Capella Space
Designs, manufactures, and operates X-band synthetic aperture radar satellites delivering sub-meter resolution Earth observation imagery in all weather conditions
Capella Space designs, manufactures, and operates a constellation of X-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites that capture high-resolution Earth imagery regardless of weather or lighting conditions. The Acadia-class spacecraft deliver radar resolution down to 0.25 meters with optical inter-satellite links for reduced data latency. Capella produces satellites in-house at its San Francisco facility.
The company provides SAR data through a cloud-native platform with an automated tasking API, enabling customers to submit requests and receive processed data within hours. Its customer base includes the NRO, U.S. Space Force, and NGA, alongside commercial clients in maritime monitoring, disaster response, and mining. Capella was acquired by IonQ in July 2025 and operates as a wholly owned subsidiary, developing a space-based quantum key distribution network by integrating quantum encryption into its satellite infrastructure.
Builds multi-sensor imaging satellites that fuse SAR and optical data in a single pass for all-weather, day-and-night Earth observation
Operates orbital transfer vehicles for last-mile satellite delivery, hosted payload services, space cloud computing, and in-orbit servicing
Operates a satellite-as-a-service platform that integrates, deploys, and operates customer payloads and AI applications on standardized LEO spacecraft