SatLeo prepares to launch first thermal-imaging payload

SAN FRANCISCO – Indian startup SatLeo Labs is preparing to launch its first thermal-imaging payload early next year.

By the end of 2026, the Ahmedabad-based startup intends to launch the first of 12 microsatellites to gather electro-optical and thermal infrared imagery.

“Not only will we be getting the visible dataset of any particular object or area, but also the thermal dataset in two bands: mid-wave infrared and long-wave infrared,” SatLeo CEO Shravan Bhati told SpaceNews.

Long-wave infrared reveals land-surface temperature, while mid-wave infrared exposes forest fires and urban heat islands.

SatLeo was established in 2023 by Bhati, a satellite and geospatial specialist, along with retired Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) scientist Ranendu Ghosh, and Urmil Bakhai, former business development head for Amnex Technologies.

Financing

In April, SatLeo closed a $3.3 million round led by Merak Ventures. With that funding, the 150-person company booked its first launch on a Space-X Transporter rideshare and expanded its staff to bring in scientists and engineers from ISRO.

“With access to scientists who have worked on similar projects, we certainly can solve this problem and build this payload,” Bhati said.

In addition, SatLeo is benefitting from access to local manufacturers and the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), which provides access to infrastructure including sophisticated testing facilities. “Because of IN-SPACe, it is possible that we can build this particular payload within six to eight months,” Bhati said.

Tapas or “Heat”

Testing and calibration have been completed for SatLeo’s first experimental payload, called Thermal Access Platform for Analytics and Solution, or Tapas, which means heat in Sanskrit. Tapas is designed to provide thermal imagery with five-meter resolution and 2.5-meter-resolution electro-optical imagery.

“The payload is ready and very soon we will be sending it to the U.S. to launch it,” Bhati said.

With funding in hand, SatLeo also is building the first of 12 microsatellites. When completed, the constellation will “capture imagery of any particular location or area twice a day,” Bhati said.  

Accurate thermal imagery is more important than ever, Bhati said, because of climate change, adding “Temperature and heat is changing the entire world and changing our behavior.”

Government agencies and employers will need to know where and when it is unsafe to perform construction or farm work. But measurements for an entire city are not useful, since temperatures vary from residential areas and parks to industrial centers or densely populated urban areas.

By providing high-resolution data, “we can create the impact,” Bhati said. “That’s very important.”