Empowering Collaboration: The constellr Journey

‍How it all started

The last couple of years have been especially exciting for the satellite imagery business. The industry is experiencing a major growth as it finally aligns itself with the mainstream market. While a big part of that shift can be contributed to technological advancements and sensor quality, the essential element that transforms the modern EO landscape is the emergence of new business models. With the growing ecosystem of value-added-services, data platforms, marketplaces and user-oriented solutions we can finally see data impact on larger markets, and hopefully, in the near future, on society as a whole.  

To unlock the true potential of data and reshape the industry's approach from a narrow emphasis on tech innovation to more of a solution-oriented product mindset, we need one not so secret ingredient. We need to double down on building a collaborative environment and inter-industry partnerships. At constellr we believe that collaboration with clients and industry experts on data curation, analytics and interpretation, is fundamental to more effective use of spatial data and results in - growth of the wider market.  

The constellr way

We’re dedicated to providing the most accurate surface temperature data, offering value to industries dependent on precise insights into water and carbon. It’s important to emphasize that as a data provider, our responsibilities go beyond just acquiring data. We fully understand the crucial significance of data interoperability. To truly capture the value of satellite-derived datasets, it's essential to ensure their seamless integration into existing systems, even those outside of typical geospatial workflows.  

Whether it's evaluating crop health, estimating yield potential, or measuring evapotranspiration in the fields, automated analytics play a crucial role in helping our customers gain a deeper understanding of changes and make critical decisions more efficiently. This collaboration with analytics and data-processing firms allows us to convert data into impactful applications for end-users.

That is why constellr satellites provide a data stream perfectly aligned with the planned ESA Copernicus Land Surface Temperature Monitoring Mission and NASA Surface Biology and Geology missions.  

The validation of our LST model is aligned to CEOS Working Group on Calibration and Validation best practice protocol and Analysis Ready Data (ARD) standards.

Finally, constellr data uses the Sentinel-2 GRI reference image and gridding system to ensure a high data interoperability to Copernicus as well as USGS Harmonized Landsat Sentinel data.

Our commitment to collaboration drives our recent involvement in the John Deere Startup Collaborator Program. Partnering with John Deere, we are embarking on a journey to explore and identify use cases that add value to their operations. By sharing constellr LST 30 data in 2024, we aim to assess how satellite thermal data can enhance crop production processes involving farm machinery. This collaboration not only allows us to provide a glimpse into the potential of our data but also prepares John Deere for the integration of data from our upcoming satellite launches.

Experience is invaluable, and our partnership with John Deere emphasizes continuous learning and development as we navigate the realm of satellite thermal data in global food production. Through this journey, we are building first-hand experience together, laying the groundwork for delivering impactful solutions.

Furthermore, our participation in the Copernicus Mission has facilitated connections with governmental and research institutions, enabling us to address critical agricultural and institutional needs across Europe. By offering insights to these entities, with the European Commission serving as an anchor customer, we receive valuable feedback on our data's performance. This feedback loop guides us in defining innovative applications to tackle climate security challenges and opens up new avenues for collaboration and growth.  

In our previous article, we discussed how valuable satellite LST is for improving our understanding of temperature dynamics across a landscape that can’t be measured by weather stations. We are working with customers to understand how this data can enhance predictive models, such as disease pressure. The image below illustrates the detailed insights provided by LST, revealing field-level variability and aiding in the identification of potential crop diseases.

constellrs customer journey

1. Firstly, we agree with the customer on the objectives on what we will explore and look to develop together. In the case of diseases, which one are we focusing on? What is the current data set used to create the model?  How do we believe that we can incorporate LST with the existing  data set?
   

2. We identify geographic areas to focus on, preferably those where the customer is able to collect in-field data that can be used in our analysis.  The time period is another critical period that we align on, which times of the year are critical to collect data from on a particular disease.
   

3. Once these are agreed on, we plan out the data delivery timeline, who will analyse what, how frequently we shall meet and when the evaluation meeting will take place.
   

4. Disease prediction modelling is one use case, but we’re not limited to agriculture, our data has the power to be used with artificial intelligence to understand trends. These include assessing and understanding how spatial variations in temperature impact on purchases of water, ice cream and other goods purchased during heat waves. This data has the power to enable supermarkets to distribute such goods in the regions that will require them the most.

To deliver such solutions, collaborating with customers and learning to utilise and interpret LST is essential.

We are searching for innovators

As we gear up towards the launch of our first satellites later this year, we’re looking to connect with organizations interested in building value-added products on top of our data for use in internal operations improvements or for integration into customer solutions. We know that using thermal is a bit of a puzzle right now, so we’re on the lookout for the early-adopters, companies interested in running pilots, evaluating results and sharing feedback. We want to contribute our part to the collaborative environment and would love your input to help us fine-tune our products.  

Finally, for those where we see a perfect match, we'd like to offer an invitation to our Early Access Program – a chance to secure priority access to the data at attractive terms starting today. If you're a data reseller, analytics company, system integrator, or any entity processing satellite imagery and interested in using our data, please reach out – https://www.constellr.com/contact

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