SAN FRANCISCO – Orbital Sidekick (OSK) announced today the upcoming launch of its newest and most powerful hyperspectral imaging satellite: “Aurora.” Aurora leverages OSK’s previous experience collecting and analyzing hyperspectral data to provide action-oriented insights on the world around us, with a broad focus on sustainability. The Aurora satellite will serve OSK’s customers in the energy, mining, and defense sectors, including expanding contracts and pilot program opportunities for oil and gas pipeline monitoring & methane mapping, clean energy resource exploration, sustainable mining practices, and wildfire risk mitigation.
“We’re excited to be launching Aurora to help provide consistent monitoring services across all of our clients as well as further the exploration for clean energy sources globally. Working with Astro Digital, OSK will be able to focus on the payload and extract information from our unique and proprietary hyperspectral data with the utmost precision,” said Dan Katz, CEO & Co-Founder of Orbital Sidekick.
The Orbital Sidekick Aurora Satellite is a 30-kilogram precursor to the six 100-kilogram ESPA class GHOSt satellites scheduled for launch in 2022. Seattle-based launch services provider Spaceflight will be coordinating the launch with a total of 36 payloads onboard the SpaceX Transporter-2 rideshare mission, taking place June 25, 2021 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida.
Aurora will capture more than 450 spectral bands in the visible to shortwave infrared light spectrum (400 to 2500 nm) with a pixel size of approximately 30 meters, making it the highest resolution commercial hyperspectral imagery available to date.
