UK space start-up plans to sell astronomy data via subscription
Blue Skies Space, a UK-based start-up, has revealed plans to launch its inaugural satellite named Mauve. This venture is part of SpaceX's Transporter 15 program and is scheduled for October 2025. The company aims to revolutionize space research by collecting and selling astronomy data as a service. The Mauve satellite will primarily focus on stellar spectroscopy or the spectrum of light emitted by stars.
Mauve's mission and data service
According to Marcell Tessenyi, CEO and co-founder of Blue Skies Space, "Mauve is designed for long observation campaigns of hundreds of stars in our galaxy." It will provide information on star composition, temperature, density, mass, distance, luminosity, and more. The data collected by the company will be used for various scientific purposes including studying stellar flares and the magnetic activity of exoplanet hosts.
Blue Skies's unique approach and subscription model
Blue Skies Space plans to gather data about space from space, a unique approach compared to other companies that collect and monetize space data from ground-based telescopes or satellites observing Earth. The company intends to make this data easily accessible through a subscription-based membership model. This innovative service has already piqued the interest of researchers from Boston University and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, who have signed up prior to launch.
Funding and engineering collaborations
Since its inception in 2014, Blue Skies Space has raised around $6.5 million in total funding. Two-thirds of this funding came from equity investments from investors such as UK seed fund SFC Capital and Japan's Sparx Group. The remainder was sourced from grants including funds from Europe's Horizon R&D program. For the engineering work of its satellites, the company has collaborated with experienced manufacturers like Hungary's C3S and Dutch company Isispace.
Future plans and operational structure
Blue Skies Space is also working on a second satellite, Twinkle. This project will be executed by Airbus and will focus specifically on spectroscopic measurements of distant exoplanets' atmospheres. Despite its ambitious plans, Blue Skies remains a lean operation with just 12 employees based in the UK and Italy. The company has not yet disclosed the cost of its membership but promises to make this information available soon.
