# GeoEye > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/GeoEye > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/GeoEye.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GeoEye > Source revision: 1356500326 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|American commercial satellite imaging company}} {{Infobox company | name = GeoEye Inc. | logo = GeoEyeLogo.jpg | founded = 1992 Orbital Imaging Corporation
2006 GeoEye | hq_location_city = [Herndon, Virginia](/source/Herndon%2C_Virginia) | hq_location_country = United States | | founder = [Orbital Sciences Corporation](/source/Orbital_Sciences_Corporation) | key_people = [James Alan Abrahamson](/source/James_Alan_Abrahamson) (chairman), Matthew O'Connell, (CEO){{cite news|title=(Interview with Matt O'Connell)|publisher=[American Public Media](/source/American_Public_Media)|work=Future Tense|date=2008-06-26}} | defunct = January 2013, merged with [DigitalGlobe](/source/DigitalGlobe) | revenue = US$183.76 million (2007){{cite web|url=http://finance.google.com/finance?q=geoy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090210045948/http://finance.google.com/finance?q=geoy |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 10, 2009 |title=GeoEye Inc.: NASDAQ:GEOY quotes & news - Google Finance |access-date=2014-02-15}} | operating_income = US$80.33 million (2007) | net_income = US$42.39 million (2007) | assets = US$789.95 million (2007) | equity = US$216.92 million (2007) | num_employees = 410 (2008) | website = }} '''GeoEye Inc.''' (formerly '''Orbital Imaging Corporation''', or '''ORBIMAGE''') was an American commercial [satellite imagery](/source/satellite_imagery) company based in [Herndon, Virginia](/source/Herndon%2C_Virginia).{{cite news| url=https://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/companyProfile?rpc=66&symbol=GEOY.O | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207210214/http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/companyProfile?rpc=66&symbol=GEOY.O | url-status=dead | archive-date=2009-02-07 | publisher=Reuters.com | title=Company Search|access-date=2014-02-15}} GeoEye was merged into the [DigitalGlobe](/source/DigitalGlobe) corporation on January 29, 2013.{{cite web|url=http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/digitalglobe-announces-final-results-merger-consideration-elections-made-geoeye-stockholders-nyse-dgi-1753620.htm |title=DigitalGlobe Announces Final Results of Merger Consideration Elections Made by GeoEye Stockholders |publisher=Marketwire.com |access-date=2014-02-15}} The company was founded in 1992 as a division of [Orbital Sciences Corporation](/source/Orbital_Sciences_Corporation) in the wake of the 1992 [Land Remote Sensing Policy Act](/source/Land_Remote_Sensing_Policy_Act) which permitted private companies to enter the satellite imaging business. The division was [spun off](/source/corporate_spin-off) in 1997. It changed its name to GeoEye in 2006 after acquiring [Denver](/source/Denver), Colorado-based '''Space Imaging Corporation''' for $58 million.{{cite web|author=John Pike |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/intell/library/news/2006/intell-060112-geoeye.htm |title=ORBIMAGE Completes Acquisition of Space Imaging; Changes Brand Name to GeoEye |publisher=Globalsecurity.org |date=2006-01-12 |access-date=2014-02-15}} Space Imaging was founded and controlled by [Raytheon](/source/Raytheon) and [Lockheed Martin](/source/Lockheed_Martin). Its principal asset was the [IKONOS](/source/IKONOS) satellite; the company was founded in the 1990s for the purpose of managing the project that became the IKONOS satellite. Although ORBIMAGE's first chairman was Orbital chairman David W. Thompson, and Orbital at the time owned more than 60 percent of the stock, it no longer has a substantial interest in the company or its successor.{{cite web|url=http://moneycentral.msn.com/ownership?Symbol=GEOY|title=Orbital|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090209073129/http://moneycentral.msn.com/ownership?Symbol=GEOY|archive-date=February 9, 2009|access-date=September 3, 2008}} GeoEye provided {{convert|253|e6sqkm|e6mi2|sp=us|abbr=unit}} of satellite map images to [Microsoft](/source/Microsoft) and [Yahoo!](/source/Yahoo!) search engines. In 2008 [Google](/source/Google) secured exclusive online mapping use of the [GeoEye-1](/source/GeoEye-1) satellite.{{cite web|last=Shankland |first=Stephen |url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10028842-93.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1023_3-0-5 |title=Google to buy GeoEye satellite imagery | Internet & Media - CNET News |publisher=News.cnet.com |date=2008-08-29 |access-date=2014-02-15}} GeoEye maintained major contracts with the [National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency](/source/National_Geospatial-Intelligence_Agency) for the provision of reconnaissance and imagery data. In the early twenty-first century GeoEye was headquartered in [Herndon, Virginia](/source/Herndon%2C_Virginia). Satellite Operations were conducted from Herndon and [Thornton, Colorado](/source/Thornton%2C_Colorado). The location in [St. Louis](/source/St._Louis), Missouri provided additional image processing. Multiple ground stations were located worldwide. In 2011, GeoEye was inducted into the [Space Foundation](/source/Space_Foundation)'s [Space Technology Hall of Fame](/source/Space_Technology_Hall_of_Fame){{cite web|url=http://www.spacetechhalloffame.org/pressrelease1.html|title=Space Tech Hall of Fame|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120423174104/http://www.spacetechhalloffame.org/pressrelease1.html|archive-date=April 23, 2012|access-date=November 17, 2011}} for its role in advancing commercial Earth-imaging satellites.{{cite web |url=http://www.spacefoundation.org/news/story.php?id=1086 |title=Space Foundation, SPACE.com and Space News unite to raise funds for France schools |publisher=Space Foundation |date=2001-12-17 |access-date=2014-02-15 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111004121908/http://www.spacefoundation.org/news/story.php?id=1086 |archive-date=2011-10-04 }} GeoEye was purchased by [DigitalGlobe](/source/DigitalGlobe) in 2013. ==Satellites== ===OrbView 1=== '''OrbView 1''' ('''MicroLab 1''', COSPAR 1995-017C) was a small, 68 kg satellite built by [Orbital Sciences Corporation](/source/Orbital_Sciences_Corporation) for a collaboration between ORBIMAGE and [NASA](/source/NASA). It had a payload of 2 sensors, one from NASA and another from University Consortium for Atmospheric Research, sponsored by National Science Foundation. The collaboration had NASA provide the instruments and ORBIMAGE was in charge of operating them for research purposes for NASA and other academic instances. The sensors studied lightning in the atmosphere and the use of [GPS](/source/GPS) signals in atmospheric studies ([GPS radio occultation](/source/GPS_radio_occultation)). It was launched 3 April 1995 from [Vandenberg AFB](/source/Vandenberg_AFB) by a [Pegasus H](/source/Pegasus_(rocket)) rocket.{{Citation |last=Kerbs|first=Gunter, D|year=2023|title=OrbView 1 (MicroLab 1)|publisher=Gunter Space Page|url=https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/orbview-1.htm|access-date=}} ===IKONOS=== {{main|IKONOS}} Launched in 1999 by Space Imaging, IKONOS collected {{convert|82|cm|abbr=on}} panchromatic and {{convert|3.2|m|abbr=on}} multispectral data at a rate of over {{convert|2000|km2|abbr=on}} per minute. IKONOS orbited the Earth every 98 minutes at an altitude of approximately {{convert|681|km|abbr=on}}. It traveled a [Sun-synchronous orbit](/source/Sun-synchronous_orbit), [passing](/source/pass_(spaceflight)) a given longitude at 10:30 a.m. local time. IKONOS was operated out of Thornton, Colorado. It derived its name from the [Greek](/source/Greek_language) term ''eikōn'' (pronounced eikona) for image.{{cite web|url=https://microsites.maxar.com/ikonos20/|title=IKONOS 20 year anniversary|access-date=June 4, 2023|website=maxar.com}} IKONOS was retired on March 31, 2015, having performed for more than twice its life expectancy. === {{anchor|OrbView-2}} OrbView-2 === thumb|Artist's rendition of the OrbView-2 or SeaStar satellite in orbit The '''OrbView-2''' satellite (COSPAR 1997-037A), also called '''SeaStar''', was launched 1 August 1997 by ORBIMAGE on a [Pegasus XL](/source/Pegasus_(rocket)) rocket from [Vandenberg AFB](/source/Vandenberg_AFB). OrbView-2 collected color imagery of the Earth's entire land and ocean surfaces on a daily basis. Commercial fishing vessels used OrbView-2 data for detecting oceanographic conditions used to create fishing maps. The satellite also provided broad-area coverage in {{Convert|2800|km|mi|-wide|adj=mid|sp=us}} swaths, which were routinely used in naval operations, environmental monitoring, and global crop assessment applications. OrbView-2 carried [NASA](/source/NASA)'s [SeaWiFS](/source/SeaWiFS) (Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor) sensor. OrbView-2 was operated out of Dulles, Virginia, but operations ceased shortly before GeoEye's HQ relocation to Herndon, Virginia in 2011.{{cite web|url=http://eospso.gsfc.nasa.gov/eos_homepage/mission_profiles/docs/Orbview-2_SeaWiFS.pdf|title=Orbview|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917183112/http://eospso.gsfc.nasa.gov/eos_homepage/mission_profiles/docs/Orbview-2_SeaWiFS.pdf|archive-date=September 17, 2008|access-date=September 8, 2008}} It stopped collecting data on 11 December 2010, after 13 years (design life was 5 years).{{cite web |url=http://oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi/browse.pl?sen=sw&typ=GAC|title=Ocean Color Browse|author=NASA, Goddard Space Flight Center|date= December 1, 2011|access-date=December 1, 2011}} It had a mass of 309 kg and was built by [Orbital Sciences Corporation](/source/Orbital_Sciences_Corporation).{{Citation |last=Krebs|first=Gunter, D|year=2023|title=OrbView 2 (SeaStar)|publisher=Gunter Space Page|url=https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/orbview-2.htm|access-date=}} ===OrbView-3=== Launched 26 June 2003 by ORBIMAGE, '''OrbView-3''' (COSPAR 2003-030A) commercial Earth observation satellite acquired {{convert|1|m|ft|abbr=on}} panchromatic and {{convert|4|m|abbr=on}} multispectral imagery in an 8-kilometer-wide swath. The satellite collected up to {{convert|210000|km2|abbr=on}} of imagery each day. It revisited each location on Earth in less than three days with the ability to collect data up to 50 degrees off nadir. Similar to IKONOS, this satellite passed a given longitude at 10:30 a.m. local time. The satellite was launched from [Vandenberg AFB](/source/Vandenberg_AFB) by a [Pegasus XL](/source/Pegasus_(rocket)) rocket. The satellite had a mass of 304 kg and was built by [Orbital Sciences Corporation](/source/Orbital_Sciences_Corporation) for ORBIMAGE. It carried an OHRIS (OrbView High Resolution Imaging System) payload designed and built by [Northrop Grumman](/source/Northrop_Grumman). Similar sensor was in OrbView 4 satellite. On April 23, 2007, GeoEye, Inc. filed a [Form 8-K](/source/Form_8-K) to announce that its OrbView-3 satellite is permanently out of service. Though GeoEye remained in control of the satellite, it no longer produced usable imagery (the imaging sensor failed 4 March 2007).{{cite web|url=http://www.spacetoday.net/Summary/3691 |title=OrbView 3 satellite malfunctions |publisher=spacetoday.net |date=2007-03-10 |access-date=2014-02-15}}{{cite web|url=https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1040570/000095013307001029/w31696e8vk.htm |title=e8vk |publisher=Sec.gov |access-date=2014-02-15}} The spacecraft decayed on March 13, 2011 via a controlled reentry into Pacific Ocean.{{Citation |last= Krebs|first= Gunter, D|year= 2023|title= OrbView 3|publisher= Gunter Space Page|publication-place= |page= |url= https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/orbview-3.htm|access-date=}} ===OrbView 4=== '''OrbView 4''' was a high-resolution commercial Earth imaging satellite that was lost in launch failure. It would have recorded {{convert|1|m|ft|abbr=on}} panchromatic and {{convert|4|m|abbr=on}} multispectral imagery in an 8-kilometer-wide swath, like OrbView-3, and it also would have provided 200 channel hyperspectral imagery. It was to revisit every location on Earth in less than 3 days. The main instrument OHRIS (OrbView High Resolution Imaging System) was built by [Northrop Grumman](/source/Northrop_Grumman). The satellite bus was built by [Orbital Sciences Corporation](/source/Orbital_Sciences_Corporation). The mass of the satellite was 368 kg. It was lost in a launch failure. On 21 September 2001, a Taurus XL rocket failed during launch. When the second stage ignited at T+83 seconds, a nozzle gimbal actuator drive shaft seized for approximately 5 seconds causing loss of control. The vehicle recovered and continued to fly the mission profile, but failed to reach a stable orbit and reentered near Madagascar.{{Citation |last=Krebs|first=Gunter, D|year=2023|title=OrbView 4|publisher=Gunter Space Page|url=https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/orbview-4.htm|access-date=}} ===GeoEye-1=== {{main|GeoEye-1}} GeoEye-1 (Former name OrbView 5) launched on September 6, 2008 at 11:50:57 a.m. PDT (1850:57 UTC). The satellite separated successfully from its [Delta II](/source/Delta_II) launch vehicle at 12:49 p.m. PDT (1949 UTC), 58 minutes and 56 seconds after launch.{{cite web |url=http://spaceflightnow.com/delta/d335/status.html |title=Delta 2-335 Mission Status Center |access-date=2008-09-05 |author=Justin Ray}} The satellite provides {{convert|41|cm|sp=us|adj=on}} [panchromatic](/source/Panchromatic_film) and 1.65-meter [multispectral image](/source/multispectral_image)ry in 15.2 km swaths. The spacecraft is intended for a [Sun-synchronous orbit](/source/Sun-synchronous_orbit) at an altitude of {{convert|681|km|mi|abbr=on}} and an inclination of 98 degrees, with a 10:30 a.m. equator crossing time. GeoEye-1 can image up to 60 degrees off nadir. It is operated out of Herndon, Virginia and was built in Arizona by General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems. ===GeoEye-2=== {{main|GeoEye-2}} The GeoEye-2 satellite is designed to provide [panchromatic](/source/black_and_white) images at a highest resolution of {{convert|0.31|m|in|1|sp=us|disp=x| per pixel (|/px)}}, and [multispectral image](/source/multispectral_image)s at {{convert|1.24|m|in|1|sp=us|disp=x| per pixel (|/px)}}.{{cite web |url=https://dg-cms-uploads-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/document/file/196/DG_WorldView4_DS_11-15_Web.pdf |title=WorldView-4 |publisher=DigitalGlobe |date=November 2015 |access-date=19 March 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424030451/https://dg-cms-uploads-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/document/file/196/DG_WorldView4_DS_11-15_Web.pdf |archive-date=24 April 2016 }} The spacecraft was designed and built by Lockheed Martin,{{cite news |url=http://spacenews.com/lockheed-martin-selected-build-geoeye-2-imaging-satellite/ |title=Lockheed Martin Selected To Build GeoEye-2 Imaging Satellite |work=Space News |first=Warren |last=Ferster |date=11 March 2010 |access-date=2 April 2016}} while the camera payload was provided by [ITT Corporation](/source/ITT_Corporation).{{cite press release |url=http://www.exelisinc.com/news/pressreleases/Pages/ITT-Exelis-delivers-imaging-system-for-next-generation,-high-resolution.aspx |title=ITT Exelis delivers imaging system for next-generation, high-resolution GeoEye-2 satellite |publisher=[ITT Exelis](/source/ITT_Exelis) |first=Irene |last=Lockwood |date=10 April 2012 |access-date=2 April 2016 |archive-date=29 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160529155736/http://www.exelisinc.com/News/PressReleases/Pages/ITT-Exelis-delivers-imaging-system-for-next-generation,-high-resolution.aspx |url-status=dead }} Following the merger of GeoEye and DigitalGlobe, DigitalGlobe announced that GeoEye-2 would be completed as a ground spare to be launched if or when required.{{cite press release |url=http://media.digitalglobe.com/press-releases/digitalglobe-s-worldview-3-satellite-continues-on--nyse-dgi-981644 |title=DigitalGlobe's WorldView-3 Satellite Continues on Track for Mid-2014 Launch |publisher=DigitalGlobe |date=4 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130213162909/http://media.digitalglobe.com/press-releases/digitalglobe-s-worldview-3-satellite-continues-on--nyse-dgi-981644 |archive-date=13 February 2013}}{{cite news |url=http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n1302/04geoeye2/ |title=One commercial Earth-imager deferred in favor of another |work=Spaceflight Now |first=Justin |last=Ray |date=4 February 2013 |access-date=19 March 2016}} It was renamed to [WorldView-4](/source/WorldView-4) in July 2014, when the company announced that it would be launched in 2016.{{cite press release |url=http://investor.digitalglobe.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=70788&p=irol-newsArticle&id=1953904 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20161020143101/http://investor.digitalglobe.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=70788&p=irol-newsArticle&id=1953904 |url-status=dead |archive-date=20 October 2016 |title=DigitalGlobe Announces Second 30-Centimeter Satellite to Launch in Mid-2016 |publisher=DigitalGlobe |date=31 July 2014 |access-date=2 April 2016 }}{{cite news |url=http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_26254127/demand-moves-digitalglobe-speed-launch-high-powered-satellite |title=Demand moves DigitalGlobe to speed launch of high-powered satellite |work=[The Denver Post](/source/The_Denver_Post) |first=Kristen Leigh |last=Painter |date=31 July 2014 |access-date=2 April 2016}} WorldView-4 launched on 11 November 2016. ==Aerial imagery== GeoEye expanded into aerial imagery in March 2007, with the purchase of MJ Harden from [General Electric Company](/source/General_Electric_Company).{{cite web |url=http://www.directionsmag.com/press.releases/index.php?duty=Show&id=16833 |title=GeoEye Acquires MJ Harden Aerial Business From GE Oil & Gas - Directions Magazine |publisher=Directionsmag.com |date=2007-03-16 |access-date=2014-02-15 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100520100639/http://www.directionsmag.com/press.releases/index.php?duty=Show&id=16833 |archive-date=2010-05-20 }} '''MJ Harden''', based in [Mission, Kansas](/source/Mission%2C_Kansas), is now a wholly owned subsidiary that operates two aircraft that carry a digital mapping camera (DMC) and a sophisticated [LiDAR](/source/Lidar) imaging system. MJ Harden was founded by Milton J. Harden in 1956 to provide [photogrammetry](/source/photogrammetry) services.{{cite web|url=http://www.geoeye.com/CorpSite/assets/docs/mjharden/MJHarden-Geospatial-Services-Brochure.pdf|title=CorpSite|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081115032236/http://www.geoeye.com/CorpSite/assets/docs/mjharden/MJHarden-Geospatial-Services-Brochure.pdf|archive-date=November 15, 2008|access-date=September 6, 2008}} GE Power Systems bought the company in 2003.{{cite web|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2003/08/18/daily44.html |title=Power Systems buys M.J. Harden Associates in Kansas City - Albany Business Review |publisher=Bizjournals.com |date=2003-08-21 |access-date=2014-02-15}} ==Regional affiliates== * [Space Imaging Middle East](/source/Space_Imaging_Middle_East) ==References== {{Reflist|colwidth=30em}} ==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20081202081815/http://geofuse.geoeye.com/landing/ GeoFUSE Archive Search and Discovery Tools] - Search for GeoEye satellite imagery online * [https://web.archive.org/web/20091209031753/http://www.geoeye.com/corpsite/gallery/Default.aspx?gid=20 GeoEye Image Gallery] * [http://www.geoeyefoundation.org GeoEye Foundation] {{Maxar Technologies|state=autocollapse}} {{Lockheed Martin|state=collapsed}} Category:Companies based in Fairfax County, Virginia Category:Herndon, Virginia Category:Technology companies established in 1992 Category:Cerberus Capital Management companies Category:2013 mergers and acquisitions Category:Remote sensing companies --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [GeoEye](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GeoEye) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GeoEye?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.