Japan's Synspective successfully launches fourth SAR satellite

Synspective, the Japanese provider of Satellite/Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data and solutions, has reported the successful launch and deployment of its fourth SAR satellite, Strix-3. Launched from New Zealand by Rocket Lab's Electron rocket, Strix-3 entered the Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) at a height of 561 km.

Synspective has confirmed that the Strix-3 satellite reached its target orbit and extended its wings. The announcement stated, "Strix-3 was successfully deployed into a Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) at an altitude of 561 km by Rocket Lab's Electron rocket from the Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula." The firm will now begin observation and data acquisition verification over the forthcoming months.

Dr Motoyuki Arai, Founder and CEO of Synspective, shared his thoughts on the successful launch. "Today, we received a report confirming successful communication for the orbital insertion and testing of StriX-3, our fourth satellite. We sincerely thank our Synspective and Rocket Lab teams for their commitment to the StriX-3 project."

Dr Arai also highlighted Synspective's significant growth throughout its six-year history. He said, "We have made significant milestones, including the successful launch of four satellites and the rollout of multiple solutions. Additionally, we've formed partnerships worldwide and engaged with numerous customers, marking our steady growth."

Looking forward, Synspective has outlined its plans for 2024. According to Dr Arai, an emphasis will be placed on enhancing their satellite production facilities, improving their constellation manoeuvres, expanding data supplies, and reinforcing data analysis abilities. He added, "To facilitate societal progress and achieve sustainable development in our generation, we will further our analytics platform business, leveraging data-driven and collective learning."

Synspective's ground-breaking launches since its establishment in 2018 have firmly established it as a leading end-to-end SAR satellite data and solution provider. This latest satellite launch will enhance its high-frequency, high-resolution Earth observation capabilities. It will provide users with more comprehensive satellite data and innovative solutions combining SAR and IoT data via machine learning and data science techniques.

Making the launch a reality, Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company with an established track record of mission success. Rocket Lab delivers launch services, satellite manufacture, spacecraft components, and on-orbit management solutions, making it faster, easier, and more affordable to access space. Headquartered in Long Beach, California, Rocket Lab designs and manufactures the Electron small orbital launch vehicle and the Photon satellite platform, and the Company is developing the large Neutron launch vehicle for constellation deployment.

Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, Rocket Lab's Electron launch vehicle has become the second most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually and has delivered 178 satellites to orbit for private and public sector organisations. This enables operations in national security, scientific research, space debris mitigation, Earth observation, climate monitoring, and communications.

Moreover, Rocket Lab's Photon spacecraft platform has been selected to support NASA missions to the Moon and Mars and the first private commercial mission to Venus. Rocket Lab has three launch pads at two launch sites, including two launch pads at a private orbital launch site in New Zealand and a third launch pad in Virginia.