Ikonos 1 is the first satellite of its kind to take pictures of the Earth at levels of detail previously unavailable to commercial users. "We're taking additional measures to ensure 100 percent mission success, with both the launch and the achievement of a world-class imaging capability," said John Copple, Space Imaging's chief executive officer. "Further testing is a necessary precaution to assure our customers that imagery collected by Ikonos will be of the highest quality."

Ikonos 1 is being built by Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space in Sunnyvale, California. It will be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base aboard an Athena II rocket. Ikonos 2, an identical twin to Ikonos 1, is also scheduled to launch by the end of this year. It will enable Space Imaging to respond to customer requests for imagery twice as frequently as with Ikonos 1.

Space Imaging is the world's largest single supplier of space imagery, aerial photography, mapping services, and derivative geographic information products and services. The company supplies these products and services to commercial, government and consumer users worldwide. Space Imaging collects and distributes Earth imagery from the Indian Remote Sensing satellites, the U.S. Landsat, Canada's RADARSAT, Japan's JERS, and the European Space Agency's ERS satellites. The company also delivers a broad array of aerial-derived information products through its Mapping Alliance Program.