Collaboration of the best kind occurs when companies work together and meet their milestones such as Boeing Launch Services and United Launch Alliance launch WorldView-2, with the second of the DigitalGlobe next-generation class of imaging satellites. WorldView-2 will be launched aboard a Delta II launch vehicle from Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB). The launch vehicle will deliver the satellite into a sun-synchronous orbit where the satellite will begin its mission of collecting and recording high-resolution, commercial, digital Earth imagery from space.

United Launch Alliance provides the Delta II launch vehicle and mission services under a commercial launch service contract administered by Boeing Launch Services for DigitalGlobe, located in Longmont, Colorado. The first of the DigitalGlobe next-generation class of imaging satellites, WorldView-1, was launched by a Delta II in September 2007. DigitalGlobe again has selected Delta II to launch their newest satellite.

WorldView-2 is the first high-resolution 8-band multispectral satellite commercially available. Along with the four typical multispectral bands, blue, green, red and near infrared, WorldView-2 is introducing the following new color bands for enhanced multispectral analysis: red edge, coastal, yellow and near infrared 2. Operating at an altitude of 770 kilometers, WorldView-2 will provide half-meter panchromatic resolution and 1.8-meter multispectral resolution. WorldView-2 will have an average revisit time of 1.1 days and will be capable of collection up to 975,000 square kilometers (376,000 square miles) per day, doubling the DigitalGlobe collection capacity.

The system utilizes control moment gyros (CMGs) for rapid retargeting and offers bi-directional scanning, 2199 gigabits of on-board storage and 800 Mbps X-band data downlink. The satellite will also be equipped with industry-leading geo-location accuracy capabilities. The predicted performance is in the range of 4.6 to 10.7 meters (15 to 35 feet) CE90 (Circular Error 90 percent). The WorldView-2 remote sensing satellite will return high-resolution, commercial, digital Earth imagery from space.



Highly detailed satellite imagery is currently used for a plethora of applications:

• Precise map creation
• In-depth image analysis
• Urban planning
• Internet portals and navigation technology
• Environmental monitoring/Disaster assessment and response
• Oil and gas exploration