Planet Labs are Using Tiny Satellites to Benefit Humanity - Video

A small group of scientists from Planet Labs monitor the Earth's resources using a network of tiny satellites that they call “Doves.”

In January 2014, they delivered Flock 1, the world’s largest constellation of Earth-imaging satellites, made up of 28 Doves.

Together with subsequent launches, they have launched 71 Doves, toward imaging the entire Earth, every day.

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Space Station: NanoRack’s CubeSat deployer suffers technical issues

In the grasp of the Japanese robotic arm, NanoRack’s CubeSat deployer releases a pair of miniature satellites last month.

Credit: NASA

Last week, two more of Planet Labs's shoebox-sized Earth imaging satellites launched themselves from aboard the International Space Station, the latest in a series of technical mysteries involving a commercially owned CubeSat deployer located outside Japan’s Kibo laboratory module.

Station commander Steve Swanson was storing some blood samples in one of the station’s freezers Friday morning when he noticed that the doors on NanoRack's cubesat deployer were open, said NASA mission commentator Pat Ryan.

Flight controllers at the Johnson Space Center in Houston determined that two CubeSats had been inadvertently released.

"No crew members or ground controllers saw the deployment. They reviewed all the camera footage and there was no views of it there either," Ryan said.

The satellites, owned by San Francisco-based Planet Labs, are part of a planned 100-member network designed to collect images of the entire Earth every 24 hours.

So far, 12 of 32 CubeSats delivered to the space station aboard a Cygnus cargo ship in July have been deployed, including four launched inadvertently, said NanoRacks spokeswoman Abby Dickes.

Satellite 'Flock' Launched From ISS Cubesat Cannon

Credit: NASA

In addition to the two Planet Labs satellites launched Thursday night, two more of the company’s satellites were released accidentally Aug. 23, a NASA status report shows.

The latest inadvertent deployment followed unsuccessful attempts Wednesday night to return NanoRack's CubeSat dispenser to service.

Troubleshooting efforts included jiggling the small robotic arm holding the dispenser in an attempt to get its doors to open, Ryan added.

Flight control teams are assessing whether to bring the deployer back inside the station or to try to release the remaining CubeSats still awaiting launch.

Spaceflight Deploys Dove Constellation From Dnepr Launcher

Spaceflight Inc., the company reinventing the model for launching small satellites into space, has successfully deployed 11 Planet Labs Dove earth-imaging spacecraft from an International Space Company (ISC) Kosmotras-operated Dnepr launch vehicle.

"SmallSat constellations are a critical, growing piece of the space economy," said Curt Blake, president of Spaceflight.

"We are thrilled to expand our launch heritage with Planet Labs and ISC Kosmotras to enable the cost-effective and timely launch of small satellites."

Spaceflight previously deployed Planet Labs' Dove 1 and 2 satellites in April 2013 from an Orbital Sciences' Antares launch vehicle, as well as its Flock 1 constellation from the International Space Station in January 2014 with partner NanoRacks.

Spaceflight then arranged for the launch of 11 more Dove spacecraft from the Dnepr vehicle through partner Innovative Solutions in Space (ISIS). The additional 11 CubeSats will complement the existing Planet Labs constellation of 3U imaging spacecraft.

Using its expertise in navigating International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and export law and in the most recent export challenges around shipping ITAR-controlled hardware to Russia, Spaceflight arranged for Planet Labs' U.S. payload to be exported to Russia for launch integration.

On June 19, 2014 at 19:11 UTC the Dnepr launch vehicle sprang out of its underground transport and launch canister, and roared through the atmosphere using its RD-264 first-stage engine. All 11 Dove spacecraft were successfully deployed roughly 30 minutes after first-stage ignition.

"We are excited to launch 11 more satellites, bringing the total number of Dove satellites launched to 43," said Mike Safyan, director of launch and regulatory at Planet Labs. "Through our unique approach to satellite design and frequency of launch, the satellites in orbit continue to get better and better."

Planet Labs Ready To Launch Largest Satellite Fleet In History

Planet Labs has announced that it has confirmed launches for more than 100 satellites over the next 12 months. The satellites will launch on rockets from the USA and Russia.

This constitutes the largest constellation of satellites manifested in history.

These new launches will build on Planet Labs first 28 satellites, Flock 1, which were launched in January.

This constellation will allow Planet Labs to image the whole earth every 24 hours.

"We are imaging the planet to save the planet," said Will Marshall, cofounder of Planet Labs.

Imaging the Earth at this frequency will help us to measure things from deforestation, to improving agricultural yield, to detecting overfishing. Our mission is to create information people need to help life on the planet."

"Getting 100 satellites on the launch manifest is a major milestone in the new space industry," said Steve Jurvetson, Managing Director at Draper Fisher Jurvetson and board member of Planet Labs and SpaceX.

"The small form factor requires less space on the rocket, allowing for more flexibility for launch configurations and a constellation of 100 satellites is unprecedented."

This announcement comes on the heels of a $52 million Series B round of financing for Planet Labs in December led by Yuri Milner.