SPOT 7, the Earth-observation satellite designed and built by Airbus Defence and Space, and launched in July, is now available for commercial use.
Together with SPOT 6, Pléiades 1A & 1B, TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X, SPOT 7 allows Airbus Defence and Space to offer customers a full palette of Earth-imaging data spanning multiple resolution and spectral wavelengths.
With the joined and integrated operation of SPOT 6 and SPOT 7 the acquisition capacity is boosted to six million square kilometres per day – an area ten times the size of France. This means that every day, every point on the globe can be viewed both in high-resolution by a SPOT satellite and in very high-resolution by a Pléiades satellite.
While SPOT 6 and SPOT 7 cover wide areas with a resolution of 1.5m, Pléiades 1A and 1B focus on more targeted zones with a greater level of detail (50cm products). And for guaranteed monitoring, surface motion or for frequently cloud covered areas, TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X can dependably acquire very high-resolution (from 0.25m to 40m products) and wide-area radar images independent of the weather conditions.
Additionally, Airbus Defence and Space have established a new cooperation with the Azerbaijani satellite operator, Azercosmos, for joint use of the SPOT satellites.
The contract is a long-term cooperation that includes the transfer of ownership of the SPOT 7 satellite to Azercosmos, the provision of a ground segment for the exploitation of the satellite, and a training program for operational capacities development. It also encloses a commercial agreement related to the distribution of SPOT 6 and SPOT 7 data to respective customers of both parties.
Evert Dudok, head of the Communications, Intelligence and Security (CIS) business line at Airbus Defence and Space, said: “It is a great success to have such an agreement with Azercosmos, offering a high potential for satellite imagery and geo-information applications. This cooperation will allow a business and operational model which is new and very innovative for us while assuring business continuity with our customers.”
Airbus Defence and Space is pleased to work with Azerbaijan to build its ambitious Space Program. This collaboration is an opportunity for Azercosmos to build up its own life experience both in operating a satellite and in serving commercial market immediately.
Rashad Nabiyev, Azercosmos CEO, noted: “This agreement is an important step taken by Azercosmos to diversify our satellite services and bring additional value into the economy of Azerbaijan; and we are glad to have such a collaboration with Airbus Defence and Space that will support us along with this challenging journey.”
Airbus Defence and Space will continue to provide full access to the SPOT 6 and 7 capacities and will deliver an unchanged commercial service to its worldwide customers.
