Software company aims to launch 250 satellite weather constellation
Capitalism in space: Acme Atronomatic, a software company that developed the MyRadar weather app that has been downloaded 50 million times, is now planning to launch 250 satellite weather constellation, with the first test satellites scheduled for launch in April.
The satellites, scheduled to launch in April on a Rocket Lab Electron from New Zealand, are designed to test and validate hardware for Orlando, Florida-based Acme’s Hyperspectral Orbital Remote Imaging Spectrometer (HORIS) constellation.
Environmental data captured by the HORIS constellation will be paired with artificial intelligence and machine learning to create data-fusion products for the company’s government and commercial customers. Acme also intends to draw on data and imagery from the HORIS constellation to enhance its MyRadar weather app.
The first batch of Acme satellites set to launch in April are PocketQubes, satellites measuring 5 centimeters on each side. The “batch consists of our own satellite and two others that we have informally helped design and build,” Acme CEO Andy Green told SpaceNews by email. “We’re mostly focusing on the primary satellite, MyRadar1,” which is a HORIS constellation prototype.
Private weather satellites like this are the future, rather than government-built satellite, which has been the norm for sixty years. That shift is also apparently being encouraged by Congress, which the House has passed and the Senate is considering. In it NOAA’s budget to build its own weather satellites was trimmed by about 25%, from the requested $1.68 billion to $1.29 billion.
This trim is hardly painful to NOAA’s weather satellite program, which remains well funded. It does indicate however that our spendthrift Congress is interested in ways to save money in this area.
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Capitalism in space: Acme Atronomatic, a software company that developed the MyRadar weather app that has been downloaded 50 million times, is now planning to launch 250 satellite weather constellation, with the first test satellites scheduled for launch in April.
The satellites, scheduled to launch in April on a Rocket Lab Electron from New Zealand, are designed to test and validate hardware for Orlando, Florida-based Acme’s Hyperspectral Orbital Remote Imaging Spectrometer (HORIS) constellation.
Environmental data captured by the HORIS constellation will be paired with artificial intelligence and machine learning to create data-fusion products for the company’s government and commercial customers. Acme also intends to draw on data and imagery from the HORIS constellation to enhance its MyRadar weather app.
The first batch of Acme satellites set to launch in April are PocketQubes, satellites measuring 5 centimeters on each side. The “batch consists of our own satellite and two others that we have informally helped design and build,” Acme CEO Andy Green told SpaceNews by email. “We’re mostly focusing on the primary satellite, MyRadar1,” which is a HORIS constellation prototype.
Private weather satellites like this are the future, rather than government-built satellite, which has been the norm for sixty years. That shift is also apparently being encouraged by Congress, which the House has passed and the Senate is considering. In it NOAA’s budget to build its own weather satellites was trimmed by about 25%, from the requested $1.68 billion to $1.29 billion.
This trim is hardly painful to NOAA’s weather satellite program, which remains well funded. It does indicate however that our spendthrift Congress is interested in ways to save money in this area.
In order to remain completely independent and honest in my writing, I accept no sponsorships from big space companies or any political organizations. Nor do I depend on ads.
Instead, I rely entirely on the generosity of readers to keep Behind the Black running. You can either make a one time donation for whatever amount you wish, or you sign up for a monthly subscription ranging from $2 to $15 through Paypal, or $3 to $50 through Patreon, or any amount through Zelle.
The best method to donate or subscribe is by using Zelle through your internet bank account, since it charges no fees to you or I. You will need to give my name and email address (found at the bottom of the "About" page). What you donate is what I get.
To use Patreon, go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
For PayPal click one of the following buttons:
If these electronic payment methods don't work for you, you can support Behind The Black directly by sending your donation by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman, to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
Dr. Wile E. Coyote & Acme
“The Products”
https://youtu.be/9m7evoFF83c
6:09
Meep Meep.
Meanwhile, NASA is rallying up the troops against Elon Musk.
https://lodyssey.com/nasa-says-starlink-satellites-could-prevent-detection-of-killer-asteroid/
Max: This is an old story, and it also misconstrues what NASA was saying. See my post on it when it was released:
https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/nasa-nsf-express-collision-concerns-for-spacexs-starlink-constellation/
For several years, the government has been trying to shift weather data-gathering from government satellites to commercial satellites. The main problem has been that commercial satellites in the past have not been designed to obtain the quality that NOAA has grown accustomed to getting, so they have not been eager to buy commercial data. Without assurances for a customer, commercial companies have not been eager to spend money on better data collection. It is a bit like the chicken or the egg dilemma: which comes first, the quality data or the sales that pay for it to be put on the satellites? If NOAA won’t buy the data, then the companies don’t want to lose money on the expensive instruments. However, NOAA has been experimenting with purchasing data in order to encourage commercial companies to improve the quality of their data.
A second problem, the last I heard, is that NOAA is accustomed to releasing its data at no charge as soon as it gets it. Commercial companies hope to be able to sell their data to secondary customers, in addition to the U.S. government, and want this practice stopped so that there are secondary customers, perhaps delaying the release for a day, when the sales value has decreased. Many secondary customers should be willing to pay for the valuable data, but researchers who are doing things such as making or confirming weather models can still use day-old stale data. It is a bit like using today’s fresh bread to make sandwiches and yesterday’s bread to make croutons.
As various problems are sorted out, commercial weather-data collection should become routine. This seems to be where Acme AtronOmatic is at today.