission portal","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-19"},{"id":"dlr-tsx","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/projects-and-missions/terrasar-x","title":"TerraSAR-X, DLR mission page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-tsx","url":"https://eoportal.org/web/eoportal/satellite-missions/t/terrasar-x","title":"TerraSAR-X, eoPortal Directory","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"dlr-tdx","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/projects-and-missions/tandem-x","title":"TanDEM-X, DLR mission page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eoportal-tdx","url":"https://eoportal.org/web/eoportal/satellite-missions/t/tandem-x","title":"TanDEM-X, eoPortal Directory","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"dlr-eoc","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/eoc","title":"DLR Earth Observation Center, dlr.de","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"dlr-eoc-desis","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/eoc/research-transfer/projects-missions/desis/instrument","title":"DESIS Instrument, DLR EOC","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"dlr-enmap","url":"https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/projects-and-missions/enmap","title":"EnMAP, DLR project page","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"dlr-geoservice","url":"https://geoservice.dlr.de/web/about","title":"DLR Geoservice, geoservice.dlr.de","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


atlas_id: 6e3f9ded-b702-45c0-889a-326a0ddcd301
slug: earthdaily-analytics
status: live
verification_status: researched
name: EarthDaily Analytics
aliases: ["EarthDaily","UrtheCast (former parent)","EDA"]
kind: commercial
country: Canada
website: https://earthdaily.com
operator_domains: ["earthdaily.com"]
last_verified_date: "2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z"
verified_by: sw
claim_status: unclaimed
body:
EarthDaily Analytics (EarthDaily) is a Canadian commercial EO operator and analytics company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. Formed in April 2021 by private equity firm Antarctica Capital from the assets of bankrupt UrtheCast, EarthDaily is building the EarthDaily Constellation, a planned 10-satellite multispectral smallsat constellation designed to image the entire Earth's landmass daily at 5-metre resolution across 22 spectral bands spanning visible, near-infrared, shortwave infrared, and thermal wavelengths.[^eda-eoportal][^eda-eng-blog]

The constellation design centres on 16 optical imaging assemblies per satellite, manufactured by ABB Measurement and Analytics, mounted on Loft Orbital Longbow platforms derived from the Airbus Arrow bus. Orbital altitude is cited as approximately 630 km in a sun-synchronous orbit per eoPortal[^eda-eoportal]; the EarthDaily homepage tool states 594 km,[^eda-home] which may reflect a different programme phase or measurement point. The 240 km swath and consistent solar geometry prioritise temporal consistency and radiometric stability over spatial resolution, making the data inherently suitable for change detection and machine learning workflows.[^eda-eng-blog]

As of May 2026, seven satellites are on orbit: EDC-01 launched June 2025 and EDC-02 through EDC-07 launched May 3 2026, with early data available from February 2026 and full operational capability targeted for late 2026.[^nro-release][^eda-home] The company delivers analysis-ready data (AiRD) pre-processed to science-quality standards and aligned to the Sentinel-2 grid, enabling use alongside Landsat and Sentinel-2 historical archives.[^eda-constdata]

In October 2024, EarthDaily acquired Descartes Labs, adding an established base of analytics products and customers in insurance (Ascend), mining (Marigold, Iris), and US defense and intelligence (Retina, Wayfinder via EarthDaily Federal). Customer traction in the defense sector is evidenced by an eight-figure data subscription agreement announced April 2026 and a 1.2 million USD NRO contract awarded May 2026 to evaluate multispectral commercial imagery integration into intelligence architectures.[^eight-fig][^nro-release]

EarthDaily's primary market focus is agriculture (crop health, yield forecasting, parametric insurance) alongside defense, mining, and forestry risk monitoring, sectors where daily revisit and radiometric consistency translate directly into product value.[^eda-constdata]

description:
Commercial EO data analytics company delivering AI-ready, analysis-ready Earth observation data products. Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada with operations in the United States and the United Kingdom. EarthDaily is building the EarthDaily Constellation, a planned 10-satellite multispectral constellation with daily global coverage in 22 bands at 5 m GSD targeted for full operational status in 2026. The data product line emphasises analysis-ready output (radiometrically calibrated, atmospherically corrected, co-registered to the Sentinel-2 grid) suitable for AI workflows in agriculture, defence, intelligence, and insurance applications. April 2026 announcement: eight-figure data subscription agreement with a US Defense and Intelligence Technology company, cited as reflecting growing demand for AI-ready calibrated EO data.

sources:
[{"id":"eda-eoportal","url":"https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/earthdaily","title":"eoPortal, EarthDaily Constellation mission overview","tier":"community","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eda-eng-blog","url":"https://earthdaily.com/blog/engineering-behind-earthdaily-designing-a-16-imager-measurement-system","title":"EarthDaily, Engineering Behind EarthDaily: Designing a 16-Imager Measurement System","tier":"operator-engineering","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eda-home","url":"https://earthdaily.com","title":"EarthDaily Analytics company home","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"nro-release","url":"https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/05/05/3287550/0/en/EarthDaily-Selected-by-National-Reconnaissance-Office-NRO-for-Commercial-Optical-Earth-Observation-Contract.html","title":"GlobeNewswire, EarthDaily Selected by National Reconnaissance Office for Commercial Optical Earth Observation Contract","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eda-constdata","url":"https://earthdaily.com/constellation-data","title":"EarthDaily, AI-Ready Earth Observation Data, Constellation Data","tier":"operator-marketing","accessed":"2026-05-24"},{"id":"eight-fig","url":"https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/04/09/3270826/0/en/EarthDaily-Secures-Eight-Figure-AI-Ready-Data-Subscription-Agreement-with-US-Defense-Intelligence-Technology-Company.html","title":"GlobeNewswire, EarthDaily Secures Eight-Figure AI-Ready Data Subscription Agreement with US Defense and Intelligence Technology Company","tier":"operator-press","accessed":"2026-05-24"}]


