Hyperspectral startup Wyvern indicators on to fly with Loft Orbital subsequent 12 months

Hyperspectral imagery startup Wyvern has booked area on a Loft Orbital satellite tv for pc bus that may launch subsequent 12 months, a transfer that the corporate says will enhance the capability of its Dragonette satellite tv for pc constellation.

Wyvern, which graduated from Y Combinator’s Winter 2022 cohort, has launched two hyperspectral imagery satellites because it was based in 2018. However launching and working a devoted constellation – which is the trail many different Earth remark startups have taken – is clearly not the one possibility on the desk.

“We determined early on in Wyvern’s historical past that if we might keep away from constructing our personal satellites, we might,” Wyvern CEO Christopher Robson instructed Information World. “It’s capital environment friendly, and we leverage the aptitude and studying of business companions. This additionally permits Wyvern to deal with delivering high-quality, high-resolution hyperspectral information whereas creating sport altering optical payloads.”

Per the phrases of the deal, Wyvern will fly with Loft’s satellite tv for pc platform, which incorporates the Longbow bus constructed by Airbus OneWeb Satellites, and a turnkey payload interface known as the Hub. On its web site, Loft refers back to the Hub because the spacecraft’s “mind – controlling payloads and managing dataflow and sources between onboard payloads and the satellite tv for pc bus.”

Wyvern will even make the most of Loft’s satellite tv for pc operations software program, Cockpit, at some stage in the mission.

Loft, which payments itself as a “area infrastructure as a service” firm, bulk buys satellite tv for pc buses and flies them as a standardized platform. Earlier this 12 months, the corporate ordered an extra 15 satellite tv for pc buses from Airbus OneWeb in response to rising demand, after shopping for greater than 15 of the identical buses in January 2022.