CO3D 1, 2, 3, 4

CO3D [Airbus DS]

CO3D is earth observation satellite constellation by CNES consisting initially of four satellites. In the future, the constellation might be expanded to twenty satellites.

Following launch, expected end of 2022, the Airbus-made CO3D constellation, comprising four identical satellites, will deliver 50 cm resolution stereo imagery across the world on a daily basis. The data acquired will feed a cloud-based processing chain operated by Airbus and integrating CNES’ algorithms, to produce a cutting-edge 3D map of the Earth’s landmass.

Designed to weigh approximately 300 kg, the CO3D satellites will join Airbus’ fleet of optical and radar satellites, strengthening the company’s ability to meet the growing needs of very demanding applications. Inaugurating a generation of highly innovative and all electric platforms derived from the OneWeb bus, these extremely agile satellites will instigate a new way of acquiring, processing and transferring images to the ground. Together with the four Pléiades-Neo satellites, the CO3D constellation will offer unrivalled refresh rates for very high-resolution imagery.

The four satellites are booked for a shared launch on an Arianespace Vega-C vehicle in 2023, where the four satellites will fill half of its capacity.