Aug 30, 2017

While Planet’s constellation of satellites currently operates in sun-synchronous orbit, the first generations of Doves were deployed out of the International Space Station (ISS) and therefore do not obey such an orbit. Their configuration in the ISS orbit samples at different local times within the mid-latitudes, and consequently, it is in theory […]

Jun 6, 2017

Fine-scale agricultural statistics are important tools for understanding trends in food production, especially in smallholder systems where heterogeneity in production is common. Satellite data is a key component to collecting these statistics for smallholder systems, though not without challenges such as complex sub-pixel heterogeneity, little to no available calibration data, and high […]

Mar 26, 2017

In late 2016, Greg Asner, of the Carnegie Institution for Science, led a field survey of the spectacularly diverse Spratly Islands archipelago. The mission combined in-water diving and photography with Planet’s Dove data in order to map coral reefs and assess the damage they face from military base expansion. Greg described the […]

Feb 17, 2017

Coral reefs—ecosystems that are both ecologically important and sensitive—are disappearing rapidly due to direct human impacts such as overfishing and pollution. Given the remote and often inaccessible geography of reefs, these critical habitats can be difficult to monitor. Research in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea is helping to change […]

Jan 12, 2017

Improving the productivity of smallholder farms is thought to be a key component of the effort to reduce global poverty and increase food security, yet the productivity of smallholder farms remains poorly measured around the world. Using SkySat imagery validated against two years of field data, new research shows that satellite imagery […]