Planet Labs’ Pelican-12 targets higher-rate intersatellite data relay, cutting imagery delivery latency
PL•Planet Labs advanced its Gen 2 Pelican program with Pelican-12, which is designed to test commercial data relay at rates higher than the 1 Mbps achieved in 2025. It adds NVIDIA Jetson edge computing and targets imagery delivery with lower latency and downlink costs.
1. Pelican-12 upgrades
Pelican-12 features upgraded payload and communications systems based on learnings from Pelican-11. Its steerable antenna is designed to test commercial data relay at higher two-way data rates than the 1 Mbps achieved in 2025.
2. Imaging and computing
Gen 2 Pelicans target up to 30 cm-class imagery, compared with the 50 cm-class design of first-generation Pelican satellites. Pelican-12 adds NVIDIA Jetson edge computing to support on-orbit AI, aiming to cut data latency and reduce downlink costs.
