HK Startup Aims to Launch Satellites for 3D Wind Data, SCMP Says

Hong Kong startup Stellerus aims to create a constellation of satellites to become the world’s first provider of three-dimensional wind data provided by the devices, according to the South China Morning Post.

Stellerus, founded in 2023 by Hong Kong University of Science and Technology academics, plans to launch a pair of satellites in the next 18 months, followed by five more, Chief Executive Officer David Liu told the SCMP.

The satellites should be able to provide global coverage of data that could be supplied to the aviation, shipping and insurance industries, the report cited Liu as saying. It could also be used by wind-farm operators, he said, according to the newspaper.

The 3D data captures wind direction and speed, together with altitude changes, and is key to improving weather forecasting, which has become more important given the increasing odds of extreme events caused by climate change.

Hui Su, chair professor at HKUST and co-founder of Stellerus, said the company could use artificial intelligence to analyze carbon dioxide, methane and water vapor in the atmosphere to determine changes in wind direction and speed, according to the report.

Photograph: Satellite antennas. Photo credit: Marcelo Perez del Carpio/Bloomberg