BlackSky Signs Seven-Figure Space Domain Awareness Expansion Contract with HEO for Fully Automated Non-Earth Imaging Missions
Imagery data services deal unlocks additional Gen-2 constellation value and brings unprecedented speed to pattern-of-life insights for orbiting spacecraft and other objects of interest
BlackSky Technology Inc. (NYSE: BKSY) signed a seven-figure Gen-2 space domain awareness expansion contract with HEO to provide fully-automated low-latency non-Earth imaging (NEI) services for defense, intelligence and commercial use. The imagery data services deal is now moving into its fourth phase after completing the automation of the entire tasking-to-delivery process.
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A BlackSky Gen-2 satellite captured this image of China's Tiangong space station at a distance of 83 kilometers as the station orbited above Bulgaria on March 13, 2025. BlackSky signed a seven-figure Gen-2 space domain awareness expansion contract with HEO to provide fully-automated low-latency non-Earth imaging (NEI) services for defense, intelligence and commercial use. BlackSky's high-cadence imaging capabilities are expected to increase the feasibility of capturing NEI data over the middle latitudes of Earth and leverage unused capacity typically associated with satellites passing over the ocean or in eclipse, traveling across the dark side of Earth. (Photo: BlackSky)
"BlackSky's high-resolution Gen-2 high-cadence monitoring constellation continues to contribute valuable insight for space domain awareness," said Brian O'Toole, BlackSky CEO. "As on-orbit activities continue to increase, global monitoring efforts are expanding beyond terrestrial intelligence to include space intelligence. Automatically tasking and receiving NEI products reflects yet another pioneering innovation that gives customers reliable and actionable insight about spacecraft or on-orbit objects of interest at mission speed."
As part of the contract, HEO's software platform will autonomously identify imaging opportunities and task BlackSky's high-resolution Gen-2 satellites to detect, track, characterize, and classify objects in orbit, as well as assess potential threats and predict their effects. BlackSky's high-cadence imaging satellites fly in mid-inclination orbit and are expected to increase the feasibility of capturing NEI data over the middle latitudes of Earth, at certain times and places. The rapid tasking and delivery of NEI are expected to support critical space domain awareness applications, including constellation monitoring and anomaly detection.
"BlackSky has the ability to leverage remaining capacity typically associated with satellites passing over the ocean or satellites in eclipse, traveling across the dark side of Earth. Customers can now use that excess capacity, with a high-quality user experience, to monitor objects in space with no humans in the loop," said O'Toole.
"Achieving true space awareness is going to require levels of inspection platforms across orbits, ready to capture imagery at a moment's notice and HEO is building exactly that," said Dr. Will Crowe, Co-Founder and CEO of HEO. "BlackSky's high-resolution satellites and automated capacity give us eyes in mid-inclination orbit, turning downtime into an intelligence goldmine for operators who need to know what's happening around their assets, when it happens."
HEO added BlackSky's constellation into its current NEI sensor network in 2024. Customers can now request NEI products through HEO's automated tasking and delivery platform, HEO Inspect. Once collected, BlackSky Gen-2 NEI and metadata are transferred into HEO Inspect where object detection and identification algorithms generate advanced analytics reports that include information such as a satellite's attitude and location, subsystems identification and pattern-of-life analyses.
About BlackSky
BlackSky is a leading provider of real-time geospatial intelligence. BlackSky delivers on-demand, high frequency imagery, monitoring and analytics of the most critical and strategic locations, economic assets, and events in the world.
BlackSky designs, owns and operates one of the industry's leading low Earth orbit small satellite constellations, optimized to capture imagery cost-efficiently where and when our customers need it. BlackSky's Spectra AI software platform processes data from BlackSky's constellation and from other third-party sensors to develop the critical insights and analytics that our customers require.
BlackSky is relied upon by U.S. and international government agencies, commercial businesses, and organizations around the world. BlackSky is headquartered in Herndon, VA, and is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange as BKSY. To learn more, visit www.blacksky.com and follow us on X (formerly Twitter).
About HEO
HEO delivers on-demand non-Earth imagery and insights of spacecraft of interest at scale to government, defense, and commercial customers using a growing constellation of in-space sensors. HEO partners with Earth observation satellite constellations and launches its own non-Earth imaging (NEI) cameras as hosted payloads with the goal to achieve proliferation of NEI sensors on all orbits in the Earth-Moon system. HEO is headquartered in Australia with offices in the UK and USA.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws with respect to BlackSky. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words "believe," "project," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "strategy," "future," "opportunity," "plan," "may," "should," "will," "would," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections, and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this document. If any of these risks materialize or underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements reflect our expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this communication. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause their assessments to change. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date, and we do not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. Additional risks and uncertainties are identified and discussed in BlackSky's disclosure materials filed from time to time with the SEC which are available at the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov or on BlackSky's Investor Relations website at https://ir.blacksky.com.
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