Pixxel Firefly-3

Pixxel Firefly-3 (FFLY-3) is the third satellite in Pixxel's Firefly Phase 1 hyperspectral constellation. It was launched on 14 January 2025 alongside Firefly-1 and Firefly-2 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 Transporter-12 rideshare from Vandenberg SFB, integrated by Exolaunch.[^pixxel-launch1] The satellite operates in a Sun-synchronous orbit at approximately 550 km altitude, 97.65-degree inclination, with a 10:00-11:00 AM local solar time equator crossing.[^pixxel-firefly-page]

The Firefly hyperspectral imager covers a spectral range cited as 450-900 nm by the operator[^pixxel-firefly-page] and 470-850 nm by eoPortal[^eoportal-pixxel]; the operator-published figure is used here. Band count is reported as 135+ in Pixxel's six-month in-orbit status report[^pixxel-status-report] and as 150 by Gunter's Space Page[^skyrocket-firefly]; the operator figure of 135+ is the operationally confirmed value. Spatial resolution is 5 m, swath width 40 km, and single-satellite revisit is 17 days.[^pixxel-firefly-page] With all six Phase 1 satellites operational, the constellation achieves approximately 24-hour global revisit.[^pixxel-status-report]

Firefly-3 has a mass of approximately 60 kg and is built on Pixxel's proprietary Firefly Bus. No per-satellite capability or orbital differences within the batch have been reported. Commissioning was completed and the satellite was operational as of mid-2025.[^pixxel-status-report]