Spaceflight has entered a deal to launch a small imaging satellite, SkySats, for Google subsidiary Terra Bella.
To be launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, the satellite will take-off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, US, by late next year.
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The SkySats will be launched as part of Spaceflight’s SSO-A dedicated rideshare mission and will be accompanied by other microsats and cubesats.
Planned to carry more than 20 payloads from ten countries, the mission will launch South Korea-based Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology’s (KAIST) NEXTSat-1 satellite and Iceye’s synthetic aperture radar (SAR) micro-satellite along with SkySats.
In addition, it will carry three formation-flying satellites for HawkEye 360.
Spaceflight president Curt Blake said: “We’re seeing a tide shift in the industry’s expectation for routine, reliable and affordable access to space.
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By GlobalData"The willingness of prominent commercial organisations to join forces for the advancement of global initiatives is very encouraging to the smallsat community, and to society as a whole."
The company said that it had negotiated the launch of around 120 satellites, with agreements to deploy more than 150 satellites into orbit by 2018.
Spaceflight is also planning to launch its largest constellation comprising 89 spacecraft, to be deployed by its Sherpa tug, from a Falcon 9 by next year.
Last month, a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket launched Spaceflight Industries’ BlackSky Pathfinder-1 satellite into a sun synchronous orbit from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, India.
Image: A launch carried out by SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Photo: courtesy of Spaceflight Industries, Inc.
