New Delhi: A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has successfully deployed the Drishti satellite for Bengaluru-based New Space startup GalaxEye. Drishti was one of
the co-passengers on the CAS500-2 mission, with the primary payload being a Korean Earth Observation Satellite. Drishti is the first satellite in the world to host both a electro-optical multispectral imaging payload as well as a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) on the same satellite, and will be providing combined observations using its unique SyncFused technology. The multispectral imager captures more colours than the standard three or four typically used in consumer cameras, and the SAR payload has the capability of imaging the surface in all weather and lighting conditions. The startup was incubated at IIT Madras.
GalaxEye completed the ground-based test campaign with the help of ISRO’s UR Rao Satellite Centre for its satellite in March, and then shipped it off to US for launch by a SpaceX Falcon 9. The satellite has both strategic and civilian applications, and the data will be used by governments, defence agencies and industries. The satellite is infused with artificial intelligence to perform on-satellite analysis for a wide range of potential applications, including border surveillance, infrastructure monitoring, insurance assessments, agricultural forecast, tracking water quality, and measuring ecosystem health. Dhrishti weighs about 155 kgs, and is the largest private satellite launched from India so far.
Satellite can process images in orbit
The on-board intelligence is powered by the Nvidia Jetson Orin embedded computing module for edge AI applications, allowing Drishti to run advanced AI workloads directly in orbit. While optical payloads capture imagery in high resolution, they are obscured by clouds. SAR can peer through clouds, but cannot capture imagery in high resolution. Drishti combines both. In February, before the satellite had completed its ground test campaign, GalaxEye signed an agreement with US-based Impulso to launch Drishti. GalaxEye has also signed an agreement with NSIL, where the later will vend its entire product portfolio internationally. Drishti is the first in a planned constellation.
