28 Cubesats Launched From The Space Station
Source: SpaceRef
A new fleet of 28 small satellites, called Flock 1, may help provide a perspective of Earth to people like never before.
It is often said that if everyone had the opportunity to see Earth from the perspective of astronauts in space, respect and admiration for our planet would grow and the environment would be better protected. Considered the largest single constellation of Earth-imaging satellites ever to launch into space, the Flock 1 satellites began deploying today from the International Space Station.
Built and operated by Planet Labs of San Francisco, the Flock 1 small satellites are individually referred to as Doves. The Dove satellites are part of a class of miniature satellites often called CubeSats. These small satellites will capture imagery of Earth for use in humanitarian, environmental and commercial applications. Data collected by the Flock 1 constellation will be universally accessible to anyone who wishes to use it.
"We believe that the democratization of information about a changing planet is the mission that we are focused on, and that, in and of itself, is going to be quite valuable for the planet," says Robbie Schingler, co-founder of Planet Labs. "One tenet that we have is to make sure that we produce more value than we actually capture, so we have an open principle within the company with respect to anyone getting access to the data."
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Read more: http://spaceref.com/nasa-hack-space/28-cubesats-launched-from-the-space-station.html
Skink
(10,122 posts)Berlum
(7,044 posts)apnu
(8,756 posts)I never laughed so hard watching television in my life.
Z-RO
(86 posts)bemildred
(90,061 posts)arcane1
(38,613 posts)I hope they provide a link to the photos when the time comes
Botany
(70,503 posts)sdfernando
(4,935 posts)How long before the cubes join together in a hive mind, form a collective, and begin to assimilate humanity? Resistance is futile!