Seoul, South Korea; Jan. 7, 2025: SIIS Co., Ltd. (CEO Kim Moon-Gyu) announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on November 19th with Pixxel, a US-India-based space technology company building the world’s highest-resolution hyperspectral satellite constellation, to supply hyperspectral satellite data in Korea. The signing ceremony, held during the Satellite Utilization Conference, marks a significant step towards providing hyperspectral data to relevant institutions and companies in the country.
Pixxel’s hyperspectral data offers far greater spectral detail than traditional multispectral data, enabling precise analysis of the physical and chemical properties of the Earth’s surface and atmosphere.
SIIS CEO Kim Moon-Gyu remarked, “Through this collaboration with Pixxel, we will expand our offerings beyond optical and radar imagery to include hyperspectral data. We are committed to broadening the scope of satellite data applications and providing valuable insights to the Earth observation solutions market.”
Awais Ahmed, Founder and CEO of Pixxel, said, “This partnership with SIIS marks an exciting opportunity for us. Together, we aim to provide transformative insights that enable end-users across industries to tackle complex challenges. This collaboration reinforces our commitment to building a health monitor for the planet and advancing Earth observation solutions globally.”
SIIS plans to strengthen its Earth observation business with the launch of its ultra-high-resolution satellite, SpaceEye-T, in March 2025. Developed with domestic private technology and investment, SpaceEye-T will be Korea’s first private Earth observation satellite capable of delivering 30cm-class ultra-high-resolution spatial information. With this, SIIS aims to compete with global leaders in the geospatial industry.
Pixxel’s Chief Commercial Officer, Aakash Parekh, expressed his enthusiasm: “We are thrilled to partner with SIIS and could not think of a better way to enter the Korean market with our groundbreaking 5-meter hyperspectral dataset.” He added, “SIIS has built a high-calibre team with deep expertise, ideally suited to educate end-users across agriculture, energy, environment, and defence on the transformative benefits of hyperspectral technology.”
Through this partnership with Pixxel, SIIS intends to enhance its market competitiveness by combining precise spatial information obtained from ultra-high-resolution imagery with the material-specific properties of hyperspectral data. The company expects this integration will enable users to leverage the unique characteristics and strengths of different data types, meeting diverse analytical demands and expanding the applications of satellite data.
Pixxel is gearing up to launch its Fireflies constellation, consisting of six commercial-grade hyperspectral satellites, in early 2025. Designed to deliver 5-meter resolution, a 40-kilometre swath, and daily revisit capabilities across hundreds of bands, this constellation will provide unparalleled global coverage and enable industries to access high-fidelity hyperspectral data for a wide range of applications, including agriculture, climate monitoring, and resource management.
About SIIS
SIIS is preparing for the launch of an innovative 100% commercial optical satellite ‘SpaceEye-T’ with 30cm resolution capabilities in early 2025. SIIS also provides satellite imagery of Korean Multi-Purpose Satellite (KOMPSAT) 2, 3, 3A, and 5. SIIS contributes to the remote sensing and earth observation industries with very-high-resolution optical images and SAR images through about 160 resellers worldwide. Satellite imagery is used in remote sensing fields such as mapping, agriculture, and disaster observation. www.si-imaging.com
About Pixxel
Pixxel is a space data company and a spacecraft manufacturer redefining Earth observation with hyperspectral imaging. Pixxel’s constellation of the world’s highest-resolution hyperspectral imaging satellites is designed for daily revisit frequency anywhere on Earth. It helps detect, monitor, and predict critical global phenomena across agriculture, oil and gas, mining, environment, and other sectors in up to 50x richer detail. Pixxel has also launched its in-house Earth Observation Studio, Aurora, to make satellite imagery analysis easily accessible.
Pixxel has raised $95 million from M&G Catalyst, Glade Brook Capital Partners, Google, Lightspeed, Radical Ventures, Accenture, and others. For more information, visit www.pixxel.space or follow Pixxel on Twitter and LinkedIn.
