Author Topic: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites  (Read 91022 times)

Offline Jcc

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Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« on: 11/12/2013 02:20 am »
Planet Labs is a San Francisco based startup that is about to launch a constellation of nano-sized earth imaging satellites. They are amazingly tiny, (10cm x 10cm x 30cm) of which 2/3 of the volume is the lens for the camera. I met two of the designers at a conference recently, and got some technical details not mentioned in most of the news articles. Some highlights:

- the satellites have no propulsion, just a reaction wheel to adjust the attitude
- they use a magnetic compass and a "simple" star tracker to determine the correct attitude
- they will be launched from the ISS, so will follow a similar orbit and only cover the portion of the earth overflown by the ISS ( the great majority of the populated regions)
- they will be constantly collecting imagery, and download when passing over a receiving station
- some of the receiving station owners have agreed to barter the download capability in exchange for imagery.
- the imagers are simple Bayer pattern CCDs, capturing frame images at fixed time intervals.
- they plan to georeference and mosaic the imagery on the Amazon cloud.
- they have already launched 2 prototypes, one on the Antares first launch (that was in a low orbit and has already reentered). The other was launched from Baikonur on one of the Russian launchers, that is still in orbit and functioning
- the first operational constellation is planned to launch on Orb-1 to the ISS in December (28 satellites).

Ref:
http://planet-labs.com/
http://www.space.com/22622-planet-labs-dove-satellite-photos.html
« Last Edit: 10/15/2019 11:09 pm by gongora »

Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #1 on: 11/13/2013 01:29 pm »
I have got some confirmations and clarifications from the GAUSS UniSat-5 team:

Four Cubesats (PUCPSAT, I-CUBE 1, HUMSAT-D, Dove-4) and four PocketQubeSats (BeakerSat, QBScout, WREN and $50Sat) are on board of UniSat-5

I believe that Dove-4 is a Planet Labs payload.

Offline jongoff

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #2 on: 12/18/2013 02:36 pm »
Looks like Planetlabs just closed a $52M Series B financing round:
http://www.parabolicarc.com/2013/12/18/planet-labs-raises-52-million-series-financing/

Add that to their existing ~$20M round, and they're closing in on the $100M SkyBox has raised to-date. I think their next 28 satellites are being launched on this next Cygnus flight, and will be deployed via the NanoRacks JEM RMS launcher (can't remember the exact name for it right now).

~Jon

Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #3 on: 12/18/2013 06:21 pm »
Looks like Planetlabs just closed a $52M Series B financing round:
http://www.parabolicarc.com/2013/12/18/planet-labs-raises-52-million-series-financing/

Add that to their existing ~$20M round, and they're closing in on the $100M SkyBox has raised to-date. I think their next 28 satellites are being launched on this next Cygnus flight, and will be deployed via the NanoRacks JEM RMS launcher (can't remember the exact name for it right now).

~Jon

Yep. The 28 Planet Labs CubeSATs are part of the 95 kg late load cargo that is now being removed from Antares.

Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #4 on: 12/18/2013 06:24 pm »
Yep. The 28 Planet Labs CubeSATs are part of the 95 kg late load cargo that is now being removed from Antares.
I believe our Flock is staying on board rather than being offloaded, since it's not perishable and is apparently near the bottom of the stack of cargo.  If you've heard otherwise, I'd be interested in any info.

Offline QuantumG

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #5 on: 12/18/2013 09:32 pm »
Wow, it's so refreshing to see a small space company announcing financing.
Human spaceflight is basically just LARPing now.

Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #6 on: 12/18/2013 09:35 pm »
Yep. The 28 Planet Labs CubeSATs are part of the 95 kg late load cargo that is now being removed from Antares.
I believe our Flock is staying on board rather than being offloaded, since it's not perishable and is apparently near the bottom of the stack of cargo.  If you've heard otherwise, I'd be interested in any info.

All I have is the statement that the late access cargo was being unloaded.

Offline savuporo

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #7 on: 12/19/2013 12:42 am »
70 million for "toys" that can't do "jack squat".

I want to be in toy business
Orion - the first and only manned not-too-deep-space craft

Offline Lar

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #8 on: 12/19/2013 01:51 am »
70 million for "toys" that can't do "jack squat".

I want to be in toy business
What? These sound like rather remarkable devices and if they stay in orbit for very long, they can develop rather detailed images. Not toys at all. 

Further, if these prove out lots of other types of sensors could be fitted and lots of other orbits seeded. We'd hvae a cloud of information gathering devices sending lots of great data down.
"I think it would be great to be born on Earth and to die on Mars. Just hopefully not at the point of impact." -Elon Musk
"We're a little bit like the dog who caught the bus" - Musk after CRS-8 S1 successfully landed on ASDS OCISLY

Offline savuporo

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #9 on: 12/19/2013 01:55 am »
Sorry I made a sarcastic reference to another heated thread here - should have linked/clarified.
I personally consider Planet Labs a great breakthrough in space business.
Orion - the first and only manned not-too-deep-space craft

Offline Lar

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #10 on: 12/19/2013 04:37 am »
Ah ok cool, thanks!

It will be interesting to see how far clusters of cheap things can be taken in this realm... in the computer business big racks of commodity hardware so cheap you don't repair, just replace, individual units, have taken everything by storm. Will that idea transfer to data gathering, to communication? We'll see. I'm betting yes.
"I think it would be great to be born on Earth and to die on Mars. Just hopefully not at the point of impact." -Elon Musk
"We're a little bit like the dog who caught the bus" - Musk after CRS-8 S1 successfully landed on ASDS OCISLY

Offline Melt Run

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #11 on: 12/21/2013 11:48 am »
Another start up launches small sats is Skybox with sats around the size of a dorm frig.
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/06/startup-skybox/
This video shows the launch on a Russian ICBM
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jsfL19FV3qg&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DjsfL19FV3qg



Offline baldusi

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #12 on: 12/24/2013 01:11 am »
Capitan Beto and Manolito (CubeBug-1 and CubeBug-2) were made to qualify parts for their own (Satellogic's) microsats.
« Last Edit: 12/26/2013 07:50 pm by baldusi »

Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #13 on: 12/24/2013 01:49 am »
Capitan Beto and Manolito (CubeBug-1 and CubeBug-2) were made to qualify parts for their microsats.

Hm?  While we wish the CubeBug folks every success, they have no affiliation with Planet Labs.

Offline baldusi

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #14 on: 12/24/2013 02:10 am »
Capitan Beto and Manolito (CubeBug-1 and CubeBug-2) were made to qualify parts for their microsats.

Hm?  While we wish the CubeBug folks every success, they have no affiliation with Planet Labs.
The previous post was about Skybox. So I mentioned the third company based on the same concept. And they are not affiliated but there was a relationship among the three companies.

Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #15 on: 12/24/2013 03:04 am »
OK, it was the word 'their' that threw me off...

Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #16 on: 01/09/2014 08:06 pm »
Just to note that 28 of these were carried into orbit today.
« Last Edit: 01/09/2014 08:08 pm by Danderman »

Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #17 on: 02/07/2014 02:07 pm »
Bay area is the hotbed of Earth observation technology start-ups, generating a new ‘space race’

http://photos.mercurynews.com/2014/02/04/photos-bay-area-is-the-hotbed-of-earth-observation-technology-start-ups-generating-a-new-space-race

Three Bay area start-ups are at the forefront of the new ‘space race,’ the charge to completely change the way we can observe Earth and the global processes and forces at work. Companies like UrtheCast, Planet Labs and Skybox Imaging produce small, relatively inexpensive satellites and high-resolution cameras capable of streaming video and still pictures back to Earth which can be downloaded, observed and analyzed in real-time. These video and photographic products allow the observation of environmental and humanitarian programs as make it possible for corporate ‘big data’ customers, such as ‘big-box’ retailers who might use the video streams, for instance, to detect the high and low traffic patterns into and out of their properties


Offline Blackstar

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #18 on: 02/07/2014 08:31 pm »
Bay area is the hotbed of Earth observation technology start-ups, generating a new ‘space race’

and high-resolution cameras

This term gets thrown around a lot without much definition. For the military, "high resolution" means about 0.1 meter ground resolution. For commercial imaging, it generally means better than 1 meter ground resolution (and in common usage probably means better than 0.5 meter ground resolution).

Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #19 on: 02/09/2014 02:38 pm »
Bay area is the hotbed of Earth observation technology start-ups, generating a new ‘space race’

and high-resolution cameras

This term gets thrown around a lot without much definition. For the military, "high resolution" means about 0.1 meter ground resolution. For commercial imaging, it generally means better than 1 meter ground resolution (and in common usage probably means better than 0.5 meter ground resolution).


Skybox Imaging, one of the three companies mentioned in the article, provides "sub-meter" resolution imagery.

Offline Blackstar

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #20 on: 02/09/2014 05:44 pm »
Do you know what is the constellation size they want to achieve?

Offline Blackstar

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #21 on: 02/09/2014 05:58 pm »
Skybox Imaging, one of the three companies mentioned in the article, provides "sub-meter" resolution imagery.


Yeah, although I haven't found anything specific. Some articles say "about a meter or less," but that's still somewhat vague. I also cannot find any specifics on their satellites. What are the dimensions and what is the diameter of their imaging mirror? It looks like the satellite may be about 80 cm tall and 60 cm on a side, and I would guess that puts the mirror diameter at 40-50 cm. Somebody could then plug that into the satellite altitude and get a decent guess at the resolution.

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/06/startup-skybox/


Offline baldusi

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #22 on: 02/09/2014 07:01 pm »
I understood they ha 50cm 2M satellites with 20 or so.

Offline Comga

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #23 on: 02/09/2014 08:16 pm »
Just to note that 28 of these were carried into orbit today.

Ooh!  A Maksutov catadioptric imager.  Pretty!  Nice packaging, too.

Scaling the image yields an aperture of about 84 mm, based on the 100x100x300 mm standard size for 3U.

That says it can form a spot equivalent to ~2.5 meters full-width-half-max on the ground from 400 km altitude, with a "diffraction limit" of around 6 meters for half micron wavelength light.   

From Space.com "To best enable this mission, the company has selected a low orbit for its constellation and an optical resolution of three to five meters — a scale that allows measurement of a tree canopy, but does not compromise individual privacy," officials wrote in a June 26 statement announcing the Flock 1 project. "

Does anyone know of an estimate of the lifetime of these sattelites when launched from the ISS at around 410 km altitude?  It could be only a few months.

Once upon a time I suggested that a NASA team have the Japanese astronaut send something outside the ISS through the JEM airlock with the associated robotic arm.  They practically fainted and told me how ridiculous it was to ask them to participate.  How did PlanetLabs get them to agree to launch 28 3U nanosats, which I believe can only be launched two at at time?

edit: Images in this post show a dispenser that may be capable of launching 16 3U nanosats at once, not the two from the standard JEM launcher. That should reduce the amount of labor on the part of the astronauts, although it will still require some time for two cycles.
« Last Edit: 02/09/2014 11:40 pm by Comga »
What kind of wastrels would dump a perfectly good booster in the ocean after just one use?

Online jcm

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #24 on: 02/11/2014 04:26 am »
@PlanetLabs tweeted that the first pair of Flock-1 satellites are to be deployed at 0815 UTC  this morning, Feb 11.
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #25 on: 02/11/2014 04:28 am »
And Will Marshall from PlanetLabs explained to me that the 16 3U sats are loaded onto the MPEP at once and taken
outside the airlock, but then are launched two at a time (with at least hours between launches). So that saves
time and resources on airlock cycles, but still seems like Wakata's got a full-time job there for a while.
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Offline Comga

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #26 on: 02/11/2014 05:28 am »
And Will Marshall from PlanetLabs explained to me that the 16 3U sats are loaded onto the MPEP at once and taken
outside the airlock, but then are launched two at a time (with at least hours between launches). So that saves
time and resources on airlock cycles, but still seems like Wakata's got a full-time job there for a while.

The quantity of 16 was apparent in the photos.
Does Wakata need to be involved beyond positioning the RMS (arm)?
Can the delayed releases be triggered by timer or from the ground?
With such valuable time, the last thing an astronaut should be doing is sitting around watching the clock for fourteen hours.
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 05:28 am by Comga »
What kind of wastrels would dump a perfectly good booster in the ocean after just one use?

Online jcm

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #27 on: 02/11/2014 06:55 am »
Sounds like the releases are done from the ground, but Wakata will be doing photos of the first deploy.

First opp at 0815 UTC, second at 1240 UTC

NASA ustream now showing the deployer
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 06:56 am by jcm »
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #28 on: 02/11/2014 07:17 am »
New deploy time 0820 UTC
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #29 on: 02/11/2014 07:23 am »
Deploy command sent, but no evidence of successful deploy on video..
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Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #30 on: 02/11/2014 07:30 am »
No joy at first try, but nice view...

JAXA still troubleshooting.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #31 on: 02/11/2014 07:35 am »
And the first two Flock-1 satellites deployed at around 0833 UTC
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 07:39 am by jcm »
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Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #32 on: 02/11/2014 07:39 am »
Joy!

Two satellites riding off into the sunset, like in some high-tech western movie...

Hope someone captured video. Looked really good.  My screen capture did not do it justice.

« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 07:40 am by InfraNut2 »

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #33 on: 02/11/2014 07:59 am »
The satellites tumbled a little bit more than I expected, but it made for good visuals, as the setting sun highlighted different parts of them in sequence.

Subjectively, the deployment speed seemed rather fast, but it may not have been all that much faster than for J-SSOD. Hard to judge with different distances and angles of view.

edit: A pity Koichi missed getting close-in pictures of the deploy because Tsukuba did not give him a heads-up for the exact time of the re-send of the deploy command, but hopefully the further-out pictures he got will be OK. But they will get it right at the next deploy I expect.
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 08:25 am by InfraNut2 »

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #34 on: 02/11/2014 11:41 am »
Koichi ready in the cupola to take pictures of the second deployment.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #35 on: 02/11/2014 11:46 am »
Two more satellites deployed at 1241 UTC!  Koichi reports photos taken, but I'm not seeing any relevant video on the iss stream...
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Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #36 on: 02/11/2014 11:48 am »
Third and fourth cubesats deployed 1241UTC.  :)

Koichi got good pictures.  :)

JAXA got good downlink video, but not me.  :(  (The ISS feed showed an internal view of cygnus and the hatchway).

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #37 on: 02/11/2014 01:00 pm »
@NanoRacks just confirmed (1353 UTC):

NanoRacks 2nd #Cubesat deployment from #ISS for @planetlabs went perfect...

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #38 on: 02/11/2014 01:45 pm »
Koichi got good pictures.  :)
Confirmed :)   (This picture is from that second deployment).

@Astro_Wakata tweeted:

Congratulations on  the successful deploy of the satellites by the NanoRacks  CubeSat Deployer and Kibo robotics! pic.twitter.com/GsUzvC8NKO
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 01:57 pm by InfraNut2 »

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #39 on: 02/11/2014 02:57 pm »
Another picture.

@NanoRacks:

This photo catches the cubesats just as they are leaving the deployer. #ISS #cubesat pic.twitter.com/QRybJb13pe
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 02:58 pm by InfraNut2 »

Online Silmfeanor

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #40 on: 02/11/2014 04:48 pm »
Koichi got good pictures.  :)
Confirmed :)   (This picture is from that second deployment).

@Astro_Wakata tweeted:

Congratulations on  the successful deploy of the satellites by the NanoRacks  CubeSat Deployer and Kibo robotics! pic.twitter.com/GsUzvC8NKO
Attached to my post is the high-res version of that. Can see quite a bit of detail (used the :orig tag on the url to get it )
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 04:49 pm by Silmfeanor »

Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #41 on: 02/11/2014 05:28 pm »
All four in good health :)

Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #42 on: 02/11/2014 05:36 pm »
The satellites tumbled a little bit more than I expected, but it made for good visuals, as the setting sun highlighted different parts of them in sequence.

34.2 degrees per second.

Offline jongoff

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #43 on: 02/11/2014 07:47 pm »
Does anyone know of an estimate of the lifetime of these sattelites when launched from the ISS at around 410 km altitude?  It could be only a few months.

I've heard numbers in the 6-12 months for typical cubesats (varies a lot based on satellite density and density variations in the upper atmosphere).

~Jon

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #44 on: 02/11/2014 08:17 pm »
Does anyone know of an estimate of the lifetime of these sattelites when launched from the ISS at around 410 km altitude?  It could be only a few months.

I've heard numbers in the 6-12 months for typical cubesats (varies a lot based on satellite density and density variations in the upper atmosphere).

~Jon

I read that Planet Labs expected an orbital lifetime of up to around 2 years for these "dove" satellites.

From this SpaceNews article: http://www.spacenews.com/article/features/39297profile-chris-boshuizen-chief-technology-officer-planet-labs-inc

Quote
Q: Space station operates in a fairly low orbit. Will it limit the lifespan of your satellites?

A: Without an on-board propulsion system, their life will be fairly limited. Our [business] model is based on our ability to mass-produce satellites. Instead of building a more sophisticated satellite with a 10-year lifetime, we chose to build a much simpler spacecraft with a design life of a couple of years and replenish the constellation.

Clark Lindsey said 1-2 years but I do not know if he had additional sources for that or just extrapolated from the same source.

Quote
The Planet Labs strategy is that they can obtain high resolution images from small aperture nanosats by flying in a much lower orbit than the large aperture imaging satellites. This will reduce their lifetime to a year or two but the launch capability provided by the ISS allows them to replace lost satellites easily and at relatively low cost.

I thought that sounded longer that normal. Usually the lifetimes are more like jongoff says. Maybe these satellites are more dense than your typical cubesat...

edit: added source quotes

edit2: Just found out Dove-2 is 5.5kg. The Flock-1 doves should be at least that heavy, so they are indeed heavier than the usual cubesats, so that could explain their lifetime expectancy. It seems more common for some of the 3U cubesats to be extra heavy (and then usually the most ambitious ones). 1U cubesats are rarely heavier than 1.3kg--usually closer to 1kg.
« Last Edit: 02/11/2014 09:18 pm by InfraNut2 »

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #45 on: 02/12/2014 05:37 am »
So when is the next deploy I wonder?
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #46 on: 02/12/2014 05:57 am »
... ISS Ustream showing the nanoracks deployer, so I wonder if a new deploy is planned for this evening.

The color scheme of the video does seem to indicate that ISS is orbiting Jupiter right now...
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #47 on: 02/12/2014 06:15 am »
Per ISS audio,  the third deploy at 0235 UTC Feb 12 failed to occur despite repeated commanding.
They will skip those sats for now and try the fourth deploy at a little after 0730 UTC, 15 min from now.
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #48 on: 02/12/2014 06:30 am »
Deploy delayed to 0822 UTC. Wish someone else was up to catch the actual time - I may be asleep by then
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #49 on: 02/12/2014 06:32 am »
Skybox Imaging, one of the three companies mentioned in the article, provides "sub-meter" resolution imagery.


Yeah, although I haven't found anything specific. Some articles say "about a meter or less," but that's still somewhat vague. I also cannot find any specifics on their satellites. What are the dimensions and what is the diameter of their imaging mirror? It looks like the satellite may be about 80 cm tall and 60 cm on a side, and I would guess that puts the mirror diameter at 40-50 cm. Somebody could then plug that into the satellite altitude and get a decent guess at the resolution.

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/06/startup-skybox/
Easy peasy. 1.22*wavelength*altitude/aperturediameter

Altitudes from: http://uppsagd.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/fcc_exhibit-43_skysat-1.pdf

On one end: 1.22*400nm*450km/(50cm) = 44cm.
On the other: 1.22*600nm*637km/(40cm) = 117cm.

400nm is bluish. 600nm is reddish.
It should be noted that the /nominal/ altitude is supposed to be about 450km with a lifetime of about 2.5 years.

It seems reasonable to suggest a little less than 1m resolution.
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #50 on: 02/12/2014 07:38 am »
Two satellites deployed at 0830 UTC Feb 12.

OK, bedtime - seems like the only way we are going to find out about these deployments is for people to watch the
ISS stream, so I hope others will join in here.
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #51 on: 02/12/2014 11:21 am »
The Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (SSOD), in the grasp of the Kibo laboratory robotic arm, is photographed by an Expedition 38 crew member on the International Space Station as it deploys a set of NanoRacks CubeSats. The CubeSats program contains a variety of experiments such as Earth observations and advanced electronics testing.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #52 on: 02/12/2014 11:05 pm »
Was it planned that one of them deployed with the aperture already uncovered?
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #53 on: 02/12/2014 11:44 pm »
Was it planned that one of them deployed with the aperture already uncovered?

From the first to the second image it is seen that the aperture cover opened as the satellite was being deployed.
It is also seen that this satellite is rotating faster than the one behind it, whose aperture remains closed. 
It seems unlikely that both conditions are intentional.  Either they are all supposed to open on deployment, or to all remain closed for a while.   Something appears to have gone awry.
What kind of wastrels would dump a perfectly good booster in the ocean after just one use?

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #54 on: 02/12/2014 11:57 pm »
Actually, the aperture cover deployment sequence was designed that way (I agree that it is a bit surprising, but there were good reasons).  The covers on the "rear" satellites open later, on a timer.  All have successfully opened.
« Last Edit: 02/13/2014 12:03 am by pericynthion »

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #55 on: 02/13/2014 01:54 am »
Actually, the aperture cover deployment sequence was designed that way (I agree that it is a bit surprising, but there were good reasons).  The covers on the "rear" satellites open later, on a timer.  All have successfully opened.

Thanks for that clarification!

Reading through the posts in order it wasn't clear to me where things stood, was a deployment pair "skipped" and then the next pair worked? Or did the skipped pair eventually deploy as well. What is the tally as of now? Any info on a recovery plan for that pair? (bringing the dispenser inside and fiddling with it?)
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #56 on: 02/13/2014 05:02 am »
The tally is 6, the third deployment pair was skipped (and may be tried again tonight if I understand correctly).
The fourth pair has been cataloged as 39518 and 39519 so it looks as if Space-Track is leaving a gap (39516 and 39517) to backfill for the third pair when they are eventually deployed.
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #57 on: 02/13/2014 06:03 am »
Actually, the aperture cover deployment sequence was designed that way (I agree that it is a bit surprising, but there were good reasons).  The covers on the "rear" satellites open later, on a timer.  All have successfully opened.

So much for simple logic.
Practice is always more complex than theory.
Thank you for correcting my error.
What kind of wastrels would dump a perfectly good booster in the ocean after just one use?

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #58 on: 02/13/2014 07:29 am »

7th and 8th satellites were deployed at 0820 UTC Feb 13.  These may be the ones that got stuck earlier.
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #59 on: 02/13/2014 05:45 pm »
Getting back to the issue of populating the planes, I would imagine that by deploying the satellites in sequence over 48 hours, they would be more or less distributed evenly around the globe.


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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #60 on: 02/13/2014 07:02 pm »
Getting back to the issue of populating the planes, I would imagine that by deploying the satellites in sequence over 48 hours, they would be more or less distributed evenly around the globe.

I don't think that works. The deployers only impart a pretty limited dV (something like 0.5-1m/s), which means you' have to deploy them over a ~160-300 day timeframe to get them evenly distributed around the globe, unless I made a math error.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #61 on: 02/14/2014 07:44 pm »
Why do they launch it by two? They will stay on the same orbit and provide no additional passes.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #62 on: 02/15/2014 11:07 am »
According to http://planet4589.org/space/jsr/latest.html all 16 Flock1 satellites from the first batch are now deployed and the MPEP could be back into Kibo for the next round.

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #63 on: 02/15/2014 11:24 am »
NanoRacks @NanoRacks ·tweeted almost 1hr ago:

NanoRacks confirms two more successful deployments, bringing to 16 the number of #Cubesats deployed from #ISS so far this cycle.

According to http://planet4589.org/space/jsr/latest.html all 16 Flock1 satellites from the first batch are now deployed and the MPEP could be back into Kibo for the next round.

The linked report said 12 (not 16) had been deployed, excepting the 4 cubesats in deployer 4 and 5 that failed earlier as we know.

Luckily NanoRacks+JAXA now has resolved that problem and we are 16 for 16.

edit: tweet time + source quote for 2 failed deployers being known:

Quote from: ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/13/14
Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Deploys:  After the failure to launch satellites from 2 NanoRacks CubeSat Deployers (NRCSDs) yesterday, Payload Operations Integration Center (POIC) console teams were able to confirm from photographs taken by Flight Engineer (FE)-6 Wakata that the push-pin assemblies on all NRCSDs located on the Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS) were in good condition.  Two additional satellites were subsequently launched today.  Additional launches are planned for tomorrow and over the weekend, including attempts to launch again from the two deployers which failed to launch their satellites yesterday.
« Last Edit: 02/15/2014 11:46 am by InfraNut2 »

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #64 on: 02/15/2014 11:45 am »
The linked report said 12 (not 16) had been deployed, excepting the 4 cubesats in deployer 4 and 5 that failed earlier as we know.
The text is not up-to-date, but the table below shows all 16 deployed.

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #65 on: 02/15/2014 12:12 pm »
The linked report said 12 (not 16) had been deployed, excepting the 4 cubesats in deployer 4 and 5 that failed earlier as we know.
The text is not up-to-date, but the table below shows all 16 deployed.

This table shows (among other stuff) a complete overview of the launch times of the whole first batch of 16 sats. Neat!  :)

I did not originally notice the table at the bottom; I stopped reading as soon as there was non-cubesat stuff.

Thanks Olaf for the reference and pointing out the table and especially to Jonathan McDowell for the original report!

I'll take the chance to quote the relevant lines, hoping Jonathan won't mind:

Date UT       Name            Launch Vehicle        Site            Mission    INTL. 

Feb 11 0831   Dove-5  (F1-1) )   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DG     
              Dove-6  (F1-2) )                                      Imaging    98-067DH
Feb 11 1241   Dove-7  (F1-3) )   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DJ
              Dove-8  (F1-4) )                                      Imaging    98-067DK
Feb 12 0830   Dove-9  (F1-5) )   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DL
              Dove-10 (F1-6) )                                      Imaging    98-067DM
Feb 13 0820   Dove-11 (F1-11))   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DN
              Dove-12 (F1-12))                                      Imaging    98-067DP
Feb 14 0415   Dove-13 (F1-13))   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DQ
              Dove-14 (F1-14))                                      Imaging    98-067DR
Feb 14 1145   Dove-15 (F1-15))   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DS
              Dove-16 (F1-16))                                      Imaging    98-067DT
Feb 15 0700   Dove-17 (F1-7) )   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DU
              Dove-18 (F1-8) )                                      Imaging    98-067DV
Feb 15 1055   Dove-19 (F1-9  )   -                ISS, LEO          Imaging    98-067DW
              Dove-20 (F1-10))                                      Imaging    98-067DY

Offline baldusi

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #66 on: 02/15/2014 01:57 pm »
I love it. Launch Vehicle: LEO, Site: LEO. Now did you counted them on the Antares flight? If so, you're double counting. Which is fine, but have you counted Huygens launched from Cassini in site Saturn Orbit?

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #67 on: 02/15/2014 03:20 pm »
Nice pic from Koichi.

Koichi Wakata @Astro_Wakata · 10 min ago:

Congratulations to the entire ops team on the series of successful deployment of the first set of the CubeSats! http://pic.twitter.com/tEQPZzIsSS

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #68 on: 02/15/2014 05:21 pm »
You can see the Nanoracks logo in the last image.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #69 on: 02/15/2014 05:31 pm »
The linked report said 12 (not 16) had been deployed, excepting the 4 cubesats in deployer 4 and 5 that failed earlier as we know.
The text is not up-to-date, but the table below shows all 16 deployed.

I was a little too sleepy at 6am this morning to update the text! Should read consistently now.
I'm not 100 percent sure about the Dove satellite numbers - the Flock1-nn names are assigned in order of position
on the deployer per pericynthion's data, but I am for now assuming that the Dove numbers are assigned in order of ejection based on a somewhat ambigious tweet from @planetlabs.

The last two sats hadn't been tracked by NORAD yet last time I checked.
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #70 on: 02/15/2014 05:38 pm »
I love it. Launch Vehicle: LEO, Site: LEO. Now did you counted them on the Antares flight? If so, you're double counting. Which is fine, but have you counted Huygens launched from Cassini in site Saturn Orbit?


Launch vehicle - 'None'.  Site - ISS, LEO.   Or perhaps - launch vehicle:  JEM-RMS/NanoRacks Deployer? I think it's fair in the sense that this is the first time they have been outside their parent spacecraft.

In my internal database I don't count them as a separate launch, they are part of the Antares launch, but
I do record date/time where available for mission 'phases':  transfer from Cygnus to Kibo, deployer transfer from Kibo to MPEP,
MPEP on JEM-RMS, cubesat ejected from MPEP/deployers, and it's that last time that is my 'separation time' in the
satellite catalog (a version of the catalog I hope to release later this year).

Also, I track a spacecraft mass for Cygnus from which I subtract the masses of the cubesats, so that I don't double count the total mass launched.

I really hope Nanoracks decide to publicize the ejection times in future - if they do this for assorted customers
where (unlike PlanetLabs) I don't have contacts, I'm going to be stuck watching ISS ustream 24 hr per day to find
out what is going on.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #71 on: 02/15/2014 05:39 pm »
The linked report said 12 (not 16) had been deployed, excepting the 4 cubesats in deployer 4 and 5 that failed earlier as we know.
The text is not up-to-date, but the table below shows all 16 deployed.

This table shows (among other stuff) a complete overview of the launch times of the whole first batch of 16 sats. Neat!  :)

I did not originally notice the table at the bottom; I stopped reading as soon as there was non-cubesat stuff.

Thanks Olaf for the reference and pointing out the table and especially to Jonathan McDowell for the original report!

I'll take the chance to quote the relevant lines, hoping Jonathan won't mind:


No worries, always fine to extract from the JSR as long as you say where you got it from.

 - Jonathan
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Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #72 on: 02/15/2014 06:15 pm »


I really hope Nanoracks decide to publicize the ejection times in future - if they do this for assorted customers
where (unlike PlanetLabs) I don't have contacts, I'm going to be stuck watching ISS ustream 24 hr per day to find
out what is going on.



You are assuming that Nanoracks knows the ejection times. In fact, it doesn't seem that even the ISS crew knows the exact ejection times, since this is handled from the ground, AFAIK.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #73 on: 02/15/2014 10:35 pm »
I don't think Jonathan makes many assumptions :)  Of course Nanoracks knows the deployment times.

In terms of naming the Planet Labs spacecraft, the Dove-N series (currently Dove-1 through -4) is reserved for experimental / tech demo missions, while the Flock series is for operational constellations.  So although they are Dove-class, the Flock-1 satellites don't have a Dove- number.  Dove-5 will be the next experimental sat sometime this year.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #74 on: 02/17/2014 06:18 am »
I don't think Jonathan makes many assumptions :)  Of course Nanoracks knows the deployment times.

In terms of naming the Planet Labs spacecraft, the Dove-N series (currently Dove-1 through -4) is reserved for experimental / tech demo missions, while the Flock series is for operational constellations.  So although they are Dove-class, the Flock-1 satellites don't have a Dove- number.  Dove-5 will be the next experimental sat sometime this year.

Thanks Henry - that's what I had understood. Note however that there is an (official??)  tweet from @planetlabs claiming that is not the case. https://twitter.com/planetlabs/status/434518478934908928   I assume that's just wrong, but it does confuse the issue a bit

Quote
@planet4589 sats are Dove-5, Dove-6, Dove-7... and the constellation is Flock 1.

cheers, Jonathan

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #75 on: 02/17/2014 06:23 am »
Yeah, that tweet is... unclear.  I'll see if I can get it corrected.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #76 on: 02/17/2014 06:55 am »
Yeah, that tweet is... unclear.  I'll see if I can get it corrected.

:-)

Personally I find the Flock 1-nn names a bit ugly. I'd suggest naming the operational ones
Columba-1, -2, etc. (Columba is Latin for dove and it's a constellation) but people would just misspell it as Columbia.

 
« Last Edit: 02/17/2014 06:55 am by jcm »
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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #77 on: 02/17/2014 06:58 am »
Personally I just stick with the hexadecimal hardware IDs.  Less ambiguous :)

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #78 on: 02/17/2014 09:22 am »
Personally I just stick with the hexadecimal hardware IDs.  Less ambiguous :)

Well yes, internal production numbers are always best as the ur-identifier
I don't think  '03' or 'ff' is going to be unambiguous as a global (outside PLabs) identifier, though.
I'm happy to put 'PlanetLabs 0x03' in my 'prelaunch name' database field though - I track multiple names
for each sat, usually at least a  'prelaunch name'  and a 'postlaunch name as registered with the UN Office of Outer Space Affairs', sometimes as many as three additional 'name used by owner' values too, and then arb many 'name changed to x
at time t' entries (the worst I have seen is Eutelsat who rename their sats every time they relocate them)

But my public satcat.txt file has just the 'pre'  (manufacturer hardware name) and 'post'  (postlaunch owner name)
fields which tends to be the minimum to identify a sat unambiguously.


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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #79 on: 02/17/2014 01:00 pm »
Don't they have a MAC number anywhere? Those are supposed to be unique.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #80 on: 02/17/2014 01:04 pm »
Earlier in the thread there was some discussion of Skybox. Here's something on them and it is the first article I've seen that indicates that their resolution is 0.9 meters.


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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #81 on: 02/17/2014 08:54 pm »
Earlier in the thread there was some discussion of Skybox. Here's something on them and it is the first article I've seen that indicates that their resolution is 0.9 meters.
Resolution depends on wavelength and altitude. It's quite possible that they'll get 1m to start with in red, but 0.5m in blue by the time the orbits have decayed somewhat.
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Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #82 on: 02/19/2014 06:29 am »
JEM-RMS and JEM airlock work sceduled for today (according to http://spacestationlive.nasa.gov/timeline/). I assume it is for returning the Nanoracks deployer inside to start the changeout to the second batch.

I assume Koichi will do most of the work like for the first batch. He was busy yesterday releasing Cygnus with the big arm together with Mike. The cygnus coverage showed that the deployer was still outside yesterday.

Bonus picture is one tweeted from Nanoracks around 11 h ago. Super timing just as the first of the 2 dove cubesats is exiting the tube and the lid/flap with the rod antenna(?) is starting to open. It is coming out of deployer 6 and you can see the troublesome deployers 4 and 5 are still closed (they got them to work in the end after the rest was released).

edit: Added Second bonus picture (via @ShuttleAlmanac) that shows 2 doves in front of the ISS solar arrays. Notice the second satellite has not opened the lid/flap yet -- intentionally so as not to "slap" the one in front.

edit2: Nothing mentioned about this in this mornings DPC, but that is normal when there are no questions from the astronauts and the ground has no last-minute info/comments not covered in the uploaded procedures and plans.

Ah, well -- off to work. Hopefully some update(s) will find its way here before I return.
« Last Edit: 02/19/2014 07:00 am by InfraNut2 »

Offline Fuji

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #83 on: 02/20/2014 01:49 am »
Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata spent much of his morning in the Kibo laboratory working in concert with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency flight controllers as they prepare to launch another batch of mini-satellites. While the flight controllers remotely operated the Japanese Experiment Module’s robotic arm, Wakata helped return the Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform to the airlock. A new set of NanoRacks CubeSats will be installed in the mechanism’s launcher devices for the start of a second round of Cubesat deployments beginning next Tuesday.
http://www.nasa.gov/content/combustion-research-biology-experiments-on-station-wednesday/

Offline Comga

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #84 on: 02/20/2014 02:48 am »
Is PlanetLabs paying for all of this assistance from Wakata and the JAXA flight controllers?
What kind of wastrels would dump a perfectly good booster in the ocean after just one use?

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #85 on: 02/20/2014 06:38 pm »
NanoRacks @NanoRacks :

Hatches now closed for next #ISS #Cubesat deployment cycle. Looks like 17:00 GMT Tuesday to start this cycle.

edit:

Quick work! It was only yesterday it was brought back into the JEM airlock, as confirmed by the report Fuji quoted as well as the ISS daily summary:

Quote from: ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/19/14
Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Operations: This morning, the Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP) with attached NRCSDs was returned by the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS) to the JEM Airlock Slide Table and then brought back into the JEM Airlock.
« Last Edit: 02/20/2014 06:55 pm by InfraNut2 »

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #86 on: 02/21/2014 03:18 am »
Wakata worked in the Japanese Kibo laboratory to prepare the second batch of NanoRacks CubeSats for their deployment beginning next Tuesday. Wakata opened the inner hatch to the airlock and replaced the empty deployers on the Multipurpose Experiment Platform with loaded deployers.
http://www.nasa.gov/content/station-astronauts-prep-nanosatellites-talk-with-students/
« Last Edit: 02/21/2014 03:19 am by Fuji »

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #87 on: 02/24/2014 12:27 pm »
A few more details on the preparation for the next batch from the ISS daily summary for Thursday:

Quote from: ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/20/14
Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Operations:  Wakata pressurized the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock, performed a leak check, then opened the inner hatch to bring the Airlock slide table into the JEM.  He then replaced the empty NanoRacks CubeSat Deployers (NRCSDs) on the Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP) with loaded new NRCSDs. Later in the afternoon, Wakata retracted the slide table with the loaded NRCSDs back into the Airlock and closed the inner hatch.  Next week, the loaded NRCSDs will be extended out of the JEM Airlock to the exterior of the ISS.  JAXA Flight Controllers will then utilize the JEM Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS) in order to grapple the MPEP and maneuver it to the launch position. Seventeen CubeSats are scheduled to be launched next week.

edit: added picture

@Astro_Wakata tweeted this picture on Friday. It is evidently a closeup of the deployers for the second batch ready to go into the airlock. Given the report above it must have been taken Thursday.
« Last Edit: 02/24/2014 12:40 pm by InfraNut2 »

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #88 on: 02/25/2014 04:07 pm »
Start of second cubesat batch deployments

 - Tsukuba confirmed cubesat deployment coming up 5 min ahead.

 - Koichi taking a break from ARED exercise to snap pictures.

 - Tsukuba doing countdown to help Koichi capture photos.

 - CubeSat Release confirmed.  :)

 - Tsukuba: "It was a beautiful deployment"

 - Koichi: "We enjoyed the wiew"


Do not know whether the 5 non-PlanetLabs cubesats are deployed last (assumed) or first (now). It was probably 2 PlanetLabs CubeSats that was released today. We will have to wait for written confirmation from PlanetLabs or one of the other CubeSat owners to know for sure, I guess.


edit: Quickly confirmed by @NanoRacks :

NanoRacks confirms start of second round of #ISS #Cubesat deployment with successful deploy of two more satellites.


edit2: late addition of daily report for completeness
Quote from: ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/25/14
Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Operations and Deploys: This morning, Flight Engineer (FE)-6 Wakata depressurized the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock, opened the outer hatch and extended the slide table out to the JEM Exposed Facility (JEF) on the exterior of the ISS. JAXA Flight Controllers removed the 8 NanoRacks CubeSat Deployers (NRCSDs) from the slide table utilizing the JEM Remote Manipulator System (RMS) and moved them to their deploy position.  Two Cubesats were then successfully launched from one of these NRCSDs.  Later this week, 15 additional Cubesats will be launched from the remaining NRCSDs. CubeSat format satellites are launched from the ISS for a variety of commercial and national customers.
« Last Edit: 02/27/2014 03:18 pm by InfraNut2 »

Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #89 on: 02/25/2014 04:38 pm »
Yes, Planet Labs cubesats today.  Two more out the door :)

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #90 on: 02/26/2014 06:41 am »
There was going to be another deploy at 0730 UTC but I didn't see it happen...
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Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #91 on: 02/26/2014 06:43 am »
It happened :)

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #92 on: 02/27/2014 04:51 am »
And two more must have been deployed sometime today - they have just been cataloged

So far in the new batch we have

Flock 1-17  39555  1998-067DY   Feb 25 1710?
Flock 1-18  39556  1998-067DZ
Flock 1-19  39557  1998-067EA    Feb 26 0735
Flock 1-20  39558  1998-067EB
Flock 1-21  39559  1998-067EC    Feb 26 unknown
Flock 1-22  39560  1998-067ED

- assuming they were ejected in deployer order so far.
All the sats are in approx 409 x 416 km x 51.65 deg orbit.
The first sat ejected, Flock 1-1/39512, has now decayed to 400 x 407 km.



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Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #93 on: 02/27/2014 05:01 am »
Second batch deploys so far:

2/25  17:00:03   Flock1-17  Flock1-18
2/26  04:20:02   Flock1-21  Flock1-22
2/26  07:35:01   Flock1-19  Flock1-20
2/27  01:50:11   Flock1-23  Flock1-24  (deployment moved up)

(same wiring reasons as before that lead to the deployer swap, hence out-of-order)

The space track catalog assignments, even for the previous batch, don't seem to be fully stable yet.

Just 4 sats in 2 pods left, scheduled 2/27 07:40 and 2/28 04:20.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #94 on: 02/27/2014 05:10 am »
Great, thanks!

Yeah,  space-track/JSPOC have a habit of deciding to change the IDs for satellites without telling anybody, I expect it will take a month or two to stabilize.

 
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Offline Fuji

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #95 on: 02/27/2014 06:32 am »
This photo is taken 25 Feb.
Three Canister door was already opend.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2explore/12801808703/


And here is interesting photo. Assemblying the NRCSDs.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2explore/12798086543/

Offline Fuji

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #96 on: 02/27/2014 06:39 am »
This information is not Planet Labs CubeSats but, may be this is the last deploy.

LitSat-1 with linear transponder deploys Friday
http://amsat-uk.org/2014/02/26/litsat-1-with-linear-transponder/
Quote
Our country Lithuania is heading towards a historic moment – start of the first Lithuanian satellite in space.  First ever Lithuanian Cubesat Litsat1 is due to be launched within couple of days only – on Feb 28 at 07:30 UT from the International Space Station (ISS).

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #97 on: 02/27/2014 01:12 pm »
ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/26/14
http://blogs.nasa.gov/stationreport/2014/02/26/iss-daily-summary-report-022614/

Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Operations and Deploys: Overnight 4 CubeSats were successfully launched by JAXA Robotic Flight Controllers from two NanoRacks CubeSat Deployer (NRCSD) locations. Eleven more satellites will be deployed in the next 2 days. CubeSat format satellites are launched from the ISS for a variety of commercial and national customers.
« Last Edit: 02/27/2014 01:13 pm by anik »

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #98 on: 02/27/2014 03:37 pm »
Eleven more satellites will be deployed in the next 2 days.

Wow! they are really popping them out fast!  8)

I was just a tiny bit skeptical when the daily report for Tuesday 25 said that all the 17 CubeSats would be deployed this week, but that seems to come through. In hindsight, it was not unlikely at all:

Reason 1: The non-PlanetLabs CubeSats are presumably not deployment-time sensitive, so they can be popped out with short intervals.

Reason 2: JAXA+NanoRacks team now know this system well enough that delays to troubleshoot/retry things are probably no longer needed.
« Last Edit: 02/27/2014 03:40 pm by InfraNut2 »

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #99 on: 02/27/2014 10:17 pm »
Eleven more satellites will be deployed in the next 2 days.

Wow! they are really popping them out fast!  8)

I was just a tiny bit skeptical when the daily report for Tuesday 25 said that all the 17 CubeSats would be deployed this week, but that seems to come through. In hindsight, it was not unlikely at all:

Reason 1: The non-PlanetLabs CubeSats are presumably not deployment-time sensitive, so they can be popped out with short intervals.

Reason 2: JAXA+NanoRacks team now know this system well enough that delays to troubleshoot/retry things are probably no longer needed.


Reason 1 doesn't really apply - the PLabs sats are popping out at the rate of 4 a day anyway. The non PLabs sats
are 1U and 2U vs the larger PLabs 3U sats, so a single deployer pops all five of them out simultaneously (should be fun to see)
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Offline Fuji

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #100 on: 02/28/2014 01:35 am »
CubeSats and Robotics on Station Thursday   February 27, 2014
http://www.nasa.gov/content/cubesats-and-robotics-on-station-thursday/

Two sets of Nanoracks CubeSats were deployed late Wednesday and early Thursday from a deployer mechanism on the Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform attached to the Kibo robotic arm, leaving just two more launches to go of the 33 CubeSats that were delivered to the station in January by Orbital Sciences’ Cygnus cargo ship. The latest CubeSats were sent on their way at 8:50 p.m. EST Wednesday and 2:40 a.m. Thursday. CubeSats are a class of research spacecraft called nanosatellites and have small, standardized sizes to reduce costs. Two final batches of CubeSats are set for deployment at 11:20 p.m. Thursday and 2:30 a.m. Friday, but more are scheduled to be delivered to the station on the second Orbital commercial resupply mission in May.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #101 on: 02/28/2014 02:38 am »
I assume that the Peruvian 1U that was delivered on the recent Progress will have to wait, maybe until May? Or are they going to do a special deploy for it, perhaps.
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Offline Fuji

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #102 on: 02/28/2014 03:30 am »
I assume that the Peruvian 1U that was delivered on the recent Progress will have to wait, maybe until May? Or are they going to do a special deploy for it, perhaps.

Anik answered here.
http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=33015.msg1159809#msg1159809
Quote
It will be launched manually by cosmonauts during ISS Russian EVA-38 in August.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #103 on: 02/28/2014 03:15 pm »
Congratulations to PlanetLabs and NanoRacks.

All the sats have now been deployed - 28 for PlanetLabs and 5 for Peru, 2 Lithuanian groups, Ardusat, SouthernSky
 
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Offline Comga

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #104 on: 02/28/2014 06:34 pm »
And two more must have been deployed sometime today - they have just been cataloged
(snip)
All the sats are in approx 409 x 416 km x 51.65 deg orbit.
The first sat ejected, Flock 1-1/39512, has now decayed to 400 x 407 km.

The Difference between the mean altitude of the newly deployed naosats and the mean altitude for Flock 1-1 is ~9 km. I know it is an imprecise reference but Heavens-Above shows that the ISS has descended about 2 km since the first deployment on Feb 11.

Does that mean that the average altitude of the nanosats has decayed by ~11 km since deployment 18 days ago?
Can we use that to estimate the orbital lifetimes?
I thought that the time to descend by 20km was about half the lifetime, as that's supposed to be the scale altitude over which residual pressure doubles. Is that too pessimistic?

edit: typo
« Last Edit: 02/28/2014 06:34 pm by Comga »
What kind of wastrels would dump a perfectly good booster in the ocean after just one use?

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #105 on: 03/01/2014 03:37 pm »
Congratulations NanoRacks and JAXA on successfully completing the deployments!  :)  And also PlanetLabs and the other satellite owners.

We are approaching the end of live coverage. I expect the final original report(s) on Monday together with some reporting in articles and such during the week.

Meanwhile I have gathered some additional reports and pictures for you:

Quote
Planet Labs @planetlabs · 28. feb.

Big cheers at @planetlabs office today as we watch the final two of 28 Flock 1 satellites deployed from ISS! Flock 1 complete.

By lucky coincidence astronauts Samantha Cristoforetti (ESA) and Terry Wirts (NASA) were training in Japan with CubeSat deploy and related stuff at just the right time to observe it done in reality at Tsukuba. See Samantha's log entry.

Quote
Laurynas Maciulis @orbitronas · 28. feb.

Thank You @NanoRacks! Great job! @LituanicaSat is in space and we think it works!

also reports on Cubesat deploys (like last week).

edit: typos & such

edit: Also: videos of the final deploy was posted on the NanoRacks thread by Danderman
« Last Edit: 03/01/2014 04:36 pm by InfraNut2 »

Offline pericynthion

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #106 on: 03/02/2014 05:11 am »
Does that mean that the average altitude of the nanosats has decayed by ~11 km since deployment 18 days ago?
Can we use that to estimate the orbital lifetimes?

1. The Space Track TLEs are extremely noisy at the moment
2. Ballistic coefficients of the satellites aren't constant
3. Their behavior during commissioning phase isn't necessarily representative of what it will be operationally
4. Space weather and upper atmospheric density is highly variable and difficult to predict

So you're probably going to need a longer run of data in order to accurately gauge lifetime.  Of course, if you wait long enough you'll have a very unambiguous answer :P

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #107 on: 03/05/2014 05:58 pm »
Wrapping it up with the final daily reports and a couple of articles.

NanoRacks Press release:

 - NanoRacks’ Hardware Successfully Deploys Historic Set of Satellites from the International Space Station

NASA PR article about the recent cubesat deploys:

 - It's a March of the CubeSats as Space Station Deployment Continues

Final daily report excerpts:

Quote from: ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/27/14
Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Operations:  Four more CubeSats were successfully launched overnight by JAXA Robotic Flight Controllers from two NanoRacks CubeSat Deployers (NRCSDs).  The remaining 7 CubeSats will be deployed overnight.  CubeSat format satellites are launched from the ISS for a variety of commercial and national customers.

Quote from: ISS Daily Summary Report – 02/28/14
Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Operations:  Overnight the final 7 CubeSats were successfully launched by JAXA Robotic Flight Controllers from two NanoRacks CubeSat Deployers (NRCSDs).  Two Dove CubeSats and ArduSat-2, LitSat-1, LituanicaSat-1, UaPSat-1, and SkyCube CubeSats were launched.  A total of 17 CubeSats have been deployed from the NRCSDs this week. The NRCSDs and Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP) were then returned by the JEMRMS to the JEM Airlock Slide Table and brought back into the JEM.  CubeSat format satellites are launched from the ISS for a variety of commercial and national customers.

Quote from: ISS Daily Summary Report – 03/03/14
Cube Satellite (CubeSat) Closeout Operations:  Today, Flight Engineer (FE) 6 Wakata and FE-3 Hopkins closed out the Nanorack Cubesat Deployer (NRCSD) operations.  This morning the slide table was moved from the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock into the JEM Pressurized Module (JPM).  Later, the crew removed the empty Nanoracks Cubesat Deployers (NRCSDs) and Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP)  from the slidetable and stowed them.  The slidetable was moved back into the Airlock.

So thats it from me on this thread unless I come across some late article or some such I want to share.

Offline InfraNut2

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #108 on: 03/11/2014 06:09 am »
The NanoRacks CubeSat Deployer Program-1 highlights video was too good not to share. Surprised no-one else have posted it already.



The bit that looks like the picture below probably is from the first deploy that I saw live on the ISS ustream channel. (The picture is a screencap from the live webcast back then).

edit: cross-posted it on the nanoracks thread too.
« Last Edit: 03/11/2014 06:28 am by InfraNut2 »

Offline Skyrocket

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #109 on: 03/13/2014 01:02 pm »
PlanetLabs has a new website (http://www.planet.com/) with a video on their constellation and some images of deployed Dove satellites (note the artwork on the side of the satellite body and the backside of the solar arrays)

Video:
« Last Edit: 03/13/2014 01:42 pm by Skyrocket »

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #110 on: 03/17/2014 07:49 am »
There is an article in the new york times today about Planet Labs - it includes a nice video. Worth a read and a watch.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/17/technology/start-ups-aim-to-conquer-space-market.html?hp&_r=0

Smallish error:
Quote
While the Planet Labs staff ate pancakes that morning in February, two shoebox-size nine-pound pods made in the company’s unconventional factory floated from the International Space Station toward a polar orbit of Earth. Ten hours later, two more were released.
:P

Offline Robotbeat

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #111 on: 03/17/2014 03:11 pm »
There is an article in the new york times today about Planet Labs - it includes a nice video. Worth a read and a watch.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/17/technology/start-ups-aim-to-conquer-space-market.html?hp&_r=0

Smallish error:
Quote
While the Planet Labs staff ate pancakes that morning in February, two shoebox-size nine-pound pods made in the company’s unconventional factory floated from the International Space Station toward a polar orbit of Earth. Ten hours later, two more were released.
:P
Well, closer to a polar orbit than an equatorial one!
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Offline gosnold

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #112 on: 03/17/2014 07:57 pm »
Does anybody know the swath width and memory capacity of these birds?

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #113 on: 10/29/2014 01:26 am »
From Planet Labs:


Space is hard: Antares rocket failure

Today the Antares rocket on a mission to the ISS failed. The rocket was carrying our 26 Flock 1d satellites. Importantly, mission control confirmed that there are no injuries.

This was the 5th launch of the Antares rocket—and all relatively new rockets have a higher risk of explosion. While the previous launches have been successful, there is always a chance of failure—especially a system engaging in a mission as complex as rendezvous and docking with the ISS.

Space is hard and our hearts go out to our fellow space innovators on that launch: Planetary Resources Arkyd 3 and the University of Texas and JPL Radiometer Atmospheric CubeSat Experiment (RACE).

Planet Labs understands the risks of launch. Our approach to mitigate these risks is to deploy our fleets of satellites on multiple launch vehicles, from multiple vendors. We also place more satellites in orbit than we require in each launch so that if satellites fail in orbit we ensure continuity.

The beauty of this approach is the very fact that this event is not catastrophic to our company. Our eggs were not all in one basket.

We’re lucky to have already launched 71 Doves in 18 months on 6 launch vehicles; an unprecedented rate of development. We have been fortunate to have these, more opportunities than most.

This mishap does not deter us from our mission!

Offline Danderman

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #114 on: 11/20/2014 02:39 pm »
Doves Hitch Ride with SpaceX

On October 28, Orbital Sciences’ Antares rocket failed on its way to the International Space Station (ISS). This was a difficult event and our condolences went out to all those affected. That said, since the failure, the response by those affected has been nothing short of amazing: Orbital Sciences stated that they will fulfill their NASA contract obligations by the end of 2015; Planetary Resources intends to be flying in space in September; and in just 9 days, Planet Labs built and delivered two spacecraft to Houston, and has received a preliminary go-ahead from NASA to manifest the satellites on SpaceX-5.

Let me state that again: within 9 days a spacecraft launch was preliminarily manifested, 2 satellites were built, tested and delivered.

For our engineering team, perhaps the greatest disappointment of the loss of Flock 1D on the Antares rocket was not being able to test all the advances we packed into those 26 satellites. Fortunately, there are consistent and frequent cargo missions going to service the ISS orbit; in fact, about 15% of global launch capacity serves the ISS. Therefore, within hours of the launch failure, we were working with NanoRacks, our launch platform partner for the ISS, to coordinate with NASA to get us re-manifested on a cargo mission as soon as possible. The next available launch opportunity was SpaceX-5 launching in mid December 2014.

On the evening of the launch failure, our team split into two: one to immediately start building replacement Flock 1D satellites and the other to work the logistical and regulatory process to make it possible. Last Sunday, a mere 9 days after the launch failure, we shipped two spacecraft (now known as Flock 1D’) to NanoRacks’ shop in Houston. Also within this period of time, NanoRacks obtained the go-ahead from NASA’s ISS program office for a late load of the 2 Flock 1D’ satellites onto the SpaceX-5 launch vehicle.

I believe this example of shipping Flock 1D’ is a glimpse at the future of aerospace. This is possible due to all the actors having a shared incentive – from the regulators, launch vehicle providers, service providers and the spacecraft manufacturers. In space, each element is very difficult to get right by itself, and it takes an ecosystem to deliver a capability this quickly. Central to making this possible was developing our own custom design of the satellite that is free from specialty suppliers (thus decreasing lead time) and having a spacecraft design optimized for manufacturing and automated testing. Moreover, we certainly couldn’t have done it without the collaboration from NanoRacks and support from NASA, and we thank them for their support. This is a great example for how to create a resilient aerospace ecosystem.

At Planet Labs, we pride ourselves on agile aerospace development. Building, testing and scheduling 2 satellites in 9 days is a perfect example of this agility, and we can’t wait to watch the 98th and 99th Dove built, to launch into space and deploy into orbit. Space is definitely hard, but space is also very thrilling.

Offline nadreck

Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #115 on: 04/09/2015 07:43 pm »
More press on Planet Labs: http://www.sciencemag.org/content/348/6231/172.full not much detail on the upcoming flock 1e capabilities though
It is all well and good to quote those things that made it past your confirmation bias that other people wrote, but this is a discussion board damnit! Let us know what you think! And why!

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #116 on: 07/01/2016 09:34 pm »
Planet should continue to be a frequent customer for secondary payloads...

Quote
SAT-MOD-20150802-00053 E S2912
Granted in Part/ Deferred in Part Effective Date: 06/15/2016
Modification 06/15/2016 - 02/28/2029
Planet Labs Inc.
Nature of Service: Earth Exploration Satellite Service
On June 15, 2016, the Satellite Division granted in part and deferred in part, with conditions, the application of Planet Labs Inc. to modify its
authorization to construct, deploy and operate a system of technically identical non-geostationary orbit Earth Exploration Satellite Service
satellites. The Satellite Division deferred action on Planet Labs' request to include in its authorization satellites that are the subject of a Petition
to Deny by ORBCOMM. It also deferred action on transmissions of remote sensing and telemetry data to certain earth stations in the
8025-8400 MHz frequency band. The Satellite Division otherwise granted Planet Labs' application. Specifically, Planet Labs was authorized to
construct, deploy, and operate up to 600 technically identical NGSO EESS satellites in addition to those satellites already deployed and currently
operational. The satellites will be deployed at altitudes between 350 km and 660 km
and will transmit remote sensing and telemetry data to fixed
earth stations in the 8025-8400 MHz (space-to-Earth) frequency band, receive command signals in the 2025-2110 MHz (Earth-to-space)
frequency band, and may use the 401-402 MHz (space-to-earth) and 449.75-450.25 MHz (Earth-to-space) frequency bands for early-phase and
emergency-backup telemetry, tracking, and command operations, as well as for ranging and orbit determination on a non-emergency basis
throughout the mission lifetime.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #117 on: 09/20/2016 11:39 am »
"Doves"   :-X

Quote
CONTRACT ANNOUNCEMENT
NGA awards contract to Planet Labs
Sept. 12, 2016
 
SPRINGFIELD, Va. — The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency awarded a contract subscribing to imagery products and services provided by Planet Labs, Inc. of San Francisco, California.
 
The contract allows the Department of Defense and intelligence community to access Planet Labs’ global imagery content, updated every fifteen days. The introductory contract includes a seven-month period of performance and the total value of the contract is $20,000,000. The effective date is Sept. 12, 2016.
 
The global scope of coverage and high temporal frequency of collection from Planet labs will provide NGA with new data sources to support its many missions.

https://www.nga.mil/Partners/BusinessOpportunities/Pages/Default.aspx
"Well, three cheers to Sharma, but our real baby is INSAT."

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #118 on: 10/28/2017 11:27 pm »
Quote
SAT-AMD-20171025-00144 E S2912
Date Filed: 10/25/2017 18:49:46:46300
Planet Labs Inc.

Planet Labs Inc. amends its previously submitted request for modification of its authorization for an Earth Exploration Satellite Service (EESS) system. IBFS File No. SAT-MOD-20170713-00103 (filed July 13, 2017). Specifically, Planet seeks to modify three of its authorized non-geostationary orbit satellites by removing the imaging camera and replacing it with a nano propulsion system to be used in a technology demonstration. The satellites will be deployed to orbital apogee altitudes of no greater than 550 kilometers with a 97.4 degree inclination...

Quote
Other than replacing the imaging camera with a propulsion system, the satellite is technically identical to the other Flock satellites. It shares the same design and manufacture of the structural, power, avionics, and communications aspects of the Flock satellites and shares the same associated earth stations for the uplink and downlink of space operations data and propulsion system performance data. There are no changes to the frequencies and concept of operations for each of the bands as proposed in the Modification.

The nano propulsion system is known as Indium Field Emission Electric Propulsion. This propulsion system consists of a 250-gram cylinder of indium, associated heaters, ion generator mechanism, and beam neutralizer mechanism. Thrust is generated by the acceleration of ions via an applied electric field between an emitter crown and extractor electrode. The expected thrust is 350 micro-Newtons (uN), and there is a total of 5000 Newton-second total impulse capability for up to 1415 m/s velocity change for the 5 kg Dove Turbo satellite.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #119 on: 11/07/2017 09:49 pm »
FCC File Number: SAT-AMD-20171106-00151
Quote
Planet  Labs  Inc.  (Planet)  respectfully  requests  to  amend  its  previously submitted request  to  modify  the  authorization  (Modification)  for  the  Planet  Earth  Exploration Satellite  Service  (EESS)  system  (FCC  Call  Sign  S2912,  a.k.a.  “Flock”),  as  amended.1
Specifically,  Planet  requests  authority  to:

● Modify  up  to  three  (3)  of  its  authorized  satellites  of  the  Flock  constellation  to  add an  Automatic Identification System (AIS) receiver  system  to  the  satellites  to demonstrate  the  capability  of  the  Planet  Dove  satellites  to  receive  the  AIS  1 (161.9625MHz  –  161.9875MHz)  and  AIS  2  (162.0125MHz  –  162.0375MHz) channels.   Planet  currently  has  planned  only  one  satellite  demonstration  but requests  additional  authority  in  the  event  the  planned  satellite  fails  on­orbit,  fails to  reach  orbit,  or  additional  demonstrations  or  testing  become  necessary.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #121 on: 07/13/2018 01:35 am »
Quote
Flock Red-X Private Remote Sensing License: Public Summary

On October 11, 2017, the Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs Office of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the Department of Commerce, granted a license to Planet Labs Inc.
to operate a private, commercial, space-based, remote sensing system named Flock Red-X consisting
of a launch of up to four satellites. These satellites are licensed to collect 6.4m resolution imagery of the Earth
at an altitude of approximately 500km and an inclination of 97.4-degrees.

Quote
SWIFT Private Remote Sensing License: Public Summary

On 12 April 2018, the Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs Office of the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA CRSRA”), an agency of the Department of
Commerce, granted an amended license to Planet Labs Inc. (“Planet”) to operate a private,
commercial, space-based, remote sensing system consisting of up to 6 SWIFT satellites that
make up the Planet SWIFT constellation. The SWIFT satellites are licensed to collect synthetic
aperture radar imagery of the Earth’s surface and will operate at 350-650km altitude orbits.

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Re: Planet Labs nano-sat earth imaging satellites
« Reply #122 on: 08/16/2018 02:35 am »
The mission to create a searchable database of Earth's surface | Will Marshall


TED
Published on Aug 13, 2018

What if you could search the surface of the Earth the same way you search the internet? Will Marshall and his team at Planet use the world's largest fleet of satellites to image the entire Earth every day. Now they're moving on to a new project: using AI to index all the objects on the planet over time -- which could make ships, trees, houses and everything else on Earth searchable, the same way you search Google. He shares a vision for how this database can become a living record of the immense physical changes happening across the globe. "You can't fix what you can't see," Marshall says. "We want to give people the tools to see change and take action."



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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #123 on: 10/16/2019 02:42 am »
Quote
Planet Announces More Spectral Bands, 50cm Resolution, Global Analytics, And Change Detection
October 15, 2019

This morning at our Explore 19 conference, Planet co-founder and CEO Will Marshall unveiled the latest product announcements that customers can look forward to in the next year.

Planet Monitoring

Will announced new capabilities for Next-Generation PlanetScope, our flagship monitoring solution powered by the latest iteration of our Dove satellite called SuperDove. New sensors are enabling higher image quality with sharper, more vibrant colors and accurate surface reflectance values for advanced algorithms and time-series analysis.

Next-Generation PlanetScope is interoperable with publicly available imagery, like Copernicus Sentinel-2, empowering customers to utilize PlanetScope data with other sensors to enhance their analyses with higher spatial and temporal resolution.

Currently, PlanetScope imagery has four spectral bands (red, green, blue, and near-infrared). Next, Planet will add more spectral bands to enable new applications and use cases. On stage, Will discussed details about the Next Generation Planetscope, which includes 4-band, 5-band and 8-band PlanetScope imagery powered by SuperDove. Customers can get access to this new 4-band PlanetScope imagery as part of an Early Access Program later in 2019, with 5-band and 8-band imagery made available in early 2020.

Planet Tasking – 50 cm SkySat

Will saved the best for last and introduced Planet’s highest resolution yet: 50cm SkySat imagery.

Planet is building this future capability by lowering the orbit of an existing SkySat and improving image processing to deliver 50 cm data. This new data will open up a wide array of applications in energy, mining, finance, and security, which require ultra-fine resolution to distinguish objects and features.

Planet aims to make this 50 cm imagery available to customers in the first half of 2020.

Planet Analytic Feeds

Planet’s Analytic Feeds are now generally available, allowing any customer to enhance their imagery products by adding Road Detection, Building Detection, or Vessel Detection Feeds. Planet Analytic Feeds use computer vision to automatically identify features of interest in Planet Basemaps and PlanetScope scenes.

For beta release at the end of this year, Change Detection Feeds let customers automatically detect change at global scale and rapid frequency—an unmatched capability. Customers can  efficiently locate where change has occurred to help focus where they spend their time, or to tip higher-resolution imagery, like SkySat, to get a closer look. Change Detection Feeds represent the next phase of our analytic capabilities, helping customers focus their resources on where change has recently occurred.

Quote
Oct. 15, 2019  NRO awards Planet contract as part of transition of commercial imagery acquisition

CHANTILLY, Va. – The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) today announced the transition of the
Planet commercial imagery subscription service from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)
to the NRO.

As part of the transition, the NRO awarded Planet an unclassified, multi-year subscription service
contract for daily, large-area, 3-5 meter resolution commercial imagery collection.

Recognizing the importance of mission continuity, the scope of the new NRO contract is comparable to
NGA’s previous contracts with Planet and includes access to new daily unclassified imagery over
multiple areas of interest to military planners, warfighters, and the national security community.

The transition is consistent with NGA’s and NRO’s role in exploring new and viable commercial GEOINT
opportunities for national security missions.

“With its large constellation of satellites, Planet can image country – and even continent-sized areas –
every day,” said Pete Muend, director, NRO’s Commercial Systems Program Office. “This capability to
provide daily revisit over large areas of the Earth gives analysts unparalleled opportunities to discover
and monitor activity for a wide range of applications.”

“The NRO is committed to ensuring NGA and its customers continue to have access to Planet imagery to
perform the vital analysis needed to create value-added geospatial products for our partners and policy
makers,” said Muend.

“NGA’s 2016 Planet subscription played a role in our analytic transformation, where we are now focused
less on pixels and more on information content and services,” said David Gauthier, director of NGA’s
Source Commercial and Business Operations Group.

Gauthier said Planet imagery demonstrated the value that daily revisit of large areas, at 3-5 meter
resolutions, to several mission areas – especially when combined with geospatial analytics.

“With the transition, NGA can continue to shift its focus to emerging commercial GEOINT products and
services that uniquely support our user community,” said Gauthier.

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #124 on: 12/18/2019 04:53 am »
SAT-MOD-20191217-00148
Quote
Planet Labs Inc. (“Planet”) respectfully requests authority to modify the authorization for
Planet’s SkySat Earth Exploration Satellite Service (“EESS”) system (FCC Call Sign S2862).

Specifically, Planet requests authority to:
● Modify the authorized orbital location for the SkySat-16 to SkySat-21 satellites to include
the inclination range 40° – 60° in addition to the currently authorized inclination range of
97.0° – 97.9°; and
● Modify the operational orbital altitude for SkySat-3 to include 400 km.

...

SkySat-16 through SkySat-18 are intended to be launched as secondary payloads in April
2020 on a Falcon 9 launch vehicle, and SkySat-19 through SkySat-21 are intended to be
launched as secondary payloads in June 2020 on a subsequent Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The six
SkySats are expected to be deployed into a 190 km x 380 km elliptical orbit.
« Last Edit: 12/18/2019 04:54 am by gongora »

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #126 on: 02/14/2020 03:32 am »
Quote
Pursuant to 15 C.F.R. §960.5(b), Planet Labs Inc. (“Planet”) herein provides the following summary of the private remote sensing space system license issued on November 15, 2019, by the Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs Office, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the Department of Commerce.
...
Planet is licensed to operate a private space-based high-resolution remote sensing system, consisting of two technology demonstration satellites. These satellites are licensed to collect Earth imagery with a best case resolution of 0.29 m GSD resolution from an orbital altitude between 250-550 km and an inclination of 40°-60° and 96°-99°.
« Last Edit: 02/14/2020 03:33 am by gongora »

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #127 on: 02/14/2020 05:48 pm »
https://twitter.com/ISILaunch/status/1228381338572595200
Quote
Superproud to support yet another @planetlabs SuperDoves launch! With well over 200 Doves brought to orbit in our @isis_space #QuadPacks before, these 14 are now mounted on the #VEGA SSMS POC structure https://bit.ly/38uGXps

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #128 on: 03/22/2020 12:57 am »
Quote
SAT-MOD-20191217-00148 E S2862
Grant of Authority Effective Date: 03/16/2020
Modification
Planet Labs Inc.
Nature of Service: Earth Exploration Satellite Service

On March 16, 2020, the Satellite Division granted, with conditions, for Planet Labs Inc.'s request to modify the authorization for its system to (1) modify the operational orbital altitude for the SkySat-3 satellite to include 400 km, and (2) modify the orbital location for SkySat-16 to SkySat-21 satellites to include the inclination range of 40.0 degrees to 60.0 degrees in addition to the currently authorized inclination range of 97.0 degrees and 97.9 degrees.

That's for the sats going up shortly on Starlink rideshares.

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #129 on: 08/21/2020 02:38 pm »
SkySat Constellation Complete: SkySats 19-21 Successfully Launch Aboard The SpaceX Falcon 9

Mike Safyan | August 18, 2020

The world’s largest fleet of high-resolution imaging satellites just welcomed three new satellites to the family. On August 18, 2020, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched SkySats 19, 20 and 21 on yet another successful Starlink rideshare mission. Much like SkySats 16-18, which were launched by SpaceX on June 13, 2020, SkySats 19-21 were successfully injected into a drop-off orbit of approximately 207 x 370 km, 53 degree inclination.

Over the next several weeks the SkySat satellites will use their onboard propulsion to boost themselves up to their operational altitude of 400 km, and also begin phasing their orbital plane with respect to SkySats 16-18 in order to maximize coverage and revisit. Thanks to Exolaunch who helped deploy these most recent six SkySats with their CarboNIX deployer rings. These three new SkySats join the 18 others already in orbit and significantly expand our capacity to provide world class, high-resolution images to a variety of commercial, governmental, academic and non-profit organizations.

SkySats 19-21 are also the final SkySats to be built and launched, completing the campaign of 21 satellites originally planned by the SkyBox team in 2009. Eleven years later, the innovation of the SkySat design and mission remains world-class and continues to move the high-resolution satellite industry forward.

It’s been a busy few months here at Planet, with both SkySat and SuperDove launches stacking up as the launch industry recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. Our satellite Mission Operations teams are hard at work bringing all the satellites online, so stay tuned to Planet Pulse and Twitter for more launch and satellite operations updates.

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #130 on: 12/30/2020 06:11 pm »
SES-LIC-INTR2020-03979  Microsoft Infrastructure Group, LLC
Quote
Microsoft Infrastructure Group, LLC (“Microsoft”) respectfully requests authority to operate two CGC 6.1-meterantennas in Quincy, Washington(“Quincy Earth Station”).1The Quincy Earth Station will communicate with Planet Labs Inc.’s (“Planet Labs”) FCC-authorized SKYSAT (Call Sign S2862) non-geostationary satellite orbit (“NGSO”)Earth Exploration Satellite Service (“EESS”) system.

The Quincy Earth Station will enable Earth Observation (“EO”) customers to access Microsoft Azure’s cloud computing network and securely download and process EO data. With growing demand for EO services such as disaster prediction and tracking, increased visibility of supply chains and economic activity, and many others, granting the requested Quincy Earth Station license will serve the public interest by facilitating these critical services and paving the way for Microsoft to offer a new, advanced service for EO customers located throughout the U.S. and elsewhere. This application seeks authority to communicate with the Planet Labs SKYSAT satellite system. Microsoft may seek to add additional points of communication through future applications

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #131 on: 07/08/2021 04:27 am »
Planet valued at $2.8 billion in SPAC deal

Quote
Planet announced July 7 it will go public in a $2.8 billion deal with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), the second SPAC deal in the Earth observation sector in as many days.

Planet said it will merge with dMY Technology Group, Inc. IV, a SPAC that raised $345 million in a public offering in March. The merger agreement includes an additional $200 million in a concurrent round, called private investment in public equity.

After paying expenses and debt, the deal will provide Planet with $434 million in cash. It will give the San Francisco-based company at a post-transaction equity value of nearly $2.8 billion.

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #132 on: 07/08/2021 04:29 am »
Steve Jurvetson recounting some history of the company:

https://twitter.com/FutureJurvetson/status/1412767772329660419

Quote
1)In 26 years of VC, I have invested in just two space companies, and today, I am SO proud to see Planet is going public!

They are like the iPhone of satellites disrupting the mainframe incumbents and  generating 10x the Earth imagery as all other companies combined.  Memories:

2)I first met the founders in the Black Rock Desert to launch their NASA PhoneSat in my friend’s rocket:

I led the seed round in 2011 before they incorporated & became the first outside board member, then led the Series A too.  Initial name was Cosmogia.

3)We drove to the Stanford dish to download the first images from the first two “Doves” (satellites for peace and awareness).  And then we put a tracking station on my roof in 2014.

Planet quickly became the small sat leader, with 2x as many EO birds as everyone else combined.

4)Some launch excitement:  at Future Ventures we display a Planet satellite that survived this Antares launch explosion in 2014.  Quite a robust little bird, she tweeted Yo! from the beach the next day. And Mission 1, with a record 88 satellites on board: https://bloomberg.com/news/videos/2017-06-28/the-all-seeing-eye-in-the-sky-video

5)In recent years, Planet has launched the majority of its satellites with SpaceX. Here’s the first meeting, with my Atlas vernier engine decorating the Planet HQ lobby (where it has been on loan for a decade as a good luck totem).

Congrats again, for the good of the planet!

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #133 on: 10/12/2021 03:50 pm »
https://www.planet.com/pulse/planet-introduces-new-high-resolution-pelican-satellites-and-fusion-with-sar/

Planet announced their new high-res satellite line, Pelican.  First launch in 2022, operational in 2023.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/12/planet-labs-unveils-more-powerful-pelican-imagery-satellites.html
Quote
Schingler noted that the Pelican satellites will be smaller in size than the SkySat spacecraft, but “more dense” with a mass between 150 to 200 kilograms each.
« Last Edit: 10/12/2021 03:51 pm by gongora »

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #134 on: 12/08/2021 02:31 pm »
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211207006148/en/Planet-Announces-Closing-of-Business-Combination-with-dMY-Technology-Group-Inc.-IV

Quote
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Planet Labs Inc. (“Planet”), a leading provider of daily data and insights about Earth, today announced the completion of its previously announced business combination (the “Business Combination”) with dMY Technology Group, Inc. IV, a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company (formerly NYSE: DMYQ) (“dMY IV”). The combined company has been renamed Planet Labs PBC and its shares and warrants will commence trading tomorrow, December 8th, 2021, on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol “PL”.

“The company’s rapidly growing and one-to-many data platform business is poised for tremendous growth as data becomes increasingly central to the global economy. With a strong leadership team in place and a growing market for data-driven insights, Planet is well-positioned to further scale the business and drive value for shareholders.”

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“Today marks a huge milestone for Planet and our team, representing over a decade of hard work and dedication to using space to help life on earth,” said Planet co-founder and CEO Will Marshall. “Our listing on the NYSE and fully capitalized growth plan will enable us to accelerate our business and work with our partners towards creating a more sustainable and secure world.”

“Planet is a true pioneer, delivering critical insights and solutions to some of the world’s most influential companies and governments,” said Niccolo de Masi, CEO of dMY Technology Group and a member of the combined company’s board of directors. “The company’s rapidly growing and one-to-many data platform business is poised for tremendous growth as data becomes increasingly central to the global economy. With a strong leadership team in place and a growing market for data-driven insights, Planet is well-positioned to further scale the business and drive value for shareholders.”

In connection with the closing of the Business Combination, Planet received gross proceeds of over $590 million, including proceeds from the dMY IV trust account and the previously announced private placement (“PIPE”). The PIPE had participation from CPP Investments, Koch Strategic Platforms, Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures, and existing Planet investor, Google, among others. The capital will be used to fund Planet’s operations and support new and existing growth initiatives.

The name Planet Labs PBC reflects the company’s status as a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC). Planet’s public benefit purpose is: “To accelerate humanity to a more sustainable, secure and prosperous world by illuminating environmental and social change.”

Planet’s management team, led by CEO and co-founder Will Marshall, Chief Strategy Officer and co-founder Robbie Schingler, CFO and COO Ashley Johnson, and President of Product and Business Kevin Weil, will continue to lead the public company following the Business Combination, as previously announced.

After the closing of the Business Combination, the combined company’s Board of Directors will consist of seven members: Will Marshall, Robbie Schingler, Heidi Roizen, Niccolo de Masi, Vijaya Gadde, Carl Bass and Ita Brennan.
XQCR LLYZ GYZH HZSZ

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #135 on: 12/08/2021 03:10 pm »
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/08/satellite-imagery-company-planet-begins-trading-on-the-nyse.html

Quote
atellite imagery and data specialist Planet began trading Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange, becoming the latest space company to debut after closing a SPAC deal.

“We have a strong business that’s growing well ... and what’s been most exciting about this whole process of going public is that I think there’s increasing awareness of the data set that we’re generating from space and what impact it can have,” Planet CFO and COO Ashley Johnson told CNBC.

Planet trades under the ticker PL, with shares previously listed under the special purpose acquisition company dMY Technology Group IV. The company has about 190 satellites in orbit, and recently unveiled plans for a new line of satellites called Pelican to further bolster its fleet.

The stock rose 2% from its previous close of $10.81 a share.

Closing its merger nets Planet more than $590 million in gross proceeds, with capital from dMY as well as a PIPE round – or private investment in public equity – led by BlackRock and joined by Google, Koch, and Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures. After SPAC transaction fees and paying off debt, Johnson said Planet will have more than $500 million on its balance sheet.

“We estimate that for operating capital we need about $200 million over the next few years until we get to cashflow breakeven, and so that gives us a sizable war chest to really think about strategic moves,” Johnson said.

Johnson emphasized that Planet will use the remaining $300 million to take advantage of “consolidation in the industry or other opportunities that may present themselves.”

Planet and dMY closed the merger with a 2% redemption ratio, which represents the percentage of shares that investors redeem prior to closing of an acquisition.
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Offline XRZ.YZ

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #136 on: 12/14/2021 05:36 pm »
First Financial Result for Planet Labs after going public
https://investors.planet.com/news/news-details/2021/Planet-Reports-Financial-Results-for-Third-Quarter-of-Fiscal-2022/default.aspx
Quote
Third Quarter FY2022 Financial Highlights:

Revenue increased 16% year-over-year to $31.7 million.
Percent of Recurring Annual Contract Value (ACV) was 94%, compared to 93% in the third quarter of fiscal year 2021.
End of Period (EoP) Customer Count increased 32% year-over-year to 742 customers.
Gross Margin percentage expanded to 34%, compared to 27% in the third quarter of fiscal year 2021. Non-GAAP Gross Margin percentage expanded to 35%, compared to 28% in the third quarter of fiscal year 2021.
Net loss was $41.5 million and Adjusted EBITDA was ($12.3) million, driven by increased investments in R&D, sales and marketing and public company costs.
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Offline XRZ.YZ

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #137 on: 04/01/2022 09:09 pm »
https://investors.planet.com/news/news-details/2022/Planet-Reports-Financial-Results-for-Fourth-Quarter-and-Full-Year-of-Fiscal-2022/default.aspx

Fourth quarter revenue increased 23% year-over-year to $37.1 million.
Full year revenue increased 16% year-over-year to $131.2 million.

Fourth quarter gross margin expanded to 37%, compared to 25% in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2021.

net loss for Q4 $45.9million
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Offline XRZ.YZ

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #138 on: 04/21/2022 05:04 pm »
https://spacenews.com/planet-pelican-details/

The replacement for SkySat-Pelican will offer at least 10 daily views of Earth’s land mass and as many as 30 views of midlatitude locations with a resolution of 30 centimeters per pixel.

Ka-band inter-satellite data links

Will use other company's communication sat to relay data.

Hall-effect thrusters
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Offline TrevorMonty

Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #139 on: 04/21/2022 05:28 pm »
https://spacenews.com/planet-pelican-details/

The replacement for SkySat-Pelican will offer at least 10 daily views of Earth’s land mass and as many as 30 views of midlatitude locations with a resolution of 30 centimeters per pixel.

Ka-band inter-satellite data links

Will use other company's communication sat to relay data.

Hall-effect thrusters
It was matter of time before observation satellites starting using likes of Starlink for downlink. Downlink has always been bottle neck for these satellites plus high cost of maintaining ground stations.
In theory they can now download high definition video continuously.

In future most satellites will use these broadband constellations for communications.

Sent from my SM-G570Y using Tapatalk
« Last Edit: 04/21/2022 05:31 pm by TrevorMonty »

Offline Zed_Noir

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #140 on: 04/22/2022 02:35 am »
<snip>
It was matter of time before observation satellites starting using likes of Starlink for downlink. Downlink has always been bottle neck for these satellites plus high cost of maintaining ground stations.
In theory they can now download high definition video continuously.
<snip>
Small optical earth observation satellites might be gone in the not too distant future, IMO. Replaced with hosted observation payloads aboard LEO Constellation comsats.

Offline XRZ.YZ

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #141 on: 06/14/2022 10:49 pm »
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Offline TrevorMonty

Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #142 on: 06/15/2022 12:48 am »
https://investors.planet.com/news/news-details/2022/Planet-Reports-Financial-Results-for-First-Quarter-of-Fiscal-Year-2023/default.aspx

2022Q1 Financial report
Business growing, but all costs (R&D, sell, admin) grow much faster than revenue, leads to much worse loss.

https://investors.planet.com/news/news-details/2022/Planet-and-Bayer-Expand-Strategic-Relationship/default.aspx
A new customer for agriculture.
Their revenue maybe growing but not as fast as expenses. R&D, Sales &Market, Admin these have all double in since 4th quarter of 2021. R&D I can understand but the others?.
« Last Edit: 06/16/2022 12:17 am by zubenelgenubi »

Offline XRZ.YZ

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #143 on: 06/15/2022 03:28 am »
https://investors.planet.com/news/news-details/2022/Planet-Reports-Financial-Results-for-First-Quarter-of-Fiscal-Year-2023/default.aspx

2022Q1 Financial report
Business growing, but all costs (R&D, sell, admin) grow much faster than revenue, leads to much worse loss.

https://investors.planet.com/news/news-details/2022/Planet-and-Bayer-Expand-Strategic-Relationship/default.aspx
A new customer for agriculture.
Their revenue maybe growing but not as fast as expenses. R&D, Sales &Market, Admin these have all double in since 4th quarter of 2021. R&D I can understand but the others?.

Sent from my SM-A528B using Tapatalk

For Sell & Marketing, this is corporate and gov oriented long term subscription service. Which means
1: you will need a lot of money to obtain every single customer,
2: Once you get a customer, it most likely to use your service for many years.

For example, you spend 300K to obtain a corporate customer that will pay 1 million per year. (250K per quarter), and with 40% gross profit.
On the quarter you obtained the customer, you actually loss 200K.
However, next quarter you do not need to pay marketing money to on this customer again so you have 100K gross profit.

This kind of company may spend a lot in marketing, you may loss money every quarter due to this for a while.

As long as the life time value LTV> customer acquisition cost CAC for avg customer.
This is good.

Admin cost is hard to understand since there are no details on what they are spending on.
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Online gongora

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #144 on: 09/21/2022 12:34 am »
Filing for the new Tanager hyperspectral satellites.  10 spacecraft.  Just under 200kg each.  Electric propulsion using Xenon propellant.  Operate in SSO at 404-408km.  Anticipate catching rideshares to around 525km and lowering to operational orbit.  First sat should launch late 2023, then more in batches.

Offline TrevorMonty

Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #145 on: 09/08/2023 11:05 am »

Latest financial results.

https://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/23/09/b34334397/planet-reports-financial-results-for-second-quarter-of-fiscal-2024

They are ticking along, still awhile away from being profitable but plenty of cash reserves and revenue is growing so nothing to worry about.

 

Online gongora

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Re: Planet Labs earth imaging satellites
« Reply #146 on: 10/14/2023 07:54 pm »
Tanager now four operational sats at a time, start launching in 2024
SAT-AMD-20231013-00251

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