Tag: Planet
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The In-Orbit Remote Sensing Pipeline
Key Insight An in-orbit processing pipeline essentially takes a ground-based data center apart and fits its functions inside a satellite. Each stage uses the computing hardware best suited to its task: FPGAs for rule-based processing, NPUs for AI inference, and CPUs for scheduling. Models that are “good enough” trade complexity for real-time performance. To assess…
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Planet develops SWIR Tanager for 5x methane monitoring coverage
How will Planet’s new SWIR Tanager improve methane monitoring? Planet Labs is developing a shortwave infrared (SWIR)-focused version of its Tanager spacecraft that will deliver five times the area coverage of its hyperspectral predecessor for methane and trace-gas emissions monitoring. The new satellite represents a strategic pivot from the broad-spectrum Tanager-1 launched in 2024, targeting…
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Sweden Commits €121 Million to Build Sovereign ISR Satellite Capability
The Swedish government has committed SEK 1.3 billion (about €121 million) to procure ten Earth observation satellites as part of efforts to establish a sovereign intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capability, the defence ministry said. The satellite investment forms part of a broader SEK 5.3 billion defence spending package announced on Jan. 12, aimed at…
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SpaceX launches Luxembourg’s NAOS, 7 other rideshare satellites from California
The Luxembourg NAOS (National Advanced Optical System) satellite sits at the top of a rideshare stack ahead of launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Aug. 26, 2025. Image: SpaceX Update Aug. 26, 4:05 p.m. EDT: SpaceX landed its booster and successfully deployed the payloads. SpaceX launched its 37th Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg…
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CHEOPS discovers exoplanet triggering explosive flares on host star
Using the European Space Agency’s Characterizing Exoplanets Satellite (CHEOPS) telescope, a team of astronomers has discovered an exoplanet that may be triggering its host star to release massive flares of radiation. These flares are similar to the coronal mass ejection our Sun produces, and the harsh radiation emitted from the flares is slowly blowing away…
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ESO’s VLT reveals inner wind layers of distant exoplanet
Using data from the four telescopic units of the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT), a team of scientists has successfully peered into the atmosphere of an exoplanet for the first time. Moreover, the data allowed the team to create a three-dimensional map of the atmosphere. The results showed powerful winds within the…
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SpaceX Breaks Record with Booster’s Sixth Flight
SpaceX has broken another reuse record on the Starlink v1.0 L10 mission. For the first time, a Falcon 9 first stage has launched a sixth mission, this one carrying three rideshare payloads along with a batch of Starlink satellites. Liftoff of the eleventh overall Starlink mission, and the tenth launch of the Version 1.0 satellites,…
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Planet reserves rideshare slots on SpaceX Starlink launches
Two SkySat satellites receive their supply of “green” propellant before a launch on a Vega rocket from French Guiana in 2016. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Photo Optique Video du CSG – P. Baudon Three of Planet’s commercial SkySat Earth-imaging spacecraft will ride to space on top of a stack of SpaceX Starlink satellites next month aboard…
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Not so far, far away: How the Star Wars galaxy falls short of the real-life search for planets
Luke Skywalker’s home planet, Tatooine, and its two suns are a good example of science echoing Star Wars. Or is it the other way around? (Lucasfilm Photo) Over the past 42 years, filmgoers have seen exotic worlds come to life in a succession of Star Wars movies — a series that is now coming to…
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Surveillance photos reveal apparent explosion on Iranian launch pad
This image, tweeted by President Trump on Friday, appears to come from a high-resolution camera on a U.S. government drone or satellite. It shows damage to an Iranian satellite launch pad. A day after commercial satellite images revealed a smoke plume over an Iranian launch pad, President Trump tweeted a remarkably high-resolution aerial photograph of…