LeoLabs, the startup that provides data to track space debris and prevent collisions in low earth orbit (LEO) has announced that it has raised $4 million in investment from SRI International, Horizon Ventures and Airbus Ventures, reports TechCrunch. The investment will be used to advance its research and technology. Apart from the investment, the startup also announced the completion of the next addition to its network of phased-array radars, Midland Space Radar (MSR).
According to the startup, the radars based in Midland, Texas are now operational and, will provide high-resolution orbital data on LEO-based satellites and debris. This will add to its phased array radar technology, which can track up to 1,500 pieces of debris per hour, says an article in VentureBeat.
Currently, LeoLabs claims that it has customer engagements underway providing services that include Initial Orbit Determination, and Collision Avoidance. The primary market for these services are commercial satellite operators in LEO, as well as government agencies and satellite management service firms.
According to LeoLabs, keeping pace with the sheer number of satellites and debris orbiting in LEO requires frequent observations. “This is precisely the benefit of an additional dedicated radar site such as our Midland Space Radar,” said Mike Nicolls, Founder and CTO, LeoLabs.
“With the MSR, not only do we increase our coverage, we add thousands of additional observations to our LEO data set. And we will not stop here,” continued Nicolls. “We are already scouting sites in the high Northern and Southern latitudes, as well as equatorial areas, to expand even further. Our mission is to reach 100% coverage of orbital debris, and make our data a foundation for securing the emerging LEO economy.”
A spin-out from one of Silicon Valley’s popular research and development institutions, SRI International, LeoLabs claims that its Tracking as a Service (TaaS ) will address the threat of satellite damage from space debris with a worldwide network of phased-array radars and a data analytics service. The startup claims that its network will be able to track ten times more debris than is currently tracked.