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PlanetiQ

OPERATING 11-50 EMPLOYEES

Operates a commercial GNSS radio occultation satellite constellation delivering atmospheric, weather, and space weather data to government and commercial customers

ABOUT

PlanetiQ designs, builds, and operates a commercial constellation of GNSS radio occultation (GNSS-RO) satellites equipped with its proprietary fourth-generation Pyxis receiver. The Pyxis sensor delivers atmospheric profiles with a signal-to-noise ratio over seven times higher than competing commercial RO sources, enabling measurement deep into the lower troposphere where severe weather originates. The constellation collects thousands of vertical profiles daily, providing global coverage of temperature, humidity, pressure, density, and ionospheric total electron content data. PlanetiQ's primary customer is NOAA, which awarded the company a $24.3 million contract in 2025 — NOAA's largest single commercial satellite weather data purchase. NASA's CSDA program rated PlanetiQ's data "best-in-class" in 2026. The data supports numerical weather prediction models, AI-based forecasting, climate monitoring, and space weather research. Additional applications include contrail avoidance for aviation and GPS jamming and spoofing detection. Founded in 2015 in Golden, Colorado, PlanetiQ's team draws on heritage from NASA JPL and the foundational GPS-MET and COSMIC radio occultation missions.

PRODUCTS & SERVICES
Commercial GNSS-RO satellite platform carrying the Pyxis receiver, with five generations launched to date.
Growing satellite constellation delivering daily weather data to NOAA and other partners
Highest quality GNSS-RO atmospheric data with superior signal-to-noise ratio
High-quality atmospheric and ionospheric data for weather forecasting and environmental monitoring
Calibrated atmospheric profiles of temperature, humidity, pressure, density, and refractivity from surface to stratosphere.
Fourth-generation GNSS-RO sensor receiving signals from GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and BeiDou constellations with 1500 V/V SNR.
Ionospheric measurements including total electron content, scintillations, and local energetic particles.
LOCATIONS
Golden, Colorado
RELATED COMPANIES
OVERVIEW
Founded 2015
HQ Golden, Colorado
Type Private Company
LEADERSHIP
Chief Executive Officer
Chris McCormick
Founder & Chairman
Chief Scientist
Jonathan Brandmeyer
SVP of Software Engineering
Paul McGaugh
VP of Hardware Engineering
Donny Pattullo
VP of Business Development
CLASSIFICATION
DATA QUALITY
CLAIM THIS PROFILE SUGGEST EDITS
Last Verified Jun 3, 2026