SAN FRANCISCO – Planet Labs Federal, Inc. (Planet Federal), a wholly owned subsidiary of Planet Labs Inc. (Planet) today announced that they have signed a commercial imagery contract with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), a member of the United States Intelligence Community and an agency of the United States Department of Defense. Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history, and provides medium and high resolution imagery of everywhere on earth daily. In 2019, Planet established Planet Federal to enable deeper engagements with the US Federal Government.
This subscription contract follows the study contract initiated in June 2019 and is the latest development in NRO’s strategy to embrace commercial imagery as a key element of their current and future overhead imagery capabilities set into motion by former director, Betty Sapp.
As imagery requirements increase, the unique value of Planet’s high cadence and global dataset is vital to mission continuity and the analysis of changing geospatial landscapes.
“Planet’s ability to deliver near real-time satellite imagery provides valuable information to decision-makers in the greater national security community—allowing them to adapt to the changing technological and geopolitical landscape,” said Planet co-founder and chief strategy officer Robbie Schingler. “Government entities like the NRO are exploring the value that the commercial aerospace sector has to offer, and we are delighted to contribute.”
“We are encouraged by the commitment from the NRO and NGA to collaborate for a seamless transition of the subscription contract for Planet’s imagery,” said Jen Marcus, Vice President of U.S. Government Strategic Partnerships for Planet Federal. “This award is a testament to truly unified effort these agencies wish to build in support of the mission and enabling the end user.”
The NRO is an Intelligence Community and Department of Defense agency responsible for developing, acquiring, launching, and operating America’s intelligence satellites to meet the national security needs of our nation.
About Planet
Planet is an integrated aerospace and data analytics company that operates history’s largest commercial fleet of satellites, collecting daily high-resolution imagery of Earth’s entire landmass and operating 15 sub-meter satellites for a rapid revisit capability. Planet’s daily snapshot captures a massive amount of information about our changing planet, and is delivered with the software and analytics users need to make critical business decisions. To learn more about Planet visit http://www.planet.com.
