Skybox Imaging Shows Off HD Video Taken From A Satellite In Orbit

Typically, when we see high-resolution content taken from satellites in space, we are looking at still photos. A company called Skybox Imaging has shown off some of the very cool HD footage that it has taken from its first satellite orbiting the Earth. Currently the company has a single satellite in orbit called SkySat-1.

That satellite launched in November and the company plans to have a second satellite in orbit by March 2014. The satellite in orbit now is capable of taking HD resolution video from space. It's really cool to see the video with clouds, cars, and smoke moving across the screen.

The resolution of the video isn't enough to see people, but you can see cars on the road. You can't tell what types of cars you are seeing though. The resolution of the video is around three feet. The impressive part about this video is that the satellite that made it uses off the shelf hardware.

If a satellite with off the shelf hardware can take video with this sort of resolution from miles above the surface of the Earth, it makes you wonder what the high-tech spy satellites are capable of shooting. The Skybox satellites can take 90-second video clips at 30fps. The company wants to sell the video to city planners and other state and local governmental agencies.

SOURCE: The Atlantic