HawkEye 360 Inc., the world’s leading commercial provider of space-based radio frequency (RF) data and analytics, announced that its Cluster 4 satellites have successfully launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral site on April 1. The trio of HawkEye 360 satellites, each containing an RF payload developed by HawkEye 360, has established communication with ground control and is set to commence its commissioning process to meet increasing client demand.
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“The successful launch of Cluster 4 marks another critical milestone achieved by HawkEye 360. I am proud to see our team continue to improve the cutting-edge capabilities we have on orbit,” said CEO John Serafini. “Each capacity increase and technological advancement to our constellation opens new possibilities for delivering timely, unique insights to our government, commercial and humanitarian clients.”
Cluster 4 expands HawkEye 360’s existing nine-satellite constellation, which has collected more than 80 million emitter geolocations since 2019. The newly designed satellites include enhanced antenna functions which allow greater flexibility in detecting and geolocating signals across a wide range of frequencies important to our customers.
Cluster 4 is the fourth set of satellites launched by the company and is slated to achieve initial operating capability in June 2022. HawkEye 360‘s Cluster 5 is tested and ready to launch no sooner than June 2022. Together, Cluster 4 and the soon-to-launch Cluster 5 will double HawkEye 360’s on-orbit capacity and significantly expand its collection across the RF spectrum.
Two additional fully funded clusters are scheduled for launch in 2022. These clusters will enable the constellation to have a global revisit rate of less than one hour. This revisit rate is key to further enhancing our ability to monitor global activities and support timely defense, national security, and commercial applications.