SAN FRANCISCO –Planet, a leading provider of daily data and insights about Earth, today announced that their earth observation data has contributed to over 1,500 academic publications since 2016. There has been a steady yearly growth in Planet-informed publications released in peer-reviewed journals, conferences, dissertations, and open journals, with over 400 new studies published just in the last year. Notably, in 2021, a study using Planet’s data was published at an average of 1 every 15 hours.
This success stems from Planet’s Education and Research Program, designed to provide opportunities for students, researchers, and professors, associated with accredited universities, to access Planet’s unique satellite datasets. With this access, participants can review, download, and analyze Planet’s archive of remote sensing data and publish key results. With the Education and Research Program, the NICFI Satellite Data Program, and through partnerships with NASA, DLR, and others, more than 20,000 Planet users globally are accessing Planet’s nearly-daily imaging of the earth data. With Planet’s data, users have contributed to important and urgent scientific discoveries, such as the cause of the Chamoli landslide. With a vast array of uses for Planet’s data, researchers have explored the full Earth system, publishing pieces ranging from melting arctic ice and natural disasters to revealing insights on walrus colonies or life in medieval times.
The Education and Research Program has continued to grow over the last five years, showcasing the high demand for Planet data in academic settings. To date, the number of universities purchasing Planet’s data and services for scientific applications has reached 80 schools in 20 countries. With 36 new universities joining over the last year, the program has seen more than 80% growth since last year. Planet has also seen 44 universities renew or expand their existing accounts in the last year.
“Reading a paper or watching a talk by a researcher applying Planet data to some of our common global challenges, like climate change, is thrilling,” said Dr. Joseph Mascaro, Director of Science Programs at Planet. “These users—many of them undergraduate and graduate students—are helping to realize our founding intent to use space to help life on Earth. It’s an honor to collaborate with them.”
Operating the largest fleet of earth observation satellites in history, with about 200 currently in orbit, Planet captures near-daily satellite images of all of the Earth’s landmass, providing unrivaled high-cadence remote sensing data to their users. Through Planet’s user-friendly software platform, Planet Explorer, researchers can access and analyze this data to evaluate changes over time. Planet’s data also provides key insights for markets including civil government, agriculture, and sustainability-oriented businesses by providing timely information for disaster response and commodity management.
Earlier this year, Planet entered into a definitive merger agreement with dMY Technology Group, Inc. IV (NYSE:DMYQ), a special purpose acquisition company, to become a publicly-traded company. Upon closing of the transaction Planet will become a public benefit corporation (PBC). Planet’s mission will be encoded into its corporate DNA, obligating Planet’s directors to stay true to its mission as part of their fiduciary duty to their stockholders. Planet’s public benefit purpose is: “To accelerate humanity toward a more sustainable, secure and prosperous world by illuminating environmental and social change.”
Learn more about how Planet’s Education and Research program could help with your research here.
About Planet
Planet is the leading provider of global, daily satellite imagery and geospatial solutions. Planet is driven by a mission to image the world every day, and make change visible, accessible and actionable. Founded in 2010 by three NASA scientists, Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest earth observation fleet of imaging satellites, capturing and compiling data from over 3 million images per day. Planet provides mission-critical data, advanced insights, and software solutions to over 700 customers, including the world’s leading agriculture, forestry, intelligence, education and finance companies and government agencies, enabling users to simply and effectively derive unique value from satellite imagery. To learn more visit www.planet.com and follow us on Twitter at @planet.
