Small Satellites are now being developed by many organisations. These are now a mature technology and have demonstrated their potential as a product with complementary performances to more conventional mission solutions. Recent successes with the PROBA 1 (more then 6 years operating in orbit) and the UK's Topsat spacecraft show the potential to use these platforms in a flexible and low-cost way for Earth Observation missions. ESA 's Earth Observation Directorate uses PROBA 1 on a daily basis in support of research related to vegetation, disaster monitoring, land use, volcano observations, etc.With continued advances in technology, new areas in Earth observation are being explored and applications like high resolution-, hyper spectral- and small SAR radar missions become feasible with a PROBA scale platform and its derivatives.As small satellite missions become more ambitious, so the space industry is adapting to the challenge of creating organisations which can deliver the advantages of small satellite technology while retaining compatibility with international data standards and operating practices.. The merging of Verhaert Space and QinetiQ's Space Division creates an organisation dedicated to small mission solutions, combining complementary skills in mission design, system integration and key areas of technology development to offer end-to-end solutions to customers worldwide. This paper will elaborate on the successes of Proba 1 and Topsat and outline high-performance solutions for future Earth observation missions.
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