Marble Imaging taps Odysseus Space laser terminal for first satellite

what happened

Marble Imaging, satellite builder Reflex Aerospace, and optical-communications specialist Odysseus Space announced a joint mission to deploy space-to-ground laser communications aboard Marble Sat-1, named Morgana, set to launch in the first quarter of 2027. Reflex is manufacturing and integrating the satellite, which has passed flight qualification and vibration testing; Odysseus is providing its Cyclops-DTE terminal and ground-segment service, rated up to 10 Gbps with at least 1 terabyte of daily throughput, with planned access to 50 optical ground stations within five years. The deal is subscription-based with no upfront hardware cost. Morgana will run a six-month in-orbit demonstration before commercial operations begin.

why it matters

Conventional RF downlinks typically cap out at 1-2 Gbps, a bottleneck for high-resolution EO operators generating ever-larger data volumes. Marble Imaging says the managed laser service cuts its data-retrieval costs roughly tenfold, and Morgana is the pathfinder for the operator's planned 20-plus-satellite constellation; a working, subscription-priced optical downlink option is a signal other EO operators chasing high-cadence delivery will watch.

signal-to-noise

quick facts

Companies

Marble Imaging, Reflex Aerospace, Odysseus Space

Category

partnership

Impact

notable

SNR

3 / 5

Event date

2026-10-21

Published

2026-10-22 17:29 UTC