Concise original overview of commercial satellite constellations,
small satellite rocket launchers and NewSpace funding options.
Sister websites www.nanosats.eu and www.factoriesinspace.com
Aiming to gather all commercial satellite constellations (megaconstellations). Active, planned and cancelled initiatives included.
Organization | Launched / Planned network |
First launch |
Form factor | Field | Funding | Technical and comments | Image |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Orbcomm (OG2) | 50 / 52 | 2012 | Microsat, Smallsat, 3U | IoT / M2M, AIS | Yes | World's first and only commercial satellite network 100% dedicated to M2M. 2 space-as-a-service CubeSats ordered from Clyde Space for 2020. | ![]() |
Globalstar (Second-Generation) | 24 / 41 | 2010 | Satellite | Internet, IoT / M2M, Orbital Data Relay | Yes | Like "bent-pipes” or mirrors in the sky, the Globalstar satellites pick up signals from over 80% of the Earth's surface. | ![]() |
AprizeSat | 12 / 12 | 2002 | Microsat | IoT / M2M, AIS | Yes, but ? | Low-cost satellite data services for monitoring the fuel level, oil and gas pipelines, and mobile tracking of shipping containers, rail cars and trailers. | ![]() |
SaudiComsat | 7 / 24 | 2004 | Microsat | IoT / M2M | - | 12 kg satellites for commercial store and forward communication. | |
ExactEarth | 68 / 67 | 2008 | Hosted, Microsat | AIS | - | 9 own microsats called AprizeSat or ExactView. Hosted payloads on 58 Iridium-NEXT satellites and 2 PAZ. | ![]() |
Planet (RapidEye) | 5 / 5 | 2008 | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Optical | Yes, ? | 5 satellites, 5 spectral bands and up to 4-5 million km²/day image capture capacity. 150 kg satellites with 6.5m resolution. | |
Ligado (SkyTerra (MSV)) | 1 / 3 | 2010 | Satellite | 5G, IoT / M2M | $100M+ | ||
SES (O3b / mPOWER) | 20 / 70 | 2013 | Satellite | Internet | Yes | Satellites in 8000 km medium earth orbit (MEO) for Internet backhaul. Expanded O3b network would include 24 in high-inclination MEO and 36 in VLEO, plus 10 in current circular equatorial orbit. | ![]() |
Planet (Flock/ Dove/SuperDove) | 519 / 150 | 2013 | 3U | Earth Observation, Optical | $374M+ | 29 MP sensor taking images with 3.7 m ground resolution and swath of 24.6 km × 16.4 km from 475 km altitude. | |
Spire (Lemur / Minas) | 160 / 150 | 2013 | 3U | Weather, AIS, ADS-B, Earthquake (ELF), Constellation-As-A-Service, GNSS Reflectometry, GNSS Radio Occultation, GNSS-RO, GNSS-R, Hosted Payloads | $220M+ | Measure change in GPS signals after passing atmosphere to calculate precise profiles for temperature, pressure, humidity (GNSS-RO). GNSS-R demonstrators launched in Dec 2019 and Jan 2021. Investigating earthquake (ELF) detection? | ![]() |
Planet (Terra Bella / Skybox) | 15 / 24 | 2013 | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Optical | Yes, ? | Color and near-infrared imagery (90 cm resolution) in 120 kg package. First-ever commercial high-resolution video from a satellite. | ![]() |
AAC Clyde Space (xSPANCION) | 0 / 10 | 2014 | 6U | Constellation-As-A-Service | $22.5M+ | Space-as-a-service project where AAC Clyde Space will manufacture 10 and demonstrate at least four in orbit. | |
SSTL (DMC-3/TripleSat) | 3 / 3 | 2015 | Satellite | Earth Observation, Optical | Yes, ? | 1 metre high resolution imagery with high speed downlink and 45 degree off-pointing. | |
Chang Guang (Jilin-1) | 51 / 138 | 2015 | Satellite | Earth Observation, Optical, Video, Night Lights | $375M+ | Multiple Earth observation satellites with various resolutions and capabilities, some with video or push-broom. About 40 kg each and resolution about up to 1m. | |
GHGSat | 6 / 10 | 2016 | Microsat | Emissions Monitoring | $70M | Measure CO2 and methane in a FoV of ~12 km × 12 km and resolution of <50 m. Sensors include 2D Wide-Angle Fabry-Perot imaging spectrometer with 15 kg satellite. | |
BlackSky | 18 / 16 | 2016 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Optical | $253.5M | Color imagery at a resolution of 1 meter. With 16 satellites can provide hourly revisit times for most major cities. 50-cm resolution in the future. | ![]() |
Satellogic | 31 / 90 | 2016 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral, Optical, Video, Constellation-As-A-Service | $79M+ | NuSat 37 kg satellites are capable of 1 m ground resolution imaging and video. | ![]() |
SpaceWill | 5 / 16 | 2016 | Satellite | Earth Observation, Optical | ? | First commercial 560 kg Chinese high-resolution Earth imaging satellites called SuperView (GaoJing) with resolution of 0.5 m per pixel. | ![]() |
Hongyun / Xingyun (Xingyun-2) | 4 / 80 | 2017 | Smallsat | Internet, IoT / M2M | $404M+ | Plans to be completed by 2025. First satellite was 45 kg Jiading-1. CubeSat Xingyun Shiyan 1 not related? | |
GeoOptics (CICERO) | 9 / 50 | 2017 | 6U, 12U | Weather, GNSS-RO, GNSS Radio Occultation | $5.15M | Using GPS radio occultation for weather data. Satellites outsourced from Tyvak. First CICERO-2 will launch in early 2022, with more to follow later in the year. | ![]() |
Zhuhai Orbita (Zhuhai-1) | 12 / 10 | 2017 | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | Yes | Constellation of different video and hyperspectral satellites. | |
Canon | 1 / 100 | 2017 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Optical | ? | 8K low-light real-time video and streaming using laser terminal. | ![]() |
SpacePharma | 2 / ? | 2017 | 3U | Hosted Payloads, Microgravity Experiments | $5M+ | Our mission is to leverage the miniaturized microgravity lab technology, enabling unprecedented possibilities to develop new drugs in Space. | |
Aireon | 75 / 75 | 2017 | Hosted | ADS-B | $50M | Hosted payload on Iridum-NEXT satellites for global air traffic surveillance. | |
DDK Positioning | 75 / 75 | 2017 | Hosted | GNSS | Yes | Building on Iridium’s satellite constellations network, we have created independent GNSS solution, with an enhanced accuracy of less than 5cm. | |
Telesat (Lightspeed) | 2 / 198 | 2017 | Smallsat | Internet | $4B | 700 kg satellites, MDA will build antennas. One prototype spacecraft was on the failed Sojuz launch. [Reduced to 198 from 298 satellites due to cost increases.](https://spacenews.com/telesat-to-order-90-fewer-satellites-for-leo-constellation/) | |
Satelles | 66 / 66 | 2017 | Satellite | GNSS, PNT (Positioning; Navigation; Timing) | $29.3M | Hosted payload on Iridium providing flobal time and location that is independent from GPS and 1000 times stronger than GPS, reaching deep into buildings. | |
Iridium (NEXT) | 75 / 75 | 2017 | Satellite | Internet, IoT / M2M, Orbital Data Relay, Constellation-As-A-Service | $3B+ | Original Iridium was launched between 1997-2002 and has been mostly deorbited. Extra hosted payloads from ExactEarth and Aireon. | ![]() |
HEAD Aerospace (Skywalker) | 7 / 48 | 2017 | Microsat | IoT / M2M, AIS, ADS-B, VDES | ? | Future VEDS and ADS-B payloads. LoRa chipset. Deployed into different mid-inclination and SSO orbits. Worldwide reseller for Chinese satellite imagery. | |
Helios Wire (EchoStar) | 5 / 30 | 2017 | 6U, 16U | IoT / M2M | $1M | Uses 30 MHz of S-band spectrum to receive tiny data packages from billions of sensors. Bought by EchoStar and first new batch from Tyvak. | ![]() |
Swarm Technologies | 177 / 150 | 2018 | 0.25U, 1U | IoT / M2M | $27.7M | World's smallest two-way communication satellites. FCC applications for 150 VHF and 450 UHF 0.25U CubeSats. | ![]() |
Kepler Communications (GEN1, Aether) | 19 / 140 | 2018 | 3U, ?, 6U | Store-and-Forward, IoT / M2M, Internet, Orbital Data Relay | $81M+ | IoT / M2M data communication network. Monthly fee based on the data amount. Hope to achieve rates of 1-40 Mbps. | ![]() |
ICEYE | 21 / 18 | 2018 | Microsat | SAR, Earth Observation | $304M | One hosted payload on York Space Systems. | ![]() |
SpaceX (Starlink Gen1) | 2619 / 4408 | 2018 | Smallsat | Internet | $1B+ | 227 kg satellites for the constellation. Used to be 400 kg according to FCC filing. First technology demonstration mission flew in 2018. | |
Hedron (Analytical Space) (Fast Pixel) | 2 / 36 | 2018 | 16U, 6U | Orbital Data Relay, Laser Communications | $50M+ | In-orbit relays receiving radio and downlink to ground with laser communication enabling more data downlink from satellites. | ![]() |
German Orbital Systems | 4 / ? | 2018 | 3U | IoT / M2M | - | D-Star One is a technology demonstration for their planned CubeSat communications constellation. | ![]() |
Fleet Space (Alpha) | 7 / 140 | 2018 | Microsat, 6U, 3U, 12U, 1.5U | IoT / M2M | $73M+ | Main constellation potentially with 12U CubeSats. Selected Saber Astronautics as the operations provider. | ![]() |
Astrocast | 12 / 80 | 2018 | 3U | IoT / M2M | $50.7M+ | Targeting L-band. Inter-satellite links. NanoSpace propulsion. Further 80 satellites in orbit by 2022. | ![]() |
Aistech (Guardian, DANU, HYDRA) | 4 / 20 | 2018 | 6U, 2U | Infrared, IoT / M2M, ADS-B, AIS | $0.4M+ | Picvoted to one of the first commercial constellations able to collect thermal data on demand. Multispectral imager for visible (RGB), near infrared (NIR), and thermal infrared (TIR) spectrum. | |
Aurora Inisght | 2 / 12 | 2018 | 6U | RF Spectrum Monitoring, RF Geolocation | $19M | Creates maps that show the availability of radio frequency spectrum and wireless infrastructure, measuring 5G, LTE, 3G, 2G, Wi-Fi and TV signals. | |
HawkEye 360 | 15 / 21 | 2018 | Microsat | RF Spectrum Monitoring, RF Geolocation | $299.3M | Radio frequency (RF) mapping with 15 kg sats to help monitor transportation across air, land, sea and assist in emergencies. Built by GomSpace. | ![]() |
Harris Corporation | 1 / 12 | 2018 | 6U | Weather | ? | Immediate access to 3D wind data sets from Harris-owned HyperCubes. Utah State University provides the spacecraft. | ![]() |
Capella Space (Whitney) | 6 / 40 | 2018 | Microsat | SAR, Earth Observation | $141M+ | Resolutions from 1 m (1600 km2) to 30 m (27,000 km2). Every 3-6 hours globally and 45 min in equatorial regions, improving to every hour in 3-5 years. | ![]() |
Hongyan (CASC) | 1 / 320 | 2018 | Satellite | Internet | ? | Completion in 2023 in multiple phases to provide global broadband access, voice communications and other services. | |
Guodian Gaoke (Apocalypse) | 15 / 38 | 2018 | 6U | IoT / M2M | ? | Reliable and economical satellite IoT services and industry solutions for our customers. | |
Myriota | 2 / 50 | 2018 | 3U | IoT / M2M | $37M | Run unique, patented software which provides reliable, direct-to-satellite Internet of Things (IoT) connectivit. | |
Future Navigation | 2 / 120 | 2018 | Microsat | GNSS, PNT (Positioning; Navigation; Timing) | ? | Second satellite failed in July 2020. | ![]() |
Astranis (MicroGEO) | 1 / ? | 2018 | Smallsat | Internet | $350M+ | Ssmall GEO satellite weighing 300 kg to provide up to 10 Gb/s of bandwidth. DemoSat CubeSat launched in 2018. | ![]() |
Mino Space | 0 / ? | 2018 | Satellite | SAR, Earth Observation | $64M+ | 300 kg SAR satellites, which might develop into a constellation. | |
Earth-i (Vivid-i) | 1 / 15 | 2018 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Optical, Video | $3.5M | First constellation in the world able to provide full-colour video. 100kg CARBONITE-2 (VividX2) launched in 2018. | ![]() |
Orbital Sidekick (GHOSt) | 2 / 6 | 2021 | Microsat, ? | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | $36.7M+ | First sensor on ISS. Capturing >400 bands in the visible to the shortwave infrared (VSWIR, 400 – 2500 nm)at <10m GSD. 91.4 kg Astro Digital's Corvus-XL spacecraft. | |
SpaceChain | 6 / ? | 2018 | Hosted | Blockchain, Internet | $0.65M+ | Building the world’s first open-source blockchain-based satellite network, allowing users to develop and run decentralized applications in space. | |
OHB Italia (EAGLET) | 1 / 20 | 2018 | 3U | Earth Observation, AIS, Optical | ? | A high resolution optical payload which will acquire panchromatic images and AIS for maritime surveillance. Used to be CGS Space. | ![]() |
ADASPACE (Xingshidai) | 15 / 192 | 2018 | Microsat, CubeSat | Earth Observation, Optical | $125M+ | Establish a global, minute-level updated Earth image data network consisting of 192 satellites. | ![]() |
SPUTNIX | 2 / ? | 2018 | 3U | AIS | - | To have an independent picture of sea traffic for monitoring the Northern Sea Route and other water areas for Russia. | |
Kuva Space | 3 / 100 | 2023 | 6U, 2U | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | $5M+ | Hyperspectral constellation for smart agriculture with 100's of spectral bands and 20 m resolution (CubeSat Industry Days 2017). | ![]() |
Spacety | 18 / 480 | 2018 | CubeSat? | Earth Observation, Optical | $22M+ | 7-spectrum, multi-spectral instrument with a resolution of 20 meters and 50km width. The constellation jointly planned by Tianyi and its partners will have 480 satellites divided between 12 orbital planes. | |
OneWeb | 428 / 648 | 2019 | Smallsat | Internet | $4.6B ($2.7B) | Joint venture with Airbus to build the constellation of 125 kg satellites. Emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. | ![]() |
Axelspace (GRUS) | 9 / 50 | 2019 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Optical | $39.8M | Weighs < 95 kg and captures images with a 2.5-meter resolution over a 57-kilometer area. | ![]() |
Orbital Micro Systems | 1 / 40 | 2019 | 3U? | Weather | $4.2M | Weather constellation utilizes microwave technology to capture temperature and moisture measurements, refreshed and delivered every 15 minutes. | ![]() |
Lacuna Space | 6 / 240 | 2019 | 3U, 6U | IoT / M2M | $5.9M | IoT / M2M constellation. Selected Open Cosmos to build 3U demonstrator. First hosted payload on Nanoavionics M6P. | |
SatRevolution (STORK / REC) | 7 / 1024 | 2019 | 6U, 2U | Earth Observation, Optical, Moon, Mars | $39M+ | Imaging the Earth in 50cm resolution through the use of an innovative deployable telescope. Eye on Moon and beyond as well. | ![]() |
Lynk | 6 / 10 | 2019 | Microsat, Hosted, CubeSat? | IoT / M2M, Satellite-to-Cellphone, Internet | $12M | Leverage nanosatellites in a unique manner to provide connectivity to regular cell phones anywhere on the planet. | |
NSLComm | 1 / 80 | 2019 | 6U | Internet, IoT / M2M | $9.25M+ | Communications network up to 1 Gbps anywhere in the world with a novel inflatable antenna. | |
UnseenLabs | 7 / 50 | 2019 | 6U | RF Spectrum Monitoring, RF Geolocation | $33M+ | Spectrum monitoring constellation. Satellites outsourced from GomSpace. | ![]() |
ZeroG Lab (Lingque, Magpie, Jinzijing, Golden Bauhinia) | 7 / 132 | 2019 | 6U, Microsat, ? | Earth Observation, Optical | $3.2M | Optical resolution better than 4 metres and eventually 378 satellites to provide revisits over regions every 10 minutes. | |
QianSheng | 1 / 20 | 2019 | Microsat | Earth Observation, IoT / M2M, Hyperspectral, SAR, Infrared | ? | Working towards 0.5m~2m resolution. Hour-level coverage for all over China. Minute-level coverage for hot spots. | |
iQPS | 2 / 36 | 2019 | Microsat | SAR, Earth Observation | $21.3M+ | 3.6m diameter large deployable parabolic antenna with only 15kg of weight. | |
Alba Orbital | 7 / ? | 2019 | PocketQube | Earth Observation, Optical, Night Lights | $3.4M+ | First Earth Observation constellation with PocketQubes. Aiming for 15 min revisit. Announced night lights constellation in 2021. | |
Hera Systems | 1 / 50 | 2019 | 12U | Earth Observation, Optical | $5.2M+ | Capable of 1-meter resolution with 22-kilogram form factor. | ![]() |
KLEO | 2 / 300 | 2019 | Smallsat, Microsat | IoT / M2M | ? | 10 Gbps intersatellite laser communication links. Ka-band for ground communications. First satellites are KL-α-A and KL-α-B. | |
Elbit Systems (NANOVA) | 1 / ? | 2019 | 3U | IoT / M2M | ? | Part of a constellation for commercial purposes. UHF payload providing a direct satellite link for data, voice and text messaging. | |
Ningxia / Zhongzi (Ningxia / Zhongi) | 10 / ? | 2019 | Smallsat | SIGINT, RF Spectrum Monitoring | ? | World's first commercial operated global EM spectrum signal monitoring satellite system. | |
Shanghai Lizheng Satellite | 1 / 90 | 2019 | Microsat | GNSS, IoT / M2M, PNT (Positioning; Navigation; Timing) | ? | Improving information and signal integration of ground navigation users and the positioning accuracy of ground navigation terminals. | |
AST SpaceMobile (SpaceMobile) | 1 / 243 | 2019 | Microsat, ? | Internet, Direct-to-Phones, Space-Based Cellular Broadband, Satellite-to-Cellphone | $128M+ | The first space-based cellular broadband network for mobile phones. Technology tested aboard the BlueWalker 1 CubeSat. | |
Fossa Systems | 16 / 80 | 2019 | PocketQube | IoT / M2M | Yes | IoT LoRa network. | |
Sen (EarthTV) | 1 / ? | 2019 | 16U | Earth Observation, Optical, Video | $4.3M+ | Stream real-time and timely video of Earth. Demonstrated its 4K video streaming platform in orbit in 2019 hosted aboard a satellite manufactured by RSC Energia. | |
Stara Space | 2 / 120 | 2019 | PocketQube | Orbital Data Relay, Data Storage | Yes, 7 figures | Constellation to service other space users with high speed real-time data connection, storage, and computation. First 2 made by Alba Orbital. | |
PlanetiQ (GNOMES) | 3 / 20 | 2020 | Microsat | Weather, GNSS-RO, GNSS Radio Occultation | $23.9M | Based on GPS radio occultation. Will have microwave spectrometer & radiometer. Blue Canyon Tech builds satellites. | ![]() |
Golbriak Space | 2 / ? | 2020 | 6U, ? | Laser Communications, ? | Yes | Optical communications constellation? First lasercomm modules launching on FSSCat CubeSats on Vega. | |
Kleos Space | 12 / 40 | 2020 | CubeSat | AIS, RF Geolocation, RF Spectrum Monitoring, SIGINT | $33M+ | RF geolocation and AIS. Radio data collection spacecraft with our patented In-Space Manufacturing technology, a miniature machine that manufactures enormous composite booms used to deploy antenna. | |
SATLANTIS (GEI-SAT) | 2 / 3 | 2020 | Microsat, ? | Earth Observation, Optical, Emissions Monitoring | $40.2M | Multispectral cameras with four bands of 80 cm native resolution. Focused on the detection of methane and plastics on the sea. | |
Synspective (StriX) | 2 / 30 | 2020 | Smallsat | SAR, Earth Observation | $200M | Developing 3kW power amplifiers to realize 1-3m ground resolution and swath width of 10-30 km. | ![]() |
Spacety (SAR) | 1 / 56 | 2020 | Smallsat | SAR, Earth Observation | $22M+ | 185 kg SAR satellite with 1x1 m resolution in C-band. Hisea-1 (Haisi-1) launched end of 2020. | |
China Electronics Technology Group (CETC) (Tianxian) | 1 / 96 | 2020 | Smallsat | SAR, Earth Observation | Yes | X & C-band synthetic aperture radar constellation. | |
Galaxy Space (Yinhe) | 7 / 1000 | 2020 | Smallsat | Internet, 5G | Yes | Based on the 5G standard LEO mobile communication constellation. Uses Q/V band spectrum range. First satellite also called GS-SparkSat-03. | |
Smart Satellite | 1 / 12 | 2020 | Smallsat, Satellite | SAR, Earth Observation | $1.4M | Aiming to launch China's first commercial radar satellite to achieve millimeter-level monitoring and solve domestic SAR satellite data needs. | |
Sateliot | 1 / 100 | 2021 | 3U | IoT / M2M, Satellite-to-Cellphone | $14.4M+ | Global continuous IoT connectivity merging satellite and terrestrial networks under 5G protocol. Alen Space is building the SDR payload. | |
Telnet | 1 / ? | 2021 | 3U | IoT / M2M | Yes | Constellation of 30 nanosatellites satellites by 2023 for the development of a network of IoT applications. | |
Care Weather | 1 / 50 | 2021 | PocketQube, 1U | Weather | Yes | Hundreds of the world's smallest weather satellites to power the world's most accurate and timely weather analytics. | |
GP Advanced Projects (FEES Cluster) | 2 / ? | 2021 | 0.25U | IoT / M2M | ? | Two FEES will pave the way for future constellation for the retrieval of IoT data from ground, starting with a first Cluster mission in 2022. | |
Eutelsat (CubeSats) | 1 / ? | 2021 | 3U, CubeSat | IoT / M2M | Yes | Buying additional small satellites for a planned Internet of Things network. | |
Umbra | 1 / 24 | 2021 | Microsat | SAR, Earth Observation, RF Spectrum Monitoring | $32M+ | Software defined radar with 1200 MHz of bandwidth. Groundbreaking power aperture area and launch volume. ~70 kg satellites, 10 m2 deployable antenna, resolution ≥0.15cm. | |
Loft Orbital (YAM) | 2 / 10 | 2021 | Microsat | Constellation-As-A-Service, Hosted Payloads | $156.2M | Constellation of satellites to carry a mix of payloads for customers who don’t want to fly their own satellites. Buying satellite buses and outfitting them with payloads by customers. | |
OQ Technology | 1 / 60 | 2021 | CubeSat, 1U? | IoT / M2M | Yes | World's first universal plug & play IoT device that can provide connectivity leveraging Low-Earth-Orbit satellite infrastructure. | |
WARPSPACE (WarpHub InterSat) | 2 / ? | 2021 | Smallsat | Orbital Data Relay, Laser Communications | $9M | Inter-satellite data relay network using optical modules. | |
Aerospacelab (VHR) | 1 / ? | 2021 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Optical | $71M+ | Constellation of 50cm optical micro-satellites for Earth Observation. Two constellation in works. | |
Airbus (Pleiades Neo) | 2 / 4 | 2021 | Satellite | Earth Observation, Optical | ? | Four identical 30cm resolution satellites imaging up to 2 million km² per day funded 100% by Airbus. | |
Geely (GeeSAT) | 2 / ? | 2021 | Smallsat | Internet | $326M+ | Support high-speed data transmission, precise navigation, and cloud computing. Low-orbit satellites, Geely claims, can be accurate to within a centimeter. | |
Elecnor Deimos (NEPTUNO) | 1 / ? | 2021 | 3U | AIS, Maritime | ? | Demonstrator that contributes to a solution that faces the main challenges of maritime surveillance. | |
Totum Labs | 1 / 18 | 2021 | 6U | IoT / M2M | $15.2M | Small, low cost modules with embedded antennas and battery life of 10+ years. Commercializing Doppler Multichannel Spread Spectrum (DMSS) to enable tracking and monitoring of billions of assets. | |
Spacety (Tiansuan, Celestial Calculations) | 1 / 6 | 2021 | CubeSat? | Earth Observation, Optical | $22M+ | Open-source platform constellation for providing LEO broadband and potentially future 6G services, in partnership with Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications. | |
Orbitare (Spaceloop) | 1 / 126 | 2022 | CubeSat | IoT / M2M | SME Instrument Phase 1 | Personal satellite communication system in LEO for IP mesasging, email and file transfer to any location in the world. | |
E-Space | 3 / 350000 | 2022 | Microsat, ? | Internet, Space Debris Removal | $56M | In addition to providing broadband services, its spacecraft will one day be able to capture and de-orbit debris too small to track. | |
PLAN-S | 1 / ? | 2022 | 3U | IoT / M2M | Yes | Alternative connection solutions in regions where the coverage area of terrestrial communication systems is insufficient. | |
Innova Space (Libertadores de América) | 1 / 100 | 2022 | PocketQube | IoT / M2M | - | Highly secure, bi-directional connection to any IOT device on earth in just a few minutes. | |
OrbAstro (Guardian) | 1 / ? | 2022 | 6U | Orbital Data Relay | Yes | 24-hour access to satellites through an optical data relay inter-link and RF ground link. Semi-autonomous satellite and constellation management and space traffic management for OrbAstro platforms. | |
ConstelIR | 1 / 30 | 2022 | CubeSat? | Infrared, Earth Observation | $1.2M | Map precise on-earth temperatures from a constellation of satellites it plans to launch. | |
LunaSonde (Gossamer) | 1 / ? | 2022 | 1U, ? | Minerals Prospecting, Subsurface Imaging | ? | Locate aquifers, mineral deposits, and other geological resources up to 2 km underground using novel radar technology. Look 15,000x deeper than current satellites. Data is collected in 3 min and provides a 3D map of subsurface. | |
PION Labs | 1 / ? | 2022 | PocketQube | IoT / M2M | ? | Provide accessible, secure and reliable IoT (Internet of Things) communications through a constellation of small satellites. | |
OroraTech (Walker-Star) | 1 / 100 | 2022 | 3U | Weather, Infrared | $9M+ | High-end imaging multispectral sensors to measure both surface temperatures and cloud coverage for forest fire detection & weather forecasting. First payloads launching on Spire. | ![]() |
Pixxel | 1 / 36 | 2022 | Microsat, ?, 6U | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | $33M+ | Constellation of cutting-edge satellites to provide unprecedented access to global, frequent, and affordable imagery. Imagers from Dragonfly Aerospace. | |
Omnispace | 2 / 200 | 2022 | 12U | IoT / M2M, 5G | $60M+ | World’s first global 5G non terrestrial network. Initial support 3GPP-defined Narrow-Band IoT radio interface. Below 200 LEO and <15 MEO satellites. | |
ProXops | 1 / ? | 2022 | 6U | VHF Radio Communications | ? | New and extremely robust data communications protocol. Uses diffractive/reflective properties of some part of the RF spectrum (1.7 MHz to 30 MHz) in the ionosphere. | |
Findus Venture | 1 / ? | 2022 | 6U | SSA (Space Situational Awareness) | Yes | Collaborating with Spire to launch to tackle space debris and expand atmospheric sensing capabilities to study clouds and aerosols in the atmosphere. | |
WISeSat Space | 2 / ? | 2022 | PocketQube | IoT / M2M | Yes | End-to-end platform that communicates in real-time with the WISeSat.Satellite by ensuring the authenticity, confidentiality, and integrity of the devices, objects, data and transactions. | |
Bluefield | 0 / 22 | 2022 | 16U | Emissions Monitoring | $0.25M | 20x20 m pixel resolution and 100ppm-m methane level (detecting natural gas storage and pipeline leaks, fracking, industries, mining, permafrost, wastewater, rice paddies, livestock) | |
Digantara | 0 / ? | 2022 | CubeSat | SSA (Space Situational Awareness) | ? | Space based surveillance systems for tracking resident space objects. | |
Karten Space | 0 / 14 | 2022 | 6U | Earth Observation, Optical, AIS | - | Earth observation with 3-5 m resolution and AIS data service. | ![]() |
HEO Robotics (ARGUS) | 0 / 12 | 2022 | CubeSat? | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), Asteroid Prospecting | $0.12M+ | Sit in High Earth Orbit and optically observe and characterize objects in Geosynchronous Orbit. Asteroid prospecting services. | |
Orbital Effects (XR) | 0 / 8 | 2022 | Microsat, ? | SAR, Earth Observation | - | Linking our SAR data directly to customers in the field within minutes. Each XR satellite stowed measures 0.66 x 0.51 x 0.40 m, with a total mass of 90 kg (85 kg dry). | |
Astrome (Gigamesh / SpaceNet) | 0 / 198 | 2022 | Microsat | Internet | ? | Indian space technology company to provide high speed broadband internet from space. Offer backhaul services to terrestrial telecom companies. | |
Sidus Space (LizzieSat) | 0 / 100 | 2022 | Microsat, ? | Constellation-As-A-Service | ? | Our LizzieSat™ constellation is optimized to meet the precise conditions of commercial and governmental demands in our increasingly interconnected, cloud-based, and data-driven world. Initially provide on-orbit testing services. | |
Horizon Technologies (Amber) | 0 / 20 | 2022 | 6U, 12U | RF Spectrum Monitoring, SIGINT | ? | Planned constellation that will offer SIGINT services to government agencies via space. Locate and track vessels worldwide by picking up electronic emissions. | |
NuSpace | 0 / ? | 2022 | CubeSat | IoT / M2M | Seed | Bring IoT connectivity to places deemed economically unfeasible, such as in the middle of the ocean. | |
AT&T | 0 / ? | 2022 | CubeSat? | IoT / M2M | ? | CENETIX is the owner of NPS-CENETIX-Orbital 1 satellite operated by AT&T and its partners, according to a Firefly spokesperson. | |
SpeQtral | 0 / ? | 2022 | CubeSat? | QKD (Quantum Key Distribution), Laser Communications | $10.2M | Developing space-based, quantum communication built on technologies developed at the Centre for Quantum Technologies (CQT) at the National University of Singapore. | |
Inovor (Skyris / Hyperion) | 0 / ? | 2022 | 12U | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), Earth Observation | - | Hyperion is observing MEO and GEO orbital bands. Skyris mission uses on-board machine learning to enhance capability over existing Earth imaging systems and has ~1m resolution. | |
Scanway | 0 / ? | 2022 | 6U | Earth Observation, Infrared, Hyperspectral, Optical | ? | Optical system based on mirrors will allow to scan the Earth's surface in the range from 400 to 12,000 nm. | |
OmniTeq (Chameleon) | 0 / 36 | 2022 | 6U | In-Orbit Inspection, In-Orbit Computing, Earth Observation | ? | Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) enabled cube satellites able to be re-tasked for national security and other missions within minutes. | |
Astrogate Labs | 0 / ? | 2022 | 3U, 6U | Orbital Data Relay, Laser Communications | ? | Support the growing satellite downlink needs with a network of optical ground stations and in-space relays. | |
LatConnect 60 | 0 / 3 | 2022 | Microsat | RF Spectrum Monitoring, Earth Observation | ? | Initial constellation of three satellites with multiple payloads, including radio frequency detection sensors and multispectral imaging cameras. | |
Trident Space | 0 / 48 | 2022 | Smallsat | SAR, Earth Observation | $7M | Breakthrough compact radar technology and onboard machine learning for automated feature extraction and predictive analytics. Innovative light weight reflector. 300 kg satellites. | |
Skykraft (Foundation) | 0 / 210 | 2022 | Microsat, ? | ADS-B, VHF Radio Communications | $5M | Providing global coverage and the reliability needed for air traffic management to provide continuous coverage for aircraft at all altitudes and locations. Skykraft’s space-based solution allows real-time communications between air traffic controllers and pilots,. | |
Cloud Constellation (SpaceBelt) | 0 / 12 | 2022 | Smallsat | Data Storage | $100M | Space-based cloud storage. An array of equatorial low earth orbiting data center satellites. Much more secure and in some cases better-performing. 10-gigabit laser communications links between satellites. | |
Space JLTZ (Gemini) | 0 / 200 | 2022 | 6U | Earth Observation, IoT / M2M, Optical | ? | Constellation of hybrid satellites, which integrate in the same structure, two payloads: a multispectral lens for EO and transmission modules for IoT. | |
ISISpace (Spectrolite / BrightSkies) | 0 / ? | 2022 | 12U | Emissions Monitoring | - | Provide actionable data concerning air quality. Spectrometer, spectral range 0,3 um – 0,5 um. Spectral resolution < 0,5nm. Spatial resolution of 1 x 1 km. Capable to monitor NO2. | |
Maxar (WorldView Legion) | 0 / 6 | 2022 | Satellite | Earth Observation, Optical | Yes | Replacement capacity for Worldview-1 and Worldview-2 but with additional growth capacity in it and able to image same location more than 15 times per day. | |
Gravity Space | 0 / ? | 2022 | 16U | IoT / M2M, Hosted Payloads | ? | Primary mission is to provide communication services for IOTs (Internet of Things) from GEO orbit? | |
PredaSAR | 0 / 96 | 2022 | Smallsat | SAR, Earth Observation | $25M | Building, and ultimately operating, the world’s largest and most advanced, commercial Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite constellation. 96 satellites 350 kg each on 24 orbital planes. | |
Start Rocket | 0 / ? | 2022 | CubeSat?, ? | Space Debris Removal, Orbital Display (Advertising), Active Debris Removal | ? | Orbital display on 500 km having a viewable area of 50 km2 using the Sun as a light source. Pivoted to space debris collection. | |
Rovial | 0 / ? | 2022 | ? | Internet | ? | Complement existing terrestrial networks and deliver content to the under-served edge with massively expanded coverage, reduced costs, and high reliability. | |
Astra | 0 / 13620 | 2022 | Microsat | Internet | $800M+ | Phase 1: 1 plane of 40 satellites. Phase 2: 70 planes of 2296 satellites. Phase 3: 132 planes with 11284 satellites. | |
Privateer | 0 / ? | 2022 | 3U, ? | SSA (Space Situational Awareness) | ? | Pono-1, will launch early 2022 and carry a variety of sensors to track and characterize space objects. | |
Turion Space | 0 / ? | 2022 | Microsat | On-Orbit Servicing, Active Debris Removal | $4.8M | Satellite servicing and space debris removal. | |
Tianjin Satcom Geohe Technologies (36 Tiangang) | 0 / 36 | 2022 | ? | SAR, Earth Observation, Hyperspectral, Optical | Yes | Comprising of panchromatic multispectral, hyperspectral and SAR satellites. More than half of the subsequent satellites will be SAR satellites | |
Inmarsat (ORCHESTRA) | 0 / 175 | 2022 | Satellite | Internet | Yes | LEO constellation to complement existing Ka-, L-band GEO fleet. Investment includes terrestrial 5G network, is pitched as offering ultra-high capacity to hot spots. | |
Spacefab.US | 0 / ? | 2022 | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Astrophotography, Hyperspectral | $0.08M | Earth observation and space telescope constellation. 150 kg smallsat with 20" (50 cm) telescope. UV, visible, and hyper-spectral imaging. | |
SCOUT | 0 / ? | 2022 | Smallsat, ? | In-Orbit Inspection, SSA (Space Situational Awareness) | $1.5M | SCOUT-Sats are small satellites for rendezvous and inspections to access anything in GEO within 6 hours. Sentry-Sats will serve as real-time surveillance and situational awareness. | |
Modularity Space (The Neighbourhood) | 0 / 150 | 2022 | Microsat | Hosted Payloads, Constellation-As-A-Service | $8M | Rent a satellite service with modular, reusable, and on-orbit serviceable satellite systems. | |
Earth Observant | 0 / 30 | 2022 | ? | Earth Observation, Optical, VLEO | Seed | Very high-resolution earth imagery affordable and accessible to mainstream users through a constellation of very low earth orbiting (VLEO) imaging satellites. | |
Climavision | 0 / 50 | 2022 | ? | Weather | $100M | Plans to deploy and operate 50 radar over the next two years. | |
Startical | 0 / ? | 2022 | CubeSat | ADS-B, VHF Radio Communications | $17.6M+ | Global air traffic management service from space, allowing aircraft everywhere to coordinate with air traffic managers using VHF and ADS-B technologies. | |
D-Orbit (NOCTUA) | 0 / ? | 2022 | Smallsat | SAR, ?, Earth Observation | $11M+ | MetaSensing is manufacturing an X-band SAR payload to offer 30-centimeter resolution mounted on D-Orbit’s free-flying Ion cubesat carrier. | |
Laser Light (HALO) | 0 / 12 | 2022 | Smallsat | Laser Communications | ? | Optical laser comm constellation in MEO as an Internet infrastructure service. | |
Skyloom (Uhura, Node-1) | 0 / ? | 2022 | Microsat | Orbital Data Relay, Laser Communications | $0.1M | Developing infrastructure based on optical communications technology and relay satellites placed in geostationary orbit. | |
Avant Space (Constellation) | 0 / 20 | 2022 | 16U | Orbital Display (Advertising) | ? | Launch own 20x 16U CubeSats with KosmoLab deployers with lasers to create digital billboard in sky. | |
Launchspace Technologies | 0 / ? | 2022 | ? | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), Active Debris Removal | ? | Keep track of satellites in low-Earth and geostationary orbit. Second constellation to collect orbital debris too small to be tracked with ground sensors. First payload on ISS Bartolomeo in 2022. | |
SatSure | 0 / ? | 2022 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Optical | ? | Host a novel on-board processor for in-orbit high-resolution data processing using SatSure’s proprietary Deep Learning algorithms and ultra low-bandwidth data transmission. | |
Rogue Space Systems (Orbot) | 0 / 40 | 2022 | 12U, 16U | On-Orbit Servicing, In-Orbit Inspection | $1.6M+ | Fleet of spacecraft tp provide satellite servicing and transport capabilities. Equipped with sensors, cameras, robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) software to enable up-close inspections. | |
Saab | 0 / 100 | 2022 | 3U | VDES | Yes | Saab together with ORBCOMM and AAC Clyde Space develop space based communication for the maritime sector via VDES. | |
LyteLoop | 0 / ? | 2022 | Microsat | Data Storage | $40M | Planning to store massive amounts of data by moving it continuously between satellites. Extremely long light paths reflected back and forth between mirrors and low degradation in vacuum. | |
Exodus Orbitals | 0 / ? | 2022 | 3U | Hosted Payloads, Constellation-As-A-Service | ? | ||
EOS (EOSAgriSat) | 0 / 12 | 2022 | Microsat | Earth Observation, SAR | Yes | SAT (optical) and SAR constellations. SAT resolution is 1.4m and 2.8m in multispectral, 11 bands, swath up to 40km. SAR resolution down to 25 cm. | |
Sternula (MARIOT) | 0 / 50 | 2022 | CubeSat? | VDES, IoT / M2M | $0.25M+ | Global IoT-style connectivity to the maritime industry based on "VDES", the next generation of the AIS technology. VDE-SAT connectivity for maritime authorities and industry. | |
Xona Space Systems | 0 / 300 | 2022 | Microsat | GNSS, PNT (Positioning; Navigation; Timing) | $10M | Next-generation navigation system with low-cost LEO satellites, delivering higher availability and centimeter precision. | |
SpaceAlpha Insights (SAR-XL) | 0 / ? | 2022 | Satellite | SAR, Earth Observation | Yes | Dual-band (X and L) SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) with in-orbit processing that detects ground objects immediately. Some IP bought from Urthecast. | |
ISISpace (AMS) | 0 / ? | 2022 | 16U | Earth Observation, Infrared | - | Demonstrate MWIR instrument in a CubeSat. Provide Soil Moisture Data In Real Time. Develop Commercial Scalable service. | |
Methera | 0 / 16 | 2022 | Smallsat | Internet | Seed | Working on low-cost terminal design thanks to Innovate UK funding. Flexible and dynamic satellites, focusing all of its bandwidth to a small area of target regions from multiple satellites. | |
Wyvern | 0 / ? | 2022 | CubeSat | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | $8.9M+ | Creating proprietary technologies to increase the resolution of Earth observation imagery from a small satellite platform. | |
SatelliteVu | 0 / 7 | 2022 | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Infrared | $26M | World’s first ~130kg satellite that will deliver high-quality thermal video and thermal still imagery of the Earth, initiating the design, build and integration of the infrared camera. | |
Amazon (Project Kuiper) | 0 / 3236 | 2022 | Microsat | Internet | Yes | Constellation to provide low-latency, high-speed broadband connectivity to unserved and underserved communities around the world. | |
Vyoma Space | 0 / ? | 2023 | Microsat, ? | SSA (Space Situational Awareness) | Seed | Using in-orbit optical telescopes to observe space objects. Instead of waiting for objects to pass, we go to where the objects are. | |
EarthDaily Analytics (EarthDaily) | 0 / 9 | 2023 | Microsat | Earth Observation, Optical | Yes | EarthDaily, true scientific-quality imagery of the whole world at 5 meter resolution and 21 spectral bands. Bought UrTheCast assets. | |
NorthStar (Skylark) | 0 / 52 | 2023 | Satellite, 12U | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), Earth Observation, Infrared, Hyperspectral | $62M | 12 Skylark for tracking other satellites across multiple orbits, and 40 follow-on with infrared and hyperspectral sensors for Earth. Now also working with Spire on 12U CubeSats. | |
Kineis | 0 / 15 | 2023 | Microsat | IoT / M2M, AIS | $112M | IoT / M2M constellation. 26 kg satellites with deployment ring. Two-way communications and propulsion. 10 satellites include a secondary AIS payload. | ![]() |
HyperSat | 0 / 6 | 2023 | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | $85M | Imaging over 500 spectral bands (wavelengths of light) with a 6 meter ground sample distance. | |
Planet (Pelican) | 0 / 32 | 2023 | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Optical | Yes | Licensed to collect Earth imagery with a best case resolution of 0.29 m GSD from an orbital altitude between 250-550 km. | |
Hydrosat | 0 / 16 | 2023 | Microsat, ? | Earth Observation, Infrared | $15.6M | First commercial space-based thermal imagery to track water stress, assess wildfire risk and support agricultural monitoring | |
Tomorrow.io | 0 / 30 | 2023 | Microsat, ? | Weather | $183.9M | Monitor global weather with mini-fridge-size satellites. Developing weather radar in-house and hiring another company to provide the satellite bus. | |
Xairos | 0 / ? | 2023 | 6U, ? | QKD (Quantum Key Distribution), Laser Communications | TechStars & Spaced Ventures | Xairos provides secure and accurate timing clock synchronization through entangled photons, which are quantum mechanically linked particles of light. | |
Mangata Networks | 0 / 791 | 2023 | Satellite | Internet, 5G | $33M+ | Mangata Networks, a broadband megaconstellation venture created by former OneWeb Satellites CEO Brian Holz. | |
4pi Lab (EPiC) | 0 / ? | 2023 | ? | Infrared | ? | Satellite-based system to detect, geo-locate and report very small wildfires (10m on Earth’s dayside and down to 5m on Earth’s nightside) in real-time. | |
Trustpoint | 0 / ? | 2023 | ? | GNSS, PNT (Positioning; Navigation; Timing) | $2M+ | Developing next-generation GNSS signal processing technologies to provide the precision, security, and reliability required for the applications that will define the 21st Century. | |
Promethee | 0 / ? | 2023 | CubeSat? | Earth Observation, Optical, IoT / M2M | 8M | Mixing Earth observation and IoT (Internet of Things) with unmatched revisit frequencies. | |
Mission Space | 0 / 24 | 2023 | 3U, 6U | Space Weather, IoT / M2M | ? | Monitor space weather and perform data analytics in a software cloud to quantify the risks to individual satellites and to correlate spacecraft anomalies. | |
Hanwha Systems | 0 / 2000 | 2023 | ? | Internet, 6G | Yes | Between 2023-2025, communications will be limited to land and sea. Expand to airplanes and Urban Air Mobility in 2025-2030, and to 6G internet by 2030. | |
ArQit | 0 / ? | 2023 | Microsat, ? | QKD (Quantum Key Distribution), Laser Communications | Seed | Quantum Key Distribution shared in laser transmissions from a satellite. Qinetiq is contractor for spacecraft. | |
Anuvu (Constellation) | 0 / 8 | 2023 | Satellite | Internet | $50M+ | MicroGEO High Throughput Satellites (HTS) communications constellation for mobility. | |
Plus Ultra (Harmony) | 0 / ? | 2023 | ? | Orbital Data Relay, Moon | ? | Provide continuous, high-quality communications and navigation services anywhere on the Moon. | |
SpaceAble | 0 / ? | 2023 | CubeSat | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), Space Weather | ? | An on-demand in situ asset inspection solution for your LEO satellites. Enhance the sustainability of LEO. Tracking the inherent risk of space weather, which includes both inspector satellites and critical space data, to strengthen the resilience of new constellations. | |
HySpecIQ (HySpec) | 0 / 12 | 2023 | Satellite | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | $20M+ | Panchromatic data at a spatial resolution no better than 1.0 meters and hyperspectral data at no better than 5.0 meters. | |
Carbon Mapper | 0 / ? | 2023 | Smallsat | Hyperspectral | Yes | Non-profit for locating, quantifying and tracking methane and CO2 point-source emissions from air and space. | |
Ingenu (AFNIO) | 0 / 72 | 2023 | Microsat, ? | IoT / M2M | ? | 72 satellite constellation (AFNIO™) that Ingenu will be utilizing to host their RPMA® IIoT payloads. | |
GalaxEye | 0 / ? | 2023 | ? | Earth Observation, Optical | Pre-seed | Launching a constellation of advanced Earth Observation Satellites capturing the most meaningful dataset from space. | |
Berkelyn | 0 / ? | 2023 | 16U | Asteroid Prospecting, Orbital Data Relay | ? | CubeSat Constellation for Interplanetary Market Intelligence and Private Claims in Space. | |
Rocket Lab | 0 / ? | 2024 | Microsat, ? | Internet, ? | $1B+ | Longer-term goal is to build out Rocket Lab's own infrastructure in orbit and integrate all into one platform to provide data and services down on Earth. | |
XpressSAR | 0 / 4 | 2024 | Satellite | SAR, Earth Observation | ? | Small-area spotlight images with resolutions under 1 meter. Four satellites in two orbit planes with a 35° inclination. | ![]() |
Argotec (Andromeda) | 0 / 24 | 2024 | CubeSat? | Orbital Data Relay, Moon, Mars | ? | Moon communications relay nanosatellite constellation. S and K band up to tens of Mbps. IAOG arhitecture compatible. Mass <55 kg. | |
EOS SpaceLink (EOSLink) | 0 / 4 | 2024 | Smallsat, ? | Orbital Data Relay, Laser Communications | Yes | [Now working towards ~500 kg initial 4-satellite constellation with cost of $240M](https://spacenews.com/spacelink-adds-smaller-satellites-to-roadmap/). 2nd gen in 2025. The 3rd gen will add laser links. | |
Rhea Space Activity | 0 / ? | 2024 | CubeSat? | SSA (Space Situational Awareness) | $0.7M | Surveil cislunar space. First CubeSat Jervis-1 launching in 2024. | |
Albedo Space | 0 / 24 | 2024 | Smallsat, ? | Earth Observation, Optical, Infrared, VLEO | $10M+ | 10 centimeter visible imagery. Co-collected with 2 meter thermal imagery. | |
SaraniaSat | 0 / ? | ? | 6U | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral, Infrared | $5M+ | Hyperspectral thermal imager. | |
Bitlinq Space | 0 / ? | ? | CubeSat? | IoT / M2M, Store-and-Forward | - | Subscriptionless censorship resistant full-duplex global messaging system. | |
Muon Space | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Earth Observation, Optical, Hyperspectral | $10M | World's most capable multi-modal satellite remote sensing systems. | |
Viasat (MEO Constellation) | 0 / 20 | ? | Satellite | Internet | Yes | Would operate at 8,200 kilometers using Ka-band and higher frequency V-band spectrum for uplinks and downlinks. | |
Asteroid Mining Corp | 0 / ? | ? | CubeSat, ? | Asteroid Prospecting | ? | Space telescopes for asteroid spectragraphic data? | |
Space Union | 0 / 32 | ? | CubeSat | Orbital Data Relay | ? | Aiming for 1 Gbps data rate and 500 Gbps total throughput. Planning Laser/Optical to Earth and Ka-band and S-band intersatellite links. | |
Apple | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Internet, Satellite-to-Cellphone, Space-Based Cellular Broadband | - | Beam internet services directly to devices, bypassing wireless networks. Still early and could be abandoned and a clear direction and use for satellites hasn’t been finalized. | |
ExoTerra | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Earth Observation, Optical | $1.5M | Provide a rapid and cost-effective capability for Global Cloud observations, which are critical for nearly all Department of Defense-related operations. | |
Transcelestial | 0 / ? | ? | CubeSat? | Orbital Data Relay, Laser Communications | $11.4M | Space data network for terrestrial and satellite applications. Using lasers to transfer data at up to 1000x faster than currently available. | |
Apogee Networks | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Internet | ? | Global broadband satellite system, designed to be a very high capacity satellite content delivery network. V and Q bands with an anticipated minimum of 2 GHz of usable coordinated spectrum. | |
Guo Wang | 0 / 12992 | ? | Satellite, ? | Internet | ? | GW has filed a spectrum application with the International Telecommunication Union for two constellations with the cryptic names GW-A59 and GW-2. | |
BHDynamics | 0 / ? | ? | PocketQube | IoT / M2M | - | ||
Exo Space | 0 / ? | ? | CubeSat? | In-Orbit Computing | $0.12M+ | Edge computing satellites to process large amounts of data efficiently and economically in orbit, reducing network strain and bringing computation closer to the source. | |
Chandah Space | 0 / 20 | ? | ? | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), In-Orbit Inspection | - | Geostationary electro-optical imaging satellites. Small satellites called InsureSats geared towards commercial in-orbit inspection and space situational awareness. | |
RAL Space | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Weather, Hyperspectral | - | Hyperspectral Microwave Sounder, a first of its kind, designed to provide global moisture and temperature profiles, allowing for a constellation for global weather forecasting and climate monitoring. | |
Tekever | 0 / 12 | ? | Microsat | Earth Observation, AIS, ADS-B, IoT / M2M, Optical | $10M | Remote sensing and telecommunications constellation. Increased from 16U to a microsatellite and still in study phase it seems. | ![]() |
Channel Logistics (Space Eyes) | 0 / 5 | ? | ? | SAR, AIS, Earth Observation | - | Dual SAR and AIS payloads for geospatial maritime information. | |
QEYnet | 0 / ? | ? | Microsat | QKD (Quantum Key Distribution), Laser Communications | Pre-seed | A global, low-cost, microsatellite-enabled quantum key distribution network. | |
LEOcloud (Space Edge) | 0 / ? | ? | ? | In-Orbit Computing | ? | LEOcloud and Ramon.Space have entered into a partnership to develop satellite-hosted cloud edge computing capabilities. | |
Super-Sharp Space Systems | 0 / ? | ? | 12U | Earth Observation, Infrared | ? | Develop prototypes for an innovative unfolding telescope for a nanosat constellation giving the required ground resolution (7 metres) with frequent revisit rates. | |
PIESAT (Hongtu-1) | 0 / 4 | ? | ? | Earth Observation, SAR | Yes | At the 2021 Global Digital Economy Conference in Beijing, PIESat and Guodian Gaoke announced plans for a SAR constellation. | |
Efir / Sfera | 0 / 640 | ? | Smallsat | Internet, Earth Observation, Optical | ? | Sfera is 640 satellite constellation which includes Efir plus remote sending spacecraft. Efir has been cancelled due to lack of investor interest. | |
Scepter | 0 / ? | ? | Microsat | Emissions Monitoring | ? | Air pollution monitoring precise enough to reveal conditions for individual city blocks. | |
ConnectX (FIRST) | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Data Storage | - | Focused on using satellites to ensure cybersecurity of transactions in the international commodities market. Store digital currency wallets and private keys. | |
Alya Nanosatellites | 0 / ? | ? | 6U | Earth Observation, IoT / M2M | ? | Daily satellite images and data from any part of the Brazilian and coastal regions in high resolution and hyperspectral. | |
MDA (SARnext) | 0 / ? | ? | Satellite | SAR, Earth Observation | Yes | Commercial Earth observation satellite mission (RADARSAT-2 Continuity Mission) in C-band SAR. | |
Nebula Space | 0 / ? | ? | ? | In-Orbit Computing | $0.55M | Provider of a high-performance computing platform in space that will ultimately offer a full network on orbit | |
Moonscape | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Optical, Moon | ? | To provide on-demand high-quality imagery of sites from low lunar orbit. | |
Starmesh | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Internet | ? | Revolutionizing satellite Internet communications using proprietary inter-link routing in low earth orbiting satellite systems. | |
Live Earth | 0 / 3 | ? | Satellite | Earth Observation, Optical, Infrared | - | 3 geostationary private satellites with 2 visible & IR sensors providing daytime imagery every second and every 5 second at night. The Hemispherical sensor and steerable Narrow Field sensor. | |
Solar.Space | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Wireless Energy Supply | ? | Provide solar power to all satellites in Earth Orbit via lasers. | |
Gemini Space | 0 / ? | ? | ? | IoT / M2M | ? | Gemini Space’s mission is to bring easy, affordable access to IoT connectivity to everyone on our beautiful planet. | |
Alen Space | 0 / ? | ? | CubeSat | Constellation-As-A-Service, VDES | $1.1M+ | Aiming to launch a “Mother Constellation” of nanosatellites that will lower barriers by speeding-up the deployment of new satellite services and reducing the cost of deployment. | |
Photonicity | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Wireless Energy Supply | - | Unleashing remote applications from earth to space. | |
Precursor | 0 / ? | ? | ? | Space Weather, Earthquake (ELF) | ? | Deterministic forecasting of the impact of Space Weather events on both terrestrial and space based assets and operations. Safeguarding your prosperity through earthquake forecasting. | |
IMTsrl (BISS) | 0 / ? | ? | 6U | IoT / M2M | Yes | End-to-end solution to provide connectivity services via satellite network via LoRa standard for downlink and LoRa-E for uplink. | |
0 / 1440 | ? | ? | Internet | Yes | LEO broadband constellation with 1,440 satellites in 36 LEO planes, also in V-band, the so-called HVNET system. | ||
CurvaNet | 0 / 240 | ? | Smallsat, ? | Internet | ? | User terminal that can be produced for a less than $100 which can track LEO satellites while consuming around 5W of power. It is so low cost because it does not use phased array beamforming technology. | |
Hualu Space | 0 / 3 | ? | ? | Orbital Data Relay | ? | Commercial MEO or GEO relay satellites. | |
Boeing | 0 / 147 | ? | ? | Internet | Yes | V-band and Ka-band constellaion with inter-satellite links. | |
Orbit20 | 0 / 3000 | ? | ? | Data Storage | Seed | Orbital Data Center for Confidential Computing and Storage | |
Artemis Space (BEACON) | 0 / ? | Dormant? | CubeSat | IoT / M2M | - | IoT / M2M constellation planned. | |
LeoSat | 0 / 108 | Dormant | Satellite | Internet, Store-and-Forward | $50M+ | Each satellite has 10 Ka-band steerable antennas (each 1.6 Gbps), two steerable antennas (each 5.2 Gbps) and 4 optical inter-satellite links. | |
Koolock | 0 / ? | Dormant? | CubeSat | Earth Observation, Infrared | - | Infrared Earth observation constellation. The most advanced feature set for weather and environmental monitoring. | |
B612 Foundation (Sentinel) | 0 / ? | Cancelled? | Microsat | Asteroid Tracking | ? | Track smaller, fast-moving asteroids in the range of 140 m to 1 km wide. Built by York Space Systems. | |
Blink Astro | 1 / ? | Cancelled? | 3U | IoT / M2M | ? | Data network, small ground transmitters and cloud-based data analytics services. Tech demo payload flown on M6P in 2019. | |
Commsat (Ladybug / Ladybird) | 8 / 72 | Cancelled? | Microsat, 6U, 3U | Internet, IoT / M2M, AIS | $69M+ | Ladybug 1 is 100 kg and 3 CubeSats of 6U and 3 of 3U. Complete 72 satellites in 2022. Pivoted from IoT to Broadband in 2020. | ![]() |
Sky and Space | 3 / 400 | 2023 | 8U, 6U, 3U | IoT / M2M | $29.1M | Communication service (voice, data and M2M). Plans to use inter-satellite links. Satellites outsourced from GomSpace. First 3 Diamonds launched in 2017. | ![]() |
Space Forms | 0 / ? | Cancelled? | CubeSat | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), In-Orbit Inspection | - | Space drones for autonomous inspection and maintenance of satellites and space structures. | |
UTOWAVE (SpaceDust) | 0 / ? | Cancelled? | PocketQube | IoT / M2M | - | A pico satellite constellation that will provide worldwide reliable internet access. | |
LinkSure (Swarm Constellation) | 0 / 272 | Cancelled? | ? | Internet | ? | Ultimate goal is to offer a “free satellite network " based on WiFi around the globe by 2026. | |
SpaceTime | 0 / ? | Cancelled? | 3U | Earth Observation, Optical, Video, VR/AR | $3.3M | Real-time video of Earth for VR/AR. | |
LaserFleet | 2 / 288 | Cancelled? | CubeSat | Internet, Laser Communications | $2M? | Provide reliable 1 Gbps communication rates to aircraft at altitude. Higher effective data rate at a lower cost than the best-in-class Ku/Ka/V. | ![]() |
VEOWARE | 0 / ? | Cancelled? | Satellite | Earth Observation, Optical | ? | Lease satellite time to its customers, providing them with essential imagery capacity. | |
SRT Marine | 0 / 6 | Cancelled? | 6U | AIS | - | Scanning technology will enable the detection of vessels without an identification transceiver. Clyde Space will build the spacecraft. Was supposed to be fully operational before 2019. | |
Vesta Space Technology | 0 / 35 | Cancelled? | ? | IoT / M2M, 5G, Internet | $10M | In the company’s concept of services, any person can uplink and downlink data while browsing the internet by buying a token or directly partnering with Vestaspace | |
Astro Digital (Landmapper) | 8 / 25 | Cancelled? | 6U, 16U | Earth Observation, Optical | $16.7M+ | 6U has 22 m resolution in RGB and NIR. 16U has 2.5 m resolution in RGB, red edge, and NIR using one 70 MP sensor. | ![]() |
Space Systems Engineering | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat, 24U (4U x 6U) | Earth Observation, Optical | - | Advanced Earth Observation VNIR optical instrument payload. | |
EarthNow | 0 / 500 | Cancelled | Smallsat | Earth Observation, Optical | $6.6M | Continuous real-time video of the Earth enhanced by machine intelligence. Uses upgraded version of the satellite platform developed originally for OneWeb. | |
UrTheCast (UrtheDaily / OptiSar) | 4 / 24 | Cancelled | Satellite | Earth Observation, SAR, Optical | $182.6M | Plans for additional 8 UrtheDaily optical constellation from 2021. OptiSar consists of 8 optical and 8 SAR spacecraft launched around 2023. | |
Kawa Space | 0 / ? | Cancelled? | CubeSat | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | $0.6M | Designs and operates most advanced earth observation satellite constellations. Founder previously created ExseedSpace. | |
PointView (Athena) | 1 / ? | Cancelled | Smallsat | Internet | - | Rumored to have optical links (laser communication) and maybe E-band. | |
4Skies | 0 / ? | Cancelled | Microsat | IoT / M2M | - | About 50 kg microsats. One of the first in the field, but was not able to raise funding. | |
HyperCubes | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat? | Earth Observation, Hyperspectral | - | Track the chemical output of factories and farms and also the movement of machines and equipment. | |
Dunvegan Space (BitSat) | 0 / 24 | Cancelled | 3U | IoT / M2M, Data Storage | ? | Providing communications, data processing, storage and broadcasting capabilities in space. Cancelled when fundraising fell through. | |
Hiber | 4 / 48 | Cancelled | 6U, 3U | IoT / M2M | $43.9M | Send small packets of data (140 characters, accompanied by time‐stamp, identifier and location). | ![]() |
Audacy | 1 / 3 | Cancelled | Smallsat, 3U | Orbital Data Relay | $13.1M | 3 relay satellites in MEO for continuous communication with satellites. MEO satellites starting from 2020. | ![]() |
ISISpace (TRITON) | 0 / 16 | Cancelled | 3U | AIS | - | AIS payload tested on Triton-1 and network planned for a while, but no recent news. ADS-B, M2M and asset tracking also considered. | |
Outernet | 0 / 200 | Cancelled | 1U, 3U | Internet | $0.7M | Broadcast free data from space. Revenue from ads, premium content and hardware sales. Cancelled in 2017 due to lack of launch funding. | ![]() |
Deep Space Industries (BitSat) | 0 / ? | Cancelled | 6U | Asteroid Prospecting | $3.5M+ | Asteroid prospecting. 6U Firefly to find and prospect near-Earth asteroids. | |
EarthCube | 0 / 10 | Cancelled | CubeSat | Earth Observation, Infrared | $30M+ | Infrared imaging constellation? Might use Exotrail thrusters. | |
Ragnarok Industries | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat | Internet, IoT / M2M | - | Polar broadband service with nanosatellites? | |
406 Aerospace | 0 / ? | Cancelled | ? | Weather, Earth Observation | - | LEO satellite constellation to acquire EO / SO weather data for commercial sale. | |
Rupercorp | 0 / ? | Cancelled | 6U | Earth Observation, Optical | - | 2U CubeSat to be launched in 2018 will be a precursor for the commercial constellation. No news since press release and company does not seem to have any online presence. | |
Planetary Resources | 3 / 10 | Cancelled | 12U | Earth Observation, Infrared, Hyperspectral, Optical | $50M+ | Visible-NIR 40 channel hyperspectral imager with 10 m resolution. Midwave infrared imager (MWIR) in 3-5 μm with 15 m resolution. Has been deprioritized for asteroid missions. | ![]() |
Macro Aerospace | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat? | Data Storage | - | Space data storage and satellite email service provider using nanosatellites. | |
Terran Orbital | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat | IoT / M2M | $36M+ | Building a constellation of best-in-class nanosatellites that will form an unprecedented data infrastructure in space. | |
Tyvak | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat | SSA (Space Situational Awareness), Astrophotography | $36M+ | undefined | |
GomSpace | 0 / 10 | Cancelled | 6U | IoT / M2M | ? | Situational awareness and communication services with propulsion. Enhanced life-time in orbit 5-7 years. Goal is to have real-time communication between satellites and ground stations. | |
Promethean Labs | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat | Emissions Monitoring | - | Special imager for measuring greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, monitoring of water and air quality, forestry and land. | |
Dauria Aerospace | 2 / 8 | Cancelled | 6U | Earth Observation, Optical | $30M+ | Perseus-O multispectral constellation. Many similarities to Astro Digital. MKA-N launched in 2017 could be considered the first CubeSats. | |
Vissidus Technologies | 0 / ? | Cancelled | CubeSat | Space Debris Removal, On-Orbit Servicing, Active Debris Removal | - | On-orbit satellite servicing and Earth science? | |
Xoterra Aerospace | 0 / 88 | Cancelled | CubeSat | Earth Observation, Optical | - | Earth observation with 88 CubeSats. Was earlier than many others. | |
Galaktika (Pulsar) | 0 / ? | Cancelled | Microsat | IoT / M2M | ? | IoT constellation for two-way exchange of data packets at a speed up to 500 bit/sec. No news for a while and removed from website. | |
Ursa Space Systems | 0 / ? | Cancelled | Microsat | SAR, Earth Observation | ? | In parallel developing own constellation to provide priority access, superior revisit frequency, improved resolution and direct downlink. | |
Aerial Maritime | 0 / 100 | Cancelled | 3U | AIS, ADS-B | $12.2M | Monitoring aircraft (ADS-B) and vessels (AIS) from 37°N to 37°S. GomSpace is shareholder and will develop satellites. Cooperation with Flightradar24. | ![]() |
NewSpace is a global industry of private companies and entrepreneurs who primarily target commercial customers, are backed by risk capital seeking a return, and seek to profit from innovative products or services developed in or for space.
NewSpace Global, newspaceglobal.com
Alt.space, NewSpace, entrepreneurial space, and other labels have been used to describe approaches to space development that different significantly from that taken by NASA and the mainstream aerospace industry.
Hobby Space, hobbyspace.com
People, businesses and organizations working to open the space frontier to human settlement through economic development.
Space Frontier Foundation, spacefrontier.org
Space 4.0 is new space, more relaxed, fascinating and comprehensive. Space 4.0 can be used as a tool to tackle global challenges such as climate change, demographic development, migration, shortage of resources, conflicts and catastrophes, energy, digital divide, health and curiosity.
Jan Wörner, Director General of the ESA, The Parliament
Space 4.0 will be the driver for contemporary technologies in automation, miniaturisation, advanced manufacturing, machine to machine/human interaction, connectivity, big data, biotechnology and more. It stimulates the interaction of different sectors with spin-in, spin-off and spin-together.
Space 4.0 marks a new era; in which space is an enabler. It enables knowledge, jobs and growth, decision and policymaking, inspiring and motivating the next generations.
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