Longmont-based DigitalGlobe launched into orbit its newest imagery satellite, WorldView-1, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California today.
Several Denver-area companies have been working on the satellite. The satellite was built by Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. in Boulder and launched with a Delta II rocket from the United Launch Alliance, which has its headquarters in Centennial.
DigitalGlobe, which has about 300 employees in Longmont, received a $500 million contract for WorldView-1 from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, which uses spy satellite imagery for national security.
WorldView-1 is part of a new class of commercial imagery satellites, and will be able to collect more images more quickly with more locational accuracy.
Staff writer Kelly Yamanouchi can be reached at 303-954-1488 or at kyamanouchi@denverpost.com.
