BlackSky entered commercial service with its third Gen-3 satellite three weeks after launch, continuing the trend of reduced satellite deployment times compared to previous launches.
The latest Gen-3 spacecraft and its predecessor, launched in June, received the first images already during 12 hours. For comparison, the first Gen-3 satellite, launched earlier this year, provided the first images five days after launch.
According to the company, the commissioning of a third Gen-3 satellite increases BlackSky's available capacity to acquire very high resolution images to 35 centimeters. "Clients no longer have to wait for months, to access the capabilities of recently launched assets through traditional commissioning", - emphasized the company.
BlackSky CEO Brian O'Toole said, that “with each successful milestone in the implementation of Gen-3 projects, BlackSky demonstrates, meeting the global demand for flexible and secure tactical intelligence and response capabilities at unprecedented speed.".
All three third-generation satellites are now available to customers through BlackSky's Spectra platform, which is used to control satellites, data delivery and analytics. The system supports shooting at different times of day, and at night. It also provides automated vessel detection, aircraft and vehicles using artificial intelligence processing.
BlackSky is expanding its satellite operations, as the demand for operational access to Earth observation data is growing. Having three satellites of the third generation in orbit, the company plans to regularly add satellites to increase its total capacity. More, earlier this year, BlackSky announced plans to further expand its fleet with new multispectral satellites, designed to collect data from large areas.
Source: https://thedefensepost.com