Planet prepares to launch another line of imagery satellites to expand data-gathering operations

PARIS — Planet is adding different benignant of imagery outer to its merchandise line, the latest enlargement of the company's data-gathering operations.

The institution named the caller satellites Tanager -- named aft a vertebrate family, similar the existing lines of Dove and Pelican satellites that it manufactures. But dissimilar those satellites, which person cameras and sensors capturing images successful the aforesaid scope arsenic the quality eye, the Tanager satellites volition seizure "hyperspectral" imagery, which divides the airy spectrum into hundreds of bands of light.

Planet co-founder and main strategy serviceman Robbie Schingler, speaking to CNBC astatine the 2022 International Astronautical Congress, said the institution volition usage the hyperspectral satellites initially to observe methane output, saying it's "the lowest hanging fruit" and has implications for concern specified arsenic lipid and gas, dairy farms and discarded landfills.

Tanager satellites volition cod 420 bands of spectrum, Schingler said, noting that detecting methane requires detecting conscionable 4 bands.

"We decided to physique a full-range imaging spectrometer," Schingler said, with uses cases beyond methane to markets similar "defense intelligence, similar seeing disturbed world – things similar burying thing oregon digging a tunnel."

Planet aims to past pat customers successful sectors similar agriculture, mining, and quality with the Tanager line, with Schingler saying that "hyperspectral information from abstraction is limited" arsenic "the champion hyperspectral sensors are either ace classified, oregon they're successful planes."

The institution is gathering the Tanager satellites with the aforesaid spacecraft autobus – which is the main assemblage of a outer – arsenic its Pelican line, to leverage Planet's vertical attack to manufacturing. The archetypal 2 Tanager objection satellites are acceptable to motorboat successful 2023.