Four satellites for Spire and NorthStar are contained within the Electron rocket fairing ahead of launch at Rocket Lab launch. Photo: Rocket Lab via Business Wire

A group of four space situational awareness satellites for Spire Global and NorthStar Earth & Space will be Rocket Lab’s first launch of 2024. Rocket Lab announced Monday it plans to launch the mission no earlier than Jan. 18 from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand. 

These satellites will be the first of NorthStar’s space situational awareness (SSA) satellite, and they will monitor all near-Earth orbits to provide information on space objects, tracking, orbit determination, collision avoidance, navigation, and proximity alerts. NorthStar plans to have 12 satellites on orbit by 2026 to increase coverage to greater than 60% of the near-Earth orbital sky, and up to 100%, when used in collaboration with other sensors.​​

“NorthStar has patiently invested in the realization of an unprecedented turnkey SSA service designed to outperform the challenges of space congestion and security in space that are mounting exponentially every day. “This has been years in the making,” commented Stewart Bain, CEO and founder of NorthStar. 

Spire Global built the satellites and will operate them. NorthStar is a customer of Spire’s space services business. Spire landed the deal with NorthStar in March 2022. 

“The upcoming launch of the first commercial space situational awareness constellation for NorthStar symbolizes more than just a technological achievement; it’s a reflection of our shared dedication to addressing sustainability in space,” commented Peter Platzer, Spire Global CEO. “Through our Space as a Service model, we’ve removed the barriers of building a business in space so that companies like NorthStar can create new ‘firsts’ and quickly bring to market solutions to address our biggest challenges on Earth and in space.”

Rocket Lab plans to splash down and retrieve Electron’s first stage during the mission, as part of its work to make Electron a reusable rocket.