Better Than Maxar: February Countdown Begins for BlackSky’s Next-Gen Spy Satellites

BlackSky Technology Inc. last week shipped its first Gen-3 satellite to launch provider Rocket Lab. The satellite is scheduled for launch in February from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand.

Gen-3 Constellation For Intelligence And Reconnaissance

According to Brian O’Toole, CEO of BlackSky, the Gen-3 constellation is designed to meet growing demand from key defence and intelligence customers worldwide.

The enhanced satellites will offer customers critical analytics with the addition of very high-resolution 35-centimetre imagery, re-visits in less than an hour and AI-enabled analytics delivered at industry-leading speed and scale.

The new constellation will expand BlackSky’s range of services with additional automatic detection and classification functions for vehicles, aircraft and vessels.

In addition, the system will include low-latency inter-satellite communications for last-minute tasking and agile onboard attitude control systems for maximum on-orbit operational efficiency. These new capabilities will enable BlackSky’s space-based intelligence applications for tactical ISR missions and strategic intelligence operations.

The New Player In The Defence Intelligence Market

“Once we commission this first satellite, we expect to move forward with a regular cadence of additional launches throughout the year as more Gen-3 satellites come off the production line”,  O’Toole said. 

This technological leap could accelerate BlackSky’s market penetration in the defence intelligence and critical infrastructure monitoring segments, positioning them alongside premium providers such as Maxar and ahead of many competitors in tactical intelligence and reconnaissance.

BlackSky Technology Has Secured A Seven-Year Contract Worth $100 Million

In confirmation of high pre-launch commercialisation, BlackSky Technology Inc. issued a press release on January 28 announcing that it has won a contract worth more than $100 million from a long-term strategic partner in the international defence sector to provide real-time space monitoring capabilities. The new seven-year agreement provides annual minimum capacity for reliable, current Gen-2 and future Gen-3 high-resolution, low-latency imagery and artificial intelligence-enabled analytics services through 2032.

Background

BlackSky is a space-based intelligence company that provides real-time, high-frequency imagery, analytics and high-frequency monitoring of the world’s most essential and strategic locations, economic assets and events.

The company owns and operates an innovative real-time commercial intelligent system that combines its proprietary constellation of satellites in low Earth orbit with BlackSky Spectra’s AI-enabled software analytics platform.

BlackSky, headquartered in Herndon, Virginia, has customers worldwide, including US and international government agencies, commercial enterprises, and organisations.