SAN FRANCISCO – Planet declared a $20 million deal to supply hyperspectral data for Carbon Mapper’s campaign to monitor greenhouse gases.
The contract, which runs from 2026 to 2030, “will assist Carbon Mapper in delivering high-resolution methane and CO2 super-emitter information to global decision-makers,” said Carbon Mapper CEO Riley Duren in a statement. “Specifically, this agreement sets the stage for expanding the Tanager satellite constellation and extending Carbon Mapper’s mission to visualize methane and CO2 transparently through our public data portal.”
The nonprofit Carbon Mapper is one of the key public and private initiatives that have emerged in recent years to map and monitor atmospheric methane and carbon dioxide.
First Tanager Launch
Planet’s first hyperspectral Tanager satellite, designed to collect visible through shortwave infrared images, is set to launch in 2024.
“We are on the brink of being able to accurately analyze facility-scale methane emissions worldwide,” stated Mark Keremedjiev, Planet’s Tanager Hyperspectral Mission director. “We believe the Tanager constellation will help drive real action in the battle against climate change, and this contract extension with Carbon Mapper ensures our ability to provide exceptionally potent data for the long term.”
The Carbon Mapper consortium was introduced in 2021 by the State of California, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and Planet. The contract announced on March 28 is “an extension to an existing data-license agreement between Planet and Carbon Mapper,” according to the news release. Funding for the agreement was provided by “a major climate philanthropy,” the release added.
Aside from detecting greenhouse gases, Planet sees commercial, civil, and defense uses for Tanager data.
Quarter and Year-End Earnings
Planet declared the Carbon Mapper deal during an earnings call.
San Francisco-based Planet announced record revenue of $58.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2024. For the year ending on Jan. 31, Planet reported earnings of $221 million. Quarterly revenues increased by 11 percent from the previous year. Annual revenues saw a 15 percent rise.
Planet reported a net loss of $9.8 million for the quarter in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). By the fourth quarter of 2025, Planet aims to demonstrate an adjusted EBITDA profit.
