IKONOS

From WikiCover

The IKONOS satellite was built and launched into a low Earth orbit by Lockheed Martin in 1999.

On December 14, 2007, GeoEye announced that it has secured insurance in the amount of $20 million on its IKONOS satellite for 2008 with terms comparable to those it had for 2007. This was facilitated by a new analysis, performed by Lockheed Martin Corporation, on the life expectancy of its IKONOS high-resolution Earth-imaging satellite. The company now estimates IKONOS may continue to meet mission requirements into the next decade.

At the time of launch it was estimated that the satellite would be operational for a period of five to seven years. Later, based on operational data, it was estimated that IKONOS would remain operational until the mid-2008 timeframe. However, this new study resulted in an estimated life expectancy into the 2010 timeframe.

While other unknown factors could cause IKONOS to cease functioning, there is enough fuel on board to last an additional eight years and the satellite's batteries are performing well.