MILAN — OroraTech has raised 25 million euros ($27.3 million) to build the next phase of a satellite constellation to monitor wildfires and expand its business.

The Munich-based startup announced on October 15 that it had raised the Series B funding round, led by Korys, the European Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF) and existing investor Bayern Kapital.

OroraTech is developing a constellation of small satellites equipped with thermal cameras designed to quickly detect wildfires and alert first responders and others. The company currently operates two satellites in low Earth orbit, but plans a constellation of up to 100 such satellites.

Part of the funding will go toward building the constellation, Martin Langer, chief executive of OroraTech, said in an interview. The launch of a third satellite is planned for early 2025, followed by two series of eight satellites each later in the year.

The satellites will initially fill gaps in data the company accesses from other sources, such as government satellites. “We have an interval of about three hours to eight hours,” he said, referring to the local time the satellites pass overhead in their sun-synchronous orbits. This corresponds to a peak in wildfire intensity and the highest probability of new fires appearing. New satellites, he said, will be put into orbit with dwell times of five to six hours.

With the upcoming satellites, he said the company could provide twice-daily coverage of any location, which could be improved by rotating the satellites for off-nadir observations. The full constellation of 100 satellites will have revisit times of 30 to 60 minutes, he added.

OroraTech first worked with Spire, which flew thermal cameras on its satellites as part of Spire’s space-as-a-service business. Langer said his company is currently building its own 8U cubesats, but plans to continue working with Spire. “And in the future, I think we will continue to use this hybrid method, because some of our customers require deadlines that we can only manage currently by working with Spire.”

About a third of the new funding round will go toward building the constellation, he said. Another third will be used to enrich its data modeling work, using satellite data to model the evolution of fires and their future spread. The final third will allow the company to expand its presence in North America.

The company is seeing strong interest in its fire detection services from governments, including a €20 million contract it signed with the Greek government in July, in partnership with the European Space Agency , to build a national forest fire detection system. It has also attracted business from companies that operate infrastructure such as power lines that are vulnerable to fires.

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