Firefly Aerospace unveils commercial lunar imaging service

Summary points:

• Commercial Lunar Imaging Launch: Firefly Aerospace will begin offering commercial lunar imaging through its Ocula service in 2026, using Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory telescopes onboard its Elytra vehicles.

• Multi-Mission Utility: Ocula's data will support space exploration, landing site planning, and national security ISR. The first mission will follow Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 2, with a second deployment planned for 2028.

• Long-Term Vision: Firefly intends to expand its Elytra constellation for more frequent lunar imaging and eventually extend the Ocula service to Mars and other planetary environments.

CEDAR PARK, Texas - Firefly Aerospace in Cedar Park, Texas, announced a new commercial lunar imaging service named Ocula, which will deploy high-resolution optical telescopes from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) aboard its Elytra orbital vehicles, starting as early as 2026.

The Ocula service aims to provide ultraviolet and visible spectrum imaging of the Moon’s surface to support mineral mapping, identify future landing zones, and enhance cislunar situational awareness. According to Firefly CEO Jason Kim, the service will be "one of the first, if not the first, commercial lunar imaging service on the market."

"Powered by a constellation of Elytra vehicles in lunar orbit, and eventually Mars orbit, Ocula will provide critical data that informs future human and robotic missions and supports national security with intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance," Kim said. "This service will fill a void for our nation with advanced lunar imaging capabilities and a sustainable commercial business model."

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The first deployment of Ocula will take place on Elytra Dark, the transfer vehicle for Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 2, which is slated to launch in 2026. After delivering its lander to the Moon’s far side, Elytra will serve as a communications relay and RF calibration platform before continuing operations in lunar orbit for more than five years, collecting and transmitting imagery back to Earth.

The telescopes onboard Elytra can capture images at 0.2-meter resolution from 50 kilometers in altitude. LLNL’s contribution marks a return to lunar orbit after its participation in NASA’s Clementine mission in 1994.

"LLNL is contributing our optical telescopes to help enable this new commercial imaging service for lunar mapping and domain awareness," said Ben Bahney, program leader for space at LLNL. "There is no shortage of exploration and science this system can support, including more accurate observations of asteroid 2024 YR4 as it approaches the Moon in 2032."

Firefly plans to license the imagery data to both government and commercial users, leveraging existing mission infrastructure. Ocula will also be included on the company’s 2028 Blue Ghost Mission 3, which features another Elytra vehicle that will remain active in lunar orbit for more than five years.