The number of satellites overhead could rise by at least fivefold over the next few years , according to projections. Many of Planet Labs’ clients already rely on the images for tasks such as monitoring crop growth and health, providing military intelligence, and detecting illegal deforestation. While there are currently 12,000 satellites orbiting Earth , there is set to be a rapid expansion in the number of launches over the next few years . SpaceX 's the Geostationary Lightning Mapper project aims to send 12,000 devices into orbit by the next decade , while a range of other large-scale schemes are also expected to contribute to the growth.
The number of satellites overhead could rise by at least fivefold over the next few years , according to projections. While there are currently 12,000 satellites orbiting Earth , there is set to be a rapid expansion in the number of launches over the next few years . SpaceX 's the Geostationary Lightning Mapper project aims to send 12,000 devices into orbit by the next decade , while a range of other large-scale schemes are also expected to contribute to the growth.