Adding Another Dimension to Small Satellite Constellations

Satellite constellations for Earth Observation almost invariably use duplicates of the same satellites to provide higher temporal resolution or greater coverage. The value of Big Data applications often depend on the fusing of different sensor information. If instead constellation satellites are equipped with a variety of sensors, these can be configured to provide more complex data products. Flexibility and in orbit rearrangement can create a range of systems that can be configured on-demand to address a range of new applications. Small satellites and sensor capability have only recently advanced far enough to make such a systems financially viable. Key challenges in such systems are optimising the composition of the constellation with different sensors or capabilities in addressing different applications, and developing methods for fusing non-contemporaneous information to build capabilities that can only be achieved through a distributed system