On January 24, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station carrying 143 small satellites, a record for a single launch, and the company’s first dedicated “rideshare” mission.

The same mission deployed six synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites into orbit, marking another milestone in the growth of the SAR industry. 

2021 has the makings for a stellar year in the remote sensing satellite industry, and for /blog/faq-what-is-sar">synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems in particular. To spotlight new developments, we’ll be periodically posting entries—like this one—to share the thoughts and insights of Adam Maher, SAR satellite industry expert and CEO of Ursa Space Systems. 

This year, the COVID-19 pandemic caused wide-reaching upheaval, profoundly altering patterns of life across the globe.  As the effect of widespread lockdowns spread, many of these changes could be seen from space. Ursa Space captured a subset of effects through satellite imagery, and discussed our findings on this blog. 

It’s now that time to look back and provide a retrospective of a year unlike any before. 

The satellite industry is providing imagery that is more accessible, prolific, reliable, and affordable compared to just a few years ago, at an ever quickening pace.

Each part of the supply chain—the satellite operators, manufacturers, launch service providers, and ground equipment suppliers—have contributed to the transformation taking place. 

Below we will reveal 8 intriguing observations on the hardware side of the business.