The Smallsat approach with Northern Sky Research

Questions and answers

Can you tell what kind of cargo it is carrying?

AIS data gives you classification of what the ship may be but does not tell you what is on board. This is a great fusion use-case, Spire Maritime solves this by integrating enhanced vessel data.

How will we ensure that development of these constellations minimises collision and interference risks?

Everyone operating in space want to avoid collision and mitigate risk by carefully monitoring the position of the satellites as well as the proximity of other satellites passing by. New systems are currently in development to enhance the ability to detect and more accurately track other satellites or debris. Some ground-based systems are using radar to monitor lower-earth orbit to provide warning to operators allowing them to slightly adjust positions. A lot of developments are happening to manage space traffic from both a regulatory perspective and an operational perspective.

The delay to LEO is less than 2 ms. So why does it take a few minutes?

Our satellites have to pass over a ground station to download the data, so it depends on the position of the satellite in relation to the ground station.

Does Spire maintain a data history? Ie: can I choose a vessel and ask for a prior period of data?

We do have historical data, we suggest you contact us to discuss this further.