Earth observation satellite data : towards widespread adoption by businesses ?

Initially designed for military applications and scientific research… satellites are now increasingly attracting interest from Silicon Valley : but for what purpose ?

Initially developed for military and scientific purposes, satellites have become essential to the functioning of the information economy, and their number continues to grow around the planet. The Union of Concerned Scientists estimated that more than 2,000 artificial satellites were in orbit in 2019, including 700 launched since 2017.

This number is expected to rise further with the entry of major tech players and Silicon Valley companies into the space sector, such as SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, or Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos. These companies are developing reusable launchers, reducing the cost per launch and enabling the deployment of various types of satellites, not only Earth observation satellites.

At the same time, miniaturisation, also observed on Earth with smartphones, has enabled the development of nanosatellites, further reducing launch costs. These satellites are capable of collecting several terabytes of data, which are then transmitted to and received by ground stations to analyse a wide range of phenomena.

What data do these Earth observation satellites collect ? How and by whom are these data used ?

No longer confined to military or governmental use, data from Earth observation satellites are increasingly sought after and leveraged by private sector players across industries such as agriculture, insurance, finance and oil and gas, driven by significant technological advances in both the aerospace sector and data processing.

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