Tags: Cubesat, Nanosatellite, NASA, Earth Observation, Satellite Imagery
Publication: BusinessWeek.com
Publication Date: 06/26/2013

Image taken from Planet Labs Dove 2 satellite, one of the startup’s test spacecraft, on April 26, 2013. Image credit: Planet Labs

After meeting and bonding at the NASA Ames facility in Mountain View, Calif., Chris Boshuizen, William Marshall and Robbie Schingler have unveiled their new CubeSat company, Planet Labs. The company plans to send 28 CubeSats into orbit in early 2014.

So far, the startup has raised more than $13 million and has already started testing a couple of satellites. While CubeSats are often used for temporary experiments, Planet Labs plans to leave its satellites in orbit for years at a time. The devices will be used to take a continuous stream of pictures of the Earth’s surface to observe land use over time. Planet Labs plans to sell access to the images, with agriculture, mapping, and finance customers as its target market, allowing its customers to pay as they go. Prices for the service have not been released.

 Full story