A BlackSky Gen-2 satellite captured this image of China’s Tiangong space station at a distance of 83 kilometers in March. Photo: BlackSky

BlackSky Technology has signed a seven-figure expansion contract with HEO to provide imagery of objects in space for space domain awareness monitoring. 

HEO is an Australian startup specializing in non-Earth imaging (NEI) and analytics. This marks This is an expansion of a seven-figure deal announced last year, when HEO added BlackSky’s constellation into its sensor network. 

BlackSky said Tuesday that the imagery data services deal is now moving into its fourth phase after automating the tasking-to-delivery process. HEO’s software platform will autonomously identify imaging opportunities and task BlackSky’s Gen-2 satellites to detect, track, characterize, and classify objects in orbit. HEO customers can request non-Earth imaging products through HEO’s tasking and delivery platform.

While BlackSky’s satellites are typically collecting imagery for customers of Earth — in-orbit imaging uses some of BlackSky’s capacity when satellites are passing over the ocean or traveling across the dark side of Earth. 

“Achieving true space awareness is going to require levels of inspection platforms across orbits, ready to capture imagery at a moment’s notice and HEO is building exactly that,” said Dr. Will Crowe, Co-Founder and CEO of HEO. “BlackSky’s high-resolution satellites and automated capacity give us eyes in mid-inclination orbit, turning downtime into an intelligence goldmine for operators who need to know what’s happening around their assets, when it happens.”