Planet Labs to Deliver Vessel Detection and Monitoring for US Navy

Planet Labs PBC, a leading provider of daily data and insights about Earth, announced its fully owned subsidiary, Planet Labs Federal Inc., was awarded a seven-figure contract by the Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Pacific for vessel detection and monitoring over key areas of interest throughout the Pacific. The project will integrate both Planet’s daily, global PlanetScope data and high-resolution SkySat data into the Department of Transportation’s SeaVision platform, a web-based maritime situational awareness tool. The contract includes fusion of technology from SynMax, a longtime Planet partner, who will provide vessel detection using their analytics technology over Planet data.

Planet’s daily, global coverage, powered by its flagship PlanetScope constellation, is uniquely suited for broad area management, and will provide the SeaVision platform with a comprehensive and timely view of millions of square kilometers of ocean areas. In addition to this sweeping coverage, NIWC Pacific will also have access to Planet’s high-resolution SkySat data which can be used to capture finer detail. Further, SynMax has applied a subset of its Theia technology to meet the unique requirements of the NIWC Pacific project. This proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) enhancement enables the detection of maritime events at strategic and tactical levels, crucial for revealing illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, illicit ship-to-ship transfers, and vessel spoofing. This work showcases the synergy between Planet's satellite capabilities and SynMax's advanced analytics.

Integrating electro-optical imagery-derived vessel detections and high-resolution tasked imagery into the SeaVision platform will allow users to improve maritime domain awareness throughout the region. The unclassified data can be used to help validate alternative datasets, including Automatic Identification System (AIS) positions, and makes it easily shareable with SeaVision users, promoting a common understanding of key areas in the Pacific.

“NIWC Pacific continually pushes the bounds of innovating and advancing unmatched and disruptive technology in support of their operations,” said Jon Powers, Planet Federal’s General Manager. “Planet possesses a unique broad area imagery collection of land and ocean areas in the Indo-Pacific, so it's exciting for us to contribute that unique capability to provide maritime insights in support of the SeaVision mission.”

Planet Federal is pleased to equip US Federal Civilian Agencies, the Department of Defense, and Intelligence Community with real-time satellite data and analytics required to monitor and respond to global changes and looks forward to this important collaboration with NIWC Pacific.