Ordering Satellite Imagery

This guide walks you through tasking/ordering satellite imagery, from selecting your area of interest to completing your purchase.

What's Covered:

• Account setup 
• Create a new order
• Place order 
• Completing Your Purchase

Step 1: Account setup 

Sign up to Aurora to create your org. Once you have created an org, add members and projects to get started.

Step 2: Complete your KYC/KYB (for compliance)

Navigate to: Order Desk → Order New Image

You will be required to complete the KYC/KYB, for more information refer to this article.

Step 3: Creating your Order

• Choose your Area of Interest (AOI) by drawing on the map or uploading
• Set capture time window

Step 4: Add to cart

Before adding to cart:

• Select your required parameters
• Click "Check feasibility" to verify satellite availability
• Once feasible, click "Add to cart" to proceed

Step 5: Completing Your Purchase

Before placing your order:

• Review the order summary
• Check your available tokens
• Click "Place order" to complete purchase

Note: For recurring orders, ensure you have sufficient tokens in your wallet 2 days before each upcoming occurrence.

In case you have any further questions, please reach out to support

Learn who can create, place, and view orders in a project.

Your permissions depend on your role in the project. Some actions, like placing orders, are restricted to ensure proper control and billing transparency.

Role Permissions Table

Note: Ask your organization or project admin to upgrade your role if you cannot place an order in the right project.

Before placing an order, you’ll need to complete the organization verification (KYB) process. If you’re operating as an individual, personal verification (KYC) will be required instead. To do this, head to Order Desk and click on the appropriate option.

Important: Have personal identification documents ready before starting for a smooth verification process.

Topics:

1. Know Your Business (KYB) Process
2. Know Your Customer (KYC)  Process

1. Know Your Business (KYB) Process

Step 1: Registration

• Enter email address on the registration page
• 

Step 2: Email Verification

• Check inbox for verification code
• Enter code in designated fields.

Step 3: Company Search

• Enter the country where your business is based
• Enter company name
• [Optional] Provide jurisdiction code (PIN code)
• [Optional] Enter registered business address 

• Click "Confirm" to search

Step 4: Select Your Company

• Choose company from search results. 

• If your company is not listed, use the "Can't find the company" option.
• Click "Confirm" to continue 

Step 5: Business Data

• Confirm company's status (Active/Inactive)
• Enter company registration number

• Click "Submit"

Step 6: Document Upload

Please upload the following documents:

• Certificate of Incorporation
• Tax Document equivalent
• Do any of the individuals or entities described above have any association with any foreign governments or foreign government-controlled entities? If so, please mention it with documentation. 

• Click "Submit" when all documents are uploaded 

Step 7: Completion

• View "Onboarding Completed" screen

• Verification takes 24-48 hours 

2. Know Your Customer (KYC) Process

Step 1: Registration

• Enter email address on the registration page

• Click "Confirm" to create account

Step 2: Email Verification

• Check inbox for verification code

Step 3: Personal Information

• Enter personal details:

Step 4: Identity Verification

• Select country of residence

Step 5: Document Upload

• Select issuing country
• Choose document type (passport, ID card, residence permit, driver's license)
  • Take clear photo with all corners visible

• Upload through the platform

Please note: Upload clear selfies with your government issued identification as shown below:

Note: KYC can also continue this through your phone:

• You will receive status updates (if you proceeded via phone, updates will display there)

• Wait for "Submitted" status
• Click "Submit" 

Step 6: Completion

• View "Onboarding Completed" screen

• Verification processed within 24-48 hours

Supported Geometry Types:

• Polygons (single enclosed areas)
• Multi-Polygons (multiple separate polygons)
• Points (individual coordinates - map selection only, no uploads)

Pixxel Satellite Data Ordering Guidelines

✅ Do's

• Keep total area under 5,000 sq km per order
• Ensure polygons are within 200 km of each other
• Select points directly on the map interface
• Submit orders with compliant geometries for faster processing

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❌ Don'ts

• Exceed 5,000 sq km total area in a single order
• Place polygons more than 200 sq km apart
• Upload point-based orders
• Submit orders that violate size or distance limitations

Reason: AOI too large

Reason: AOI too far apart (marked with the red dotted lines)

After an image is captured, Aurora provides several delivery speed options. While the default processing time is 14 days at the moment (to be improved to 36 hours), you can request faster turnaround for an additional uplift fee. The uplift is calculated as a percentage of the base imagery cost.

Select the delivery option that best matches your mission requirements:

• 14 days (Default) – Standard processing at no extra cost. This will be improved to 36 hours very soon.
• 24 hours (Coming Soon) – Faster access to processed imagery for a 20 % uplift. This will be coming soon.

Need support or further information about the delivery timeline? We’re happy to help!

Pixxel's Firefly constellation offers specialized bandsets optimized for VNIR specific industries and applications.

Each bandset is carefully designed with selected spectral bands that enhance detection capabilities for targeted use cases, from mineral exploration to marine ecosystem monitoring.

*This bandset (All Bands) requires 3 separate captures that are non-contemporaneous. Variation between each capture is based on constellation capacity. 

For more questions, please reach out to support@pixxel.space

Pixxel’s Firefly constellation, consisting of six satellites, enables scheduled recurring captures of your Area of Interest (AOI) for consistent monitoring over time.

Available Recurrence Options

When placing a monitoring order, you can select from the following recurrence frequencies:

• Weekly (Coming soon, after the launch of the rest 3 satellites in the constellation)

• Once in 2 weeks (Coming soon)

• Monthly

• Bi-monthly

• Quarterly

Minimum Requirements for Monitoring Orders

To qualify as a monitoring order, your request must meet these criteria:

• A minimum of 4 recurrences must be scheduled

• The time range selected must be sufficient to accommodate all recurrences

Choosing the End Date

You can define the duration of your monitoring order in one of the following ways:

• Select an end date up to two years from the start date

• Choose a custom end date using the calendar (ensure it allows for at least 4 recurrences)

• Specify the number of ocurrences, and the system will calculate the required duration automatically

Viewing Recurrence Details

Once your order is created, you can click on "View Recurring Orders" to see the planned time windows for each scheduled capture.

A quick guide to understanding the structure of Pixxel orders.

Every order you place is broken into one or more tasks, depending on what you’re requesting. This structure helps the system track feasibility, scheduling, and delivery more accurately.

How it works

• Order = The overall request (tasking, archive, or recurring)
• Task = The actionable unit inside an order. Can include multiple captures based on the size of the AOI.

Examples:

• Single tasking order → 1 task
• Archive order → 1 task
• Recurring order → Multiple tasks, each representing one scheduled capture

Note: Future recurring tasks stay in Draft until their feasibility check and placement 5 days before the start date. But the Order stays in Active state from the time of placement of first instance. To understand task statuses, refer to this article.

Order statuses summarize the outcome of all tasks inside that order. They help you quickly understand whether your order is complete, partially successful, or still in progress.But within each order, there might be separate tasks as well and each task moves through its own lifecycle. This article explains the different statuses and their meanings.

DISCLAIMER: 

• Orders which are Active indicates the order has passed feasibility/payment and is now in the scheduling queue all the way up to image delivery.  
• Tasks which are In Progress would indicate that capture attempts have been made and the images are either being processed or need to be recaptured. Please reach out to support@pixxel.space to understand the exact status of your order. 

You can find more detailed definition of status in the Aurora User Guide.

1. You can export the images to our preferred delivery process

2. You can choose your desired delivery method - Local and Cloud storage

3. Save your preferred selection for future orders. 

Aurora currently delivers hyperspectral imagery as individual strips (segments of the full satellite capture). Clipping to custom areas or mosaicing multiple strips into a seamless scene will be available in a future release.

1 min Video Tutorial -

This guide walks you through the process of ordering new satellite imagery through the Order Desk. 

Getting Started

1. Navigate to the Explore page

2. Click on "Heatmap" in the dropdown menu

• Choose your preferred satellite options:
  • Pixxel-TD01
  • Pixxel-TD02 
  • Pixxel-Firefly or
  • All

Finding Available Imagery

1. Explore the world map to locate available imagery
2. Look for red location markers indicating capture points
3. Zoom out to view the global distribution of available imagery

1. Click on a marker to preview available images for that location

Hover over the image on the right to access 

Click "Add to cart" for your desired image

1. Fill out the order form:
   • Name your order
   • Select appropriate use case
   • Assign to a project (if applicable)
2. Confirm by clicking "Add to cart"

Checkout Process

• Access your cart via the cart icon in the left sidebar

• Review your selected imagery
• Click on Place order to place the order

Once your order is processed, your satellite imagery will be available in the catalogue

In case you have any further questions reach out to: support@pixxel.space

All your purchased imagery is stored securely in your Catalog for immediate access whenever you need it, making it your centralized repository for all satellite data you own.

Accessing Your Catalog

• Open the Aurora platform through your web browser

• Locate the left sidebar menu that contains various navigation options
• Click on the "Catalog" icon - represented by an image gallery symbol in the sidebar (highlighted in yellow)

• Your catalog will immediately open, displaying all your purchased imagery

What's Available in Your Catalog

Your Catalog includes all imagery you've obtained through Aurora:

• Archive Imagery: Historical satellite images you've purchased
• Tasked Imagery: Custom satellite captures you've specifically ordered

When ordering satellite imagery through Aurora, you can choose from several tasking options based on your timeline and requirements:

For all tasking options, our standard delivery timeline is 36 hours from the time of capture.

This article will help understanding Pixxel's minimum order requirements. This will help plan your satellite imagery purchases effectively.

Tasking Orders (New Collection)

Important Note: If your area of interest is smaller than 100 sq km, you will still be charged for the 100 square kilometers minimum.

Archive Orders

Important Note: When ordering from our archive, you cannot select partial strips - the complete captured image strip must be ordered.

These requirements help us maintain operational efficiency while providing you with the highest quality imagery possible.

When placing a capture request on Aurora, you can select from the following timeline options. Uplift charges vary based on how soon the capture is needed. For Expedited, Critical, and Assured tasking, charges apply regardless of cloud cover.

Important Notes

• Flexible captures do not incur any uplift and are scheduled with a broader lead time.
• Expedited, Critical, and Assured captures are charged irrespective of cloud cover. This means that even if the resulting image has cloud obstruction, the full amount will still be billed due to the prioritized scheduling and resource allocation required.
• Assured captures guarantee acquisition on a specific date with at least 7 days' notice.

These uplift tiers help prioritize satellite tasking and ensure timely delivery based on your needs. For optimal results and cost efficiency, select the timeline that best matches your urgency and tolerance for cloud cover.

If you're unsure which option suits your use case, our Customer Success team is happy to help.