Synthetic aperture radar (SAR)-based Earth observation specialist ICEYE successfully launched four new SAR satellites on 16 August 2024.
The satellites were integrated via Exolaunch and successfully lifted off aboard a Falcon 9 rocket performing the SpaceX Transporter-11 Rideshare mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, in the United States. Each spacecraft has established communications and early routine operations are underway.
The new satellites, which were manufactured by ICEYE in Finland and ICEYE US in the United States, further expand ICEYE’s SAR constellation, which is the world’s largest, and will serve both ICEYE’s commercial and dedicated customer missions.
The satellites include the first ICEYE satellite launch for Bayanat, which is a leading provider of AI-powered geospatial solutions, and Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat), which is the United Arab Emirates’ flagship satellite solutions provider.
“With frequent and steady deployment of new satellites into the ICEYE constellation, we are making progress towards our vision of improving life on Earth by becoming the global source of truth in Earth observation,” Rafal Modrzewski, CEO and co-founder of ICEYE, was quoted as saying in a company press release. “The powerful and capable satellite constellation ensures fulfilling our commitments to working as a trusted partner with a growing number of governments and commercial industries to deliver timely, accurate and actionable insights for faster and better decision-making. We are proud to launch the first ICEYE satellite for our customers Bayanat and Yahsat and look forward to continued successful co-operation on their missions.”
ICEYE’s constellation of SAR satellites can image any location on the Earth’s surface in any environmental condition, day or night, with the SAR data “providing precise insights for ICEYE’s government and commercial customers in near real time”, ICEYE noted in its press release.
ICEYE plans to launch up to 13 new satellites in 2024 and then 10-15 new satellites annually from 2025 and beyond. A previous launch in March 2024 successfully deployed three new satellites into the constellation, while in 2023 ICEYE successfully launched 10 new satellites.
