EarthDaily Analytics recently announced $60 million in financing from Trinity Capital that will allow them to finish building and launching their Earth observation constellation in 2026.
EarthDaily is an Earth observation company that focuses on whole-of-Earth change detection through multispectral imagery, and they’re in the process of building the EarthDaily Constellation, a ten-satellite constellation that will “deliver unmatched, high-quality data and insights that push the boundaries of what’s possible in Earth Observation,” according to EarthDaily CEO Don Osborne.
EarthDaily already launched their first satellite in late June as part of the Transporter-14 rideshare mission. EarthDaily confirmed that “telemetry has been received, solar arrays have successfully deployed, and the satellite has transitioned to a safe attitude and is power positive.” The satellite uses one of Loft Orbital’s Longbow satellite buses, and multispectral imagers from Switzerland’s ABB.
According to an interview with SpaceQ by EarthDaily VP Engineering Chris Rampersand, the company designed its satellites to be larger and more complex than a standard CubeSat, in the name of ensuring greater capability and longevity. The constellation is also designed to last longer than most, seven to ten years, and to avoid “continuous capex reinvestment every year.” Rampersand said to SpaceQ that this will allow them to make longer-term plans and save on ongoing capital expenditure on replacement satellites.
Rampersand elaborated on this explaining that the constellations’ unique capability is that it will be imaging the entire planet every day instead of being “tasked” with observing certain regions. When combined with AI-based algorithmic analysis, this would allow the constellation to detect and highlight relevant changes without being affected by changes in weather, time of day, or satellite tasking angles.
Securing money to finish the constellation
SpaceQ had reported earlier this year that the remaining satellites in the constellation (9) were tentatively scheduled to launch later this year on another rideshare mission, this according to a source familiar with EarthDaily.
Osborne though said that the remaining satellites are slated to launch across multiple rideshare missions in 2026, and will be “carefully planned to ensure optimal orbital phasing and temporal consistency.” He also said that the loan from Trinity Capital “enables us to optimize our capital structure and reflects continued confidence from institutional investors in our business and long-term vision.”
Osborne also told SpaceNews that the “equipment financing supports the final build and deployment of the EarthDaily Constellation, helping us maintain schedule momentum and ensure technical excellence as we complete the remaining satellites.” He added that “more than 300 customers have already engaged through our early adopter programs to access sample data from our first satellite.”
For their part, Trinity Capital’s Senior Managing Director of Equipment Finance, Ryan Little, said that “we are proud to partner with their team as they work to redefine how we understand our planet.”
