Indian space tech startup launched satellite with Elon Musk's SpaceX. What's next?
Pixxel TD-2
An Indian space tech startup Pixxel grabbed attention after it successfully launched its first fully-fledged commercial satellite apparently called 'Shakuntala' or Pixxel TD-2. But what's next?
The satellite was launched with Elon Musk-run SpaceX's Falcon-9 rocket on Friday (April 1) aboard SpaceX's Transporter-4 mission from Cape Canaveral in the United States.
Pixxel noted that TD-2 is hosting one of the highest resolution hyperspectral commercial cameras ever flown, which will bring the world one step closer to building a 24x7 health monitor for the planet.
"TD-2 is capable of capturing orbital images in more than 150 bands of color from the visible and infrared spectrum with a resolution of 10-meters per pixel — far exceeding the specificity of 30-meter per pixel hyperspectral satellites launched by a few select organizations such NASA, ESA, and ISRO" - Pixxel
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This particular launch has put the company within touching distance of its ambitious mission to assemble one of the "world's most advanced constellations of low-earth-orbit imaging satellites".
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Awais Ahmed, who is the CEO of Pixxel, said as quoted by the company's website: "From being one of the very few finalists in the SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition in 2017 to now launching our own satellites as part of SpaceX's fourth dedicated rideshare mission, life has come full-circle for us."
"The vision we had then, to accelerate humanity’s expansion into space by making in-space resources available on-demand and turning the earth into a more vibrant and sustainable place in the process, remains steadfast even today," the statement added.
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Pixxel TD-2 details:
1) Pixxel TD-2 weighs less than 15 kilogrammes
2) As per the company, TD-2 is capable of capturing orbital images in more than 150 bands of colour from the visible and infrared spectrum with a resolution of 10-meters per pixel.
3) TD-2 will start collecting data and information related to the health of the planet Earth. It is set to uncover the invisible changes wreaking havoc on the planet, such as natural gas leakages, melting ice caps, pollution, deforestation and declining crop health.
What's next?
Awais Ahmed stated that Pixxel will achieve daily global coverage by early 2024 with even more satellites scheduled to launch in late 2023.
"The learnings from the data beamed down by our constellation will provide us with a global scale perspective of planetary-scale ecosystems and biospheres that will be used to create an AI-informed analysis platform, helping us create a digital twin of the earth," he noted.