DigitalGlobe has invested an undisclosed amount of money to increase the useful lives of the company’s two older Earth observation satellites.
The goal is to extend the WorldView-1 service life by 2.5 years until the fourth quarter of 2020 and the WorldView-2 lifespan by 2 years through 2022, DigitalGlobe said Thursday.
Jeffrey Tarr, DigitalGlobe CEO, believes the extensions could reduce sustainment costs for the satellites over the long term.
The company also expects the changes to lower non-cash amortization of deferred revenue and depreciation expense during the platforms’ useful lives.
DigitalGlobe has also assigned an 11.5-year operational service to WorldView-3.
WorldView-3 was launched in August 2014 and is scheduled to operate through the first quarter of 2026.