SkySat

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SkySat is the name of a series of earth observation satellites from the American company Terra Bella , which produces high-resolution satellite images for Google .

history

The first SkySat-1 satellite was launched on November 21, 2013 from the Jasny cosmodrome in Russia by means of the Dnepr launcher . A further 13 satellites were ordered from Space Systems Loral on February 10, 2014. The following satellite, SkySat-2, was launched as a secondary payload on a Soyuz-2-1b rocket with Fregat upper stage on July 8, 2014. SkySat-3 was launched in orbit by an Indian PSLV-XL rocket on June 22, 2016. On September 16, 2016 ( UTC ), SkySat-4, -5, -6 and -7 were launched with a Vega rocket from Arianespace. SkySat 14 and 15 started the Rideshare SSO-A mission in 2018 . SkySat 16, 17, 18 were again launched into orbit with a Rideshare mission from SpaceX on June 13, 2020 with a Falcon 9 .

The first images, taken by the SkySat-1 satellite, were published by Skybox Imaging on December 11, 2013, showing the coast of Somalia and Abu Dhabi . At the end of December 2013, Skybox Imaging published the first high-resolution videos of the earth from space.

technology

Skybox Imaging aims to provide satellites with manufacturing costs of less than USD 50 million using standard electronics and parts from the automotive or smartphone industry. A total of 24 satellites are to be brought into orbit by 2017, with each weighing approx. 100 kg being significantly lighter and smaller than other satellites (e.g. NASA's Landsat 8 satellite weighing approx. 2000 kg). Compared to other satellites, these satellites should achieve a high spatial resolution of approx. 1 meter or better (the NASA satellite Landsat 8 has a spatial resolution between 15 and 100 m), with data in the visible and near-infrared range should be included. Higher resolutions in satellite photography allow z. B. better inferences to better estimate the loss of forests , as was shown by the example of the Democratic Republic of the Congo .

SkySat-1 and -2 were approximately 60 × 60 × 80 cm and weighed 83 kg. The image data are transmitted in X-band in JPEG-2000 format at a data rate of 470 Mbit / s. The satellites are controlled in the S-band at 16 kbit / s. The internal storage capacity is 768 GB, the energy supply is provided by solar cells with an output of 120 watts on the surface of the cuboid satellites. The planned service life is given as four years. The satellites from SkySat-3 have a launch mass of around 110 kg and dimensions of around 60 × 60 × 95 cm. They were deployed in a 500 km sun synchronous orbit and were built by Space Systems / Loral . The satellites from SkySat-3 onwards differ from the previous satellites in that they have cameras with higher resolution, better reaction wheels and their own drive system with 1 Newton of thrust. Terra Bella specifies a resolution of less than 90 cm for black and white still images and 1.1 m for video recordings at 30 frames per second with a recording time of up to 90 seconds. A resolution of 2 m is achieved for color photos. The four color channels work in a spectral range of blue 450–515 nm, green 515–595 nm, red 605–695 nm and NIR 740–900 nm. The swath width is about 8 km. SkySat-1 and -2 use three CMOS detectors with 2560 × 2160 pixels and a pixel size of 6.5 µm. The upper half of the detector is used for panchromatic imaging, while the lower two are covered in four strips with blue, green, red and near infrared color filters. Each SkySat satellite is equipped with a Ritchey-Chrétien-Cassegrain telescope with a focal length of 3.6 m.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Stephen Clark: Silo-launched Dnepr rocket delivers 32 satellites to space . In: website . Spaceflight Now. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
  2. ↑ Skybox Imaging Selects SSL To Build 13 Low Earth Orbit Imaging Satellites . SSL; Retrieved September 26, 2016
  3. ↑ SkySat-2 Launched! ( Memento of the original from July 22, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. SkyBox Imaging, July 8, 2014 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.skyboximaging.com
  4. ↑ Shane McGlaun: Skybox Imaging shows off HD video taken from a satellite in orbit . In: SlashGear , December 30, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014. 
  5. ^ Anne Eisenberg: Microsatellites: What Big Eyes They Have . In: The New York Times , August 10, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014. 
  6. ↑ SkySat 3,…, 21 (SkySat-2 1,…, 19). In: space.skyrocket.de. Retrieved September 16, 2016 .
  7. ↑ SkySat-3 First Light. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on September 16, 2016 ; Retrieved September 16, 2016 (American English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / terrabella.googleblog.com
  8. ↑ Caleb Henry: Terra Bella's SkySat 3 Sends Back First Pictures - Via Satellite -. July 1, 2016, Retrieved September 16, 2016 (American English).
  9. ↑ Vega launches with Peru Sat-1 & SkySat 4, 5, 6, 7 payload | NASASpaceFlight.com. In: www.nasaspaceflight.com. Retrieved September 16, 2016 .
  10. ↑ Europe's Vega launches 1 Peruvian and 4 Terra Bella Earth observation satellites - SpaceNews.com. September 16, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2016 (American English).
  11. ↑ Gunter Dirk Krebs: SkySat 3, ..., 21 (SkySat C1, ..., 19)
  12. ↑ a b Alice Truong: Proof That Cheaper Satellites Still Can Take Incredibly Detailed Photos of Earth . In: Fast Company , December 11, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014. 
  13. ↑ Michael Ballaban: Watch The First High-Definition Video Of Earth Available From Space . In: Jalopnik , December 28, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014. 
  14. ↑ a b c d Declan Butler: Many eyes on Earth . In: Nature . 505, No. 7482, January 8, 2014, ISSN  0028-0836 , pp. 143-144. doi : 10.1038 / 505143a . Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  15. ↑ Vega VV07 Launchkit (PDF) arianespace.com; Retrieved September 26, 2016
  16. ^ SkySat - Satellite Missions. eoPortal Directory; Retrieved September 26, 2016
  17. ↑ SkySat Satellites . spaceflight101; Retrieved September 26, 2016