UP42, a prominent geospatial developer platform and marketplace, has partnered with Umbra, a leader in advanced space radar technology, to offer improved access to high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data. The announcement was made in a joint video released at the World Satellite Business Week conference.
Through this partnership, Umbra’s direct tasking capabilities with the highest resolution SAR data are now available on the UP42 marketplace. SAR satellites have the unique ability to capture images at night and in challenging weather conditions such as cloud cover, smoke, and rain, allowing for effective monitoring of various applications. These applications include monitoring floating oil lid inventory, deforestation, mines, container ports, and changes in land use.
Sean Wiid, CEO of UP42, considers the partnership with Umbra to be highly strategic due to the complementarity of the data. He highlights Umbra’s high-quality data, high-quality APIs, scalable business, and licensing models as factors that contribute to the success of platforms like UP42.
The key features of Umbra’s high-resolution SAR data include resolutions of up to 25 cm, frequent revisit rates of 6-12 hours depending on latitude for disaster monitoring, security, and agriculture applications, open licensing under a Creative Commons authorization, and a simple FIFO tasking system based on timeslot.
UP42’s tasking capabilities, equipped with advanced features such as order tracking, automated delivery, and support for complex AOIs, are brought to the forefront with this announcement. Umbra’s tasked data is also managed in UP42’s STAC-compatible storage, enabling easier search, data management, processing, and integrations.
Joe Morrison, VP of Commercial Product at Umbra, emphasizes the need for partners like UP42 to educate users on adopting SAR technology in their workflows. He praises the technical expertise of UP42’s team and their ability to consult on real applications, which he believes will drive substantial growth in the future.
To access Umbra’s highest resolution SAR imagery, interested individuals can visit UP42’s marketplace.
(Source: Removed)