(Bloomberg) -- Muon Space, a closely watched Earth-imaging startup, has signed a deal with defense firm Sierra Nevada Corp. (SNC) and closed a $56.7 million fundraising round.
Venture capital firm Activate Capital led the Series B funding round for the Mountain View, California-based satellite maker, Muon Space said. Costanoa Ventures, Radical Ventures, and Congruent Ventures also joined the round, which takes Muon’s total fundraising to $91.7 million, the company said.
By deploying satellites in low-Earth orbit, Muon Space uses detailed imagery to help customers fight climate change and pursue intelligence missions, the company says.
SNC picked Muon to help develop its Vindler network of satellites, which use radio frequency technology to track illegal activity, such as human trafficking, unsanctioned fishing and shipping, and for classified military missions.
“We are seeing an increasing explosion of the use of commercial data sources for non-traditional purposes,” said Tim Owings, executive vice president for Mission Solutions and Technologies at SNC.
Spire Global, another satellite provider, built the first four satellites for the firm’s Vindler constellation and Muon Space will build an additional three, the company said. Muon Space’s batch is slated for launch in 2025.
The firms say the deal has wider implications for the space industry. “It’s an indication that there’s this strongly emerging need for end-to-end solutions in space,” said Jonny Dyer, co-founder and chief executive officer of Muon Space.
(Updates with fundraising tally in second paragraph, executive comments in sixth, seventh paragraphs.)
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