Welcome to a new edition of ‘Last Week in Earth Observation’, containing a summary of major developments in EO from the last week and some exclusive analysis and insights from TerraWatch.
Four Curated Things
Major developments in EO from the past week
1. Contractual Stuff: Funding, Contracts and Deals 💰
M&A
- AAC Clyde Space, a Swedish satellite manufacturer has acquired EO data processing platform provider Spacemetric for SEK 16M (∼$1.5M);
Funding
- EO-based carbon monitoring startup Netcarbon has raised €1M in seed funding;
Contracts
- Greece’s Ministry of Digital Governance has awarded German thermal imaging startup OroraTech a €20M contract to build a satellite-based early warning system for wildfires.
2. Strategic Stuff: Partnerships and Announcements 📈
Partnerships
- EO platform SkyFi is teaming up with hyperspectral analysis firm Geospatial Technology Associates to integrate its capabilities.
3. Interesting Stuff: More News 🗞️
- EnduroSat will build Botswana’s first EO satellite, containing a hyperspectral instrument, in partnership with a local university;
- The Sentinel-2C satellite will be launched on the final Vega launch mission in September.
4. Click-Worthy Stuff: Check These Out 🔗
- This paper that provides an overview of SAR for ocean monitoring;
- This article that describes how the EU’s digital twin platform DestinE improves the forecasts of tropical cyclones and heavy rain;
- This paper that presents how multiple data sources, both public and commercial, are used to detect a large methane leak in Kazakhstan.
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5. EO Adoption Strategy
One thing I don't talk about much publicly is the work TerraWatch has done over the last couple of years working with over 40 end-user organisations - including some Fortune 500 firms - advising and building an EO adoption strategy.
Organisations we have worked with include small and large enterprises in finance, insurance, agriculture, forestry, energy, mining, sustainability etc. as well as governments and non-profits.
So, if you are an organisation looking to learn more about using/scaling EO and would like an objective and independent assessment centred on reality (not hype), get in touch!
The following image gives an idea of the kind of work we do with companies, organisations and governments enabling them to understand the value of EO and start leveraging it to solve problems.
Scene from Space
One visual leveraging EO
6. Hurricane Damage in the Caribbean
Hurricane Beryl, the earliest recorded category 5 hurricane observed in the Atlantic, made landfall in the island nation of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. According to reports, virtually every building on the island, has been razed or badly damaged. The high-resolution satellite images below give an idea of the damage caused.
Beryl has made landfall in Texas and will continue to move inward bringing heavy rains and wind gusts.
One Quick Question
Every week this newsletter takes me about 4-6 hours in total, including the time needed to source/filter the news, do the analysis and write/review the edition. My goal is to make this newsletter the #1 knowledge resource for all things Earth observation, satellite data and its applications. But, I want to make sure this is useful for you.
I would like to know what you think about this newsletter, more specifically, the frequency of this newsletter, which is currently sent every week, consolidating developments in EO along with some of my analysis. Based on your responses, the plan for this newsletter may change. If you have other suggestions, just hit reply!
Until next time,
Aravind.
