Satellite Constellations
See all articlesPixxel's Constellations Overview
Pixxel operates two primary satellite constellations: Firefly and Honeybee. Each constellation has distinct capabilities tailored for different spectral ranges, with Firefly focusing on VNIR (Visible and Near-Infrared) imaging and Honeybee offering both VNIR and SWIR (Short-Wave Infrared) capabilities.
The table below provides a comprehensive comparison of the key technical specifications and operational parameters for both constellations:
| Parameters | Firefly Constellation | Honeybee Constellation |
| Ground Spatial Distance (GSD) | 5.36 meters | 5 meters |
| Swath | 40 km | 10 km SWIR 30 km VNIR |
| Wavelength range | 470 - 900 nm | 470 - 2500 nm |
| Total available bands | 150 bands | ~160 VNIR, ~100 SWIR |
| Total selectable bands | 45 bands | Total: 72 VNIR - 46, SWIR - 26 |
| Orbit | Sun Synchronous Polar Orbit (SSO) Satellites maintain same position relative to the sun |
Sun Synchronous Polar Orbit (SSO) Satellites maintain same position relative to the sun |
| Orbit Inclination | 97.65° | 97.45° |
| Altitude | 590 km | 550 km (TBD) |
| Equator Crossing Time | 10 - 11 AM | 10 - 11 AM |
| Off-nadir angle/slew | +/- 20° (+/-10° recommended) | +/- 20° (+/-10° recommended) |
| Revisit time | 1 - 2 days (based on latitude) | 1 - 4 days (based on latitude) |
| Cloud cover thresholds | <20% | <20% |
| Imagery bit depth | 10 bits of dynamic range, stretched to fill a 16-bit container | 10 bits of dynamic range, stretched to fill a 16-bit container |
For more details, please refer to the Link.
Firefly Constellation (470–900 nm with 5m Resolution)
The Firefly Satellites are planned to be launched in 2024. The sensors on these satellites are equipped to provide hyperspectral imagery of 160 bands in the 470–900 nm range at a 5-meter GSD.
Mission Characteristics
| Parameters | Firefly Constellation |
| Ground Spatial Distance (GSD) | 5.4 meters |
| Swath | 40 km |
| Wavelength range | 470 - 900 nm |
| Band Information |
Bandwidths: 2nm - 11 nm Range: 467.9 nm - 902.6 nm, 161 hyperspectral bands |
| Total available bands | ~160 bands |
| Total selectable bands | ~50 bands |
| Orbit | Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO), 97.65° inclination |
| Altitude | 565 km |
| Equator Crossing Time | 10 - 11 AM |
| Off-nadir angle (ONA)/slew | +/- 20° (+/-10° recommended) |
| Revisit time | 1 - 4 days |
| Cloud cover thresholds | <20% |
| Imagery bit depth | 10 bits of dynamic range, stretched to fill a 16-bit container |
For more details, please refer to the Link.
Honeybee Constellation (470–2500 nm with 5m Resolution)
The Honeybee satellites are planned to be launched in 2026. The sensors on these satellites are equipped to provide hyperspectral imagery of 260 bands in the 470–2500 nm range at a 5-meter GSD.
Mission Characteristics
| Parameters | Honeybee Constellation |
| Ground Spatial Distance (GSD) | 5 meters |
| Swath |
10 km SWIR 30 km VNIR |
| Wavelength range | 470 - 2500 nm |
| Total available bands | ~160 VNIR, ~100 SWIR |
| Total selectable bands |
Total: 72 VNIR - 46, SWIR - 26 |
| Orbit | Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO), 97.45° inclination |
| Altitude | 550 km (TBD) |
| Equator Crossing Time | 10 - 11 AM |
| Off-nadir angle (ONA)/slew | +/- 20° (+/-10° recommended) |
| Revisit time | 1 - 4 days |
| Cloud cover thresholds | <20% |
| Imagery bit depth | 10 bits of dynamic range, stretched to fill a 16-bit container |
For more details, please refer to the Link.
Pixxel Imagery 101
See all articlesPixxel Imagery Overview
Product Bundles:
- L1C: Map Projected TOA Reflectance Image (available on demand)
- L2A: Level 1C and Map Projected BOA Reflectance Image (default option unless otherwise specified)
Product Processing:
| NAME | DESCRIPTION | PRODUCT LEVEL |
|---|---|---|
| Bottom of Atmosphere (BOA) reflectance |
This is radiometric, geometric, and atmospheric (aerosol and water vapour) corrected BOA reflectance data. The image is orthorectified and projected to WGS84 projection. The data is available in a geoTIFF file format (accompanied by additional metadata). The pixel reflectance values are linearly scaled between 0 - 50000. Thus to convert the image to 0-1 reflectance range, all the pixel values must be divided by 50000. |
L2A |
| Top of Atmosphere (TOA) reflectance |
This is radiometric, and geometric corrected TOA reflectance data. The image is orthorectified and projected to WGS84 projection. The data is available in a geoTIFF file format (accompanied by additional metadata). The pixel reflectance values are linearly scaled between 0 - 50000. Thus to convert the image to 0-1 reflectance range, all the pixel values must be divided by 50000. |
L1C (available upon request) |
Product Metadata:
Each of the image products contains an image file in GeoTIFF format, an RGB composite thumbnail of the image in JPEG format, a footprint, and a bounding box in GeoJSON format.