The contract, signed with the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA), provides for Planet to provide the alliance with high-resolution data from Planet's SkySat fleet as part of the alliance's Persistent Surveillance from Space (APSS) program.
Planet said it could not disclose the financial details of the contract.
The APSS program, which launches in 2023, is a NATO initiative designed to create a "virtual constellation" by pooling national and commercial satellite networks. With 17 member nations committing over $1 billion over the next 5 years, this program is billed as the largest multinational investment in space capabilities in NATO's history. The aim is to improve the Alliance's ability to monitor what is happening on the ground and at sea.
This drive for advanced surveillance capabilities is being driven by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. The war has highlighted the importance of real-time intelligence, with commercial satellite imagery playing a key role in Ukraine's defence strategy, from tracking troop movements to coordinating battlefield responses.
"Planet's tasking capabilities will empower NATO decision makers by providing imagery for use in detailed tracking and analysis of foreign military capabilities and activities, monitoring military infrastructure, detecting movements, effectively assessing threats, filling missing intelligence gaps, and helping provide an unclassified common operating picture between allies," the company said.
Planet operates a fleet of more than 200 satellites that orbit the poles every 90 minutes, imaging the entire earth every day. This includes approximately 150 Dove satellites, which are small, medium-resolution satellites, and about 20 SkySat satellites, which provide high-resolution imagery.
NCIA's Larissa Patton stressed the strategic importance of space to NATO, calling it critical for everything from force navigation and missile launch detection to maintaining situational awareness and providing effective command and control.
For Planet, this NATO deal is the latest in a series of moves to strengthen its position in the defence and government sectors. The company's SkySat fleet, which offers high-resolution imagery and the ability to revisit locations multiple times a day, was originally developed to meet military and intelligence requirements.
Since launching its defense-focused subsidiary Planet Federal in 2018, the company has steadily expanded its government footprint. In 2022, the company secured a $146 million contract with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) under its Electro-optical Commercial Layer initiative, which uses commercial satellites for national security applications. | BGNES
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