Providing Earth observation via stratospheric balloons.
Overview
| Company | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Montreal, Quebec |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Founder(s) | Katrina Albert, Vincent Lachance |
| Ownership | Private |
| Media | ||
|---|---|---|
| Website |
Description
Lux Aerobot found initial success using stratospheric balloons to monitor wildfires. Applying artificial intelligence to ultra-high resolution digital images produces unique insights into activities happening on Earth. Just two years after their founding, the startup had attracted the attention of the Australian Defence Force which benefits from the real-time persistent remote sensing opportunities provided by the technology.
Applying their expertise to wildfires and coastline monitoring is only the start for the company. They aspire to create a digital twin of the Earth's surface that could unlock insights about human and other activities on the planet like never before.
What about satellite Earth observations? Though the resolution and frequency of Earth observation satellites is improving quickly, the difference in resolution between taking a picture from 400 kms and less than 40 kms away continues to be significant. Balloons can hover for much longer than LEO satellites which orbit approximately once every 90 minutes. These discrepancies mean a niche exists for drones and balloons in Earth observation. Instead of seeing them as direct competitors, they often provide complementary datasets
The company's website highlights their expertise in industries like security, agriculture, forestry, insurance, supply chain and local government. This provides many interesting opportunities for future business expansion.
Recent News & Updates
January 13, 2022
Lux Aerobot's first commercial success happened in Australia, but the team is also making important advances in Canada. In January, 2022, they demonstrated their technology at Alma, QC and later the same year returned for strategic planning.
Successful launch of a stratospheric balloon for Lux Aerobot in Alma, a first in Canada
Lux Aerobot becomes the first Canadian company to successfully launch a stratospheric platform to accomplish Earth observation. The high-altitude balloon flew off the ground from Alma Airport this morning at 5:20 in order to reach a maximum altitude of around 20 km, for a flight duration of 3 hours, to finally land at more than 300km from the launch site, in the Côte-Nord region.
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