Ibadan, 27 August 2027. – Loft Orbital has contracted Simera Sense to supply 10 of its HyperScape100 hyperspectral imagers to support its growing multi-sensor, AI-based space infrastructure services offering. The procurement expands Simera Sense’s growing role as a European provider of optical payloads for small-satellite missions.
Flexible hyperspectral imaging for evolving mission needs
Capable of delivering high-performance 32-band imagery at 4.75-meter ground sampling distance from low Earth orbit, the compact hyperspectral imager features a configurable architecture designed for mission flexibility. Operators can select 32 spectral bands from a library of 400 available spectral positions and update those selections in orbit, allowing the payload to adapt to changing mission objectives.
Simera Sense designs its optical payloads to support a range of Earth observation applications requiring timely, high-quality imagery from orbit, including environmental monitoring, infrastructure observation, land-use analysis and maritime awareness. More so, the payloads combine high performance and a compact form factor with heritage across small-satellite missions.
“Loft operates in exactly the kind of environment for which our imagers were designed,” explained Thys Cronje, Chief Commercial Officer at Simera Sense. “Supplying 10 HyperScape100 imagers over the past 12 months speaks to the strength of our relationship and the growing importance of proven, mission-ready payloads for modern commercial space programs.”
“We’re proud to support Loft across a range of missions and to help make high-quality, space-based hyperspectral imaging more accessible to customers worldwide.”
Growing demand for compact Earth observation payloads
The contract reflects the increasing demand for compact, reliable, and flight-proven optical payloads that can quickly be integrated into satellite platforms. This payload reliability and integration ease have become more crucial to a mission’s success as satellite operators serve an expanding range of institutional and commercial customers.
For Simera Sense, the agreement strengthens its relationship with Loft Orbital, as well as the company’s growing role in the commercial small-satellite market. It also demonstrates the increasing adoption of compact hyperspectral payloads in the industry as satellite operators seek to add more diverse sensing capabilities to their missions.
Simera Sense expands its compact imaging portfolio
Emphasizing the importance of compact payloads in modern small-satellite missions, Simera Sense has also launched the xScape200 Dual-Use, an update to its xScape200 product line. The new variant is designed to support commercial, government and defense missions.
While the new model retains the xScape200‘s 1.5-meter resolution from an orbital altitude of 500 km, it has a compact 12U form factor and weighs 3 kg less than its predecessor. This reduced mass, combined with lower power consumption, enables 1.5-meter imaging on smaller satellite platforms and supports more distributed constellations.
Furthermore, the new xScape200 Dual-Use does not carry the military-use restriction associated with its predecessor. The xScape200 could not be used for military applications because of the end-use restrictions associated with its detector. However, the new model uses a different U.S.-made detector that eliminates this restriction.
“It brings high-resolution imaging without the mass, cost and complexity typically associated with larger payloads,” explained Simera Sense’s CEO Johann du Toit. “It has a wide range of applications for a wide range of industries, from defense to environmental monitoring. Operators can now use the same compact platform across commercial, government and security applications without compromising on its 1.5 m resolution.”
Alongside the xScape200 Dual-Use, Simera Sense also unveiled the xScape-XGS45000 Imager Electronics. Together, the two products highlight the growing convergence of institutional and commercial Earth observation requirements.
