- February 4, 2009
- Posted by: EARSC
- Category: Archive
(4 February 2009) MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd., a provider of essential information solutions, announced today it has successfully delivered the RapidEye information solution to its customer, RapidEye AG in Germany, thereby enabling commencement of commercial operations.
The RapidEye information solution includes a constellation of five Earth Observation satellites and the related ground infrastructure. RapidEye AG is a commercial business who will deploy this solution to deliver agricultural land information products and services such as crop monitoring and mapping, yield prediction, and natural disaster assessment.
The satellite constellation for the RapidEye information solution was developed by MDA and launched in August 2008. Since then MDA has been commissioning and calibrating the system to ensure optimal performance of both the space and ground segments.
Steve Oldham, MDA’s vice president in charge of this business said, ‘We are extremely pleased with the delivery of the RapidEye System to RapidEye AG. This demonstrates MDA’s ability to deliver an end-to-end information solution based on an advanced operational smallsat mission at a very attractive price/performance ratio. We look forward to supporting our customer in their commercial operations.’
RapidEye’s CEO, Wolfgang Biedermann, stated that, “Not only will they be able to begin selling their data products, but they will now be able to integrate imagery into current services for Southern Hemisphere clients and be ready for the upcoming Northern Hemisphere growing season.”
The Canadian Commercial Corporation, a Government of Canada crown corporation, is acting as the contracting agency between MDA and RapidEye AG.
About MDA
MDA provides advanced information solutions that capture and process vast amounts of data, produce essential information, and improve the decision making and operational performance of business and government organizations worldwide.
Focused on markets and customers with strong repeat business potential, MDA delivers a broad spectrum of information solutions, ranging from complex operational systems, to tailored information services, to electronic information products.
MDA employs more than 3,300 people in locations across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
(source: MDA) and SpaceNews