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The U.S. government has removed certain restrictions on commercial remote sensing satellite companies, according to the NOAA’s Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs (CRSRA) office, a division of the Office of Space Commerce.

The previous restrictions limited companies from fully utilizing their capabilities to serve the public. In 2020, CRSRA changed its licensing regulations for remote sensing systems, stating that the government could only restrict unique capabilities for a maximum of three years to allow time for mitigation development.

On July 19, CRSA announced that conditions on the nation’s most capable commercial remote sensing systems had expired. This change also reduced global imaging restrictions, allowing imaging and distribution for almost the entire Earth’s surface, except for less than 1%. Additionally, it removed rapid revisit conditions and all X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) temporary conditions.

Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves emphasized that the Department of Commerce aims to empower the commercial remote sensing industry, cutting unnecessary regulations and accelerating U.S. leadership in the commercial space industry.

Following these regulatory changes, SAR provider Umbra released a 16-cm resolution SAR image, which is claimed to be the highest-resolution commercial satellite image ever released. While Umbra currently offers 25-cm native resolution, the company intends to refine the 16-cm product and eventually provide it to customers both domestically and internationally.

Umbra expressed its appreciation for NOAA’s removal of temporary license conditions, as it allows the company to expand its high-resolution data offerings for commercial customers. This development paves the way for further product expansion and enhanced services to customers.

Overall, these regulatory changes enable commercial remote sensing companies to fully leverage their capabilities, unlocking new opportunities for innovation and growth in the industry.

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