The demand for satellites comes down to data . If you think about imagery of earth , it used to be that weekly or monthly images were sufficient . Now , according to Merski , the marketplace demands imagery hour-by-hour . Rider contends that because of the lower cost of manufacturing and launching satellites , the appetite for data can grow .
“ BlackSky does geospatial monitoring / imaging of the earth . BlackSky could launch one , and they could put it into orbit that flies over Seattle one-time per day or one-time per week . But , if you launched 20 , 30 , 40 , or 50 , you could provide a picture of Seattle every hour , which would allow you to look at change on an hourly basis ,” Rider said .
He added that , “ 10 to 15 years ago the number of launches per year was low ; SpaceX is claiming that they can launch every two weeks ; Rocket Labs is claiming they can launch monthly ; this is going to continue to happen at a rapid pace … we are close to living in a world where satellites are launched every day .”
Awareness of satellite constellations by humans is still young , but Merski said , “ It ’ s always interesting ; people are aware of space assets ; ( there are ) always questions about scale , access , economics — people are fascinated by space and how they can interact with it .” He said he hears , “ questions of how it occurs , comes together , and how to consume it .”
Currently satellites are being used in practical applications such as monitoring parking lots of major businesses to find out whether people are adhering to virus restriction mandates . Or , Rider said that you can monitor developing countries with the goal of helping to eradicate poverty . Artificial constellations can also monitor poaching , or illegal hunting .
There are industry sectors that are interested in this data , and it can mean big money for some . But there are also projects that , for example , bring Internet to everyone ( SpaceX ). Although some of the satellite communications and monitoring may sound rudimentary , compared to future applications , there is an unprecedented investment in space at this time .
Rider said that there will be many dozens of constellations and thousands of satellites in the coming years . “ Many ideas can be successful . The investment market into space has been extremely robust — it ’ s going to keep growing .”
However , as with conservation efforts on earth , Merski said that we need to heed similar efforts in space . He said , “ Space is like the ocean or a terrestrial environment ; we need to be aware of how we manage our presence in that environment .” Merski said he observes advocacy and / or good stewardship in the industry , but shared that we need to continually assess and evolve in conservation efforts .
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