India, Oct. 1 -- SatLeo Labs is set to take its thermal Earth observation technology into orbit with TAPAS-1, as the Ahmedabad-based space-tech startup moves from ground-based pilots towards building a dedicated thermal satellite constellation.

TAPAS-1 is scheduled to fly aboard Dhruva Space's LEAP-2 mission on SpaceX's Transporter-18 rideshare mission on 1 October, at 11:48 pm IST. The payload will be carried on Dhruva Space's P-30 satellite platform, with the mission designed to validate its thermal sensing, calibration and data-processing capabilities in low Earth orbit.

TAPAS-1, or Thermal Access Platform for Analytics & Solutions, uses long-wave infrared (LWIR) sensing to capture temperature information that is not visible in conve...