UK startup raises $18.5M to fly satellites in unique orbits
▼ Summary
– Very low Earth orbit (VLEO), at 200-300km altitude, is a commercially unused band of space between aircraft and conventional satellites, historically used only for spy satellites and the ISS.
– NewOrbit, a Reading-based company, announced an oversubscribed $18.5 million Series A funding round on Monday.
– The funding will support NewOrbit’s development of satellites designed to operate in VLEO.
A band of near-Earth space between 200 and 300 kilometers has long been considered too risky for commercial use. While commercial aircraft cruise at around 10 kilometers and traditional satellites orbit at 500 kilometers, this very low Earth orbit (VLEO) zone was historically the domain of spy satellites and the International Space Station. Now, a UK startup is changing that.
Reading-based NewOrbit has secured an oversubscribed $18.5 million Series A funding round, announced Monday, to build satellites designed specifically for this unique altitude. The company aims to unlock VLEO for commercial applications, offering advantages like lower latency and higher resolution imaging compared to conventional satellite orbits. This investment signals strong investor confidence in the untapped potential of this near-Earth region.
(Source: The Next Web)
