A foggy sunrise had long given way to clear mid-morning sunshine by the time SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Transport-15 mission stood ready for liftoff from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California last month.
Among the 140 payloads being shuttled into space on that still November morning in Southern California was a tiny satellite that looks set to revolutionize global wildlife conservation.
The ‘CubeSat‘ in question is equipped with the ICARUS receiver which will record data from miniature sensors attached to animals across the globe providing an unparalleled level of insight into their behaviours, health, and environmental change.
ICARUS initially began transmitting data from the International Space Station in 2020 as part of collaboration between the Max Planck Society, the Russian space agency Roscosmos, and the German Aerospace Center.
Russia’s actions in Ukraine ended this partnership in 2022 but ICARUS is set to be back online in a matter of months after an extensive testing period has been completed.
The new ICARUS system, developed with German company Talos, is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand and picks up transmissions from tags that weigh under five grams, run on solar power and cost just $300 a piece.
This means the network can be scaled at a fraction of the price of other solutions and that an unprecedented number of individuals and species can potentially be fitted with the trackers.
“This capability radically increases the speed with which we can respond to global challenges such as habitat loss, disease outbreaks, and shifting migration patterns,” said Dr Martin Wikelski, Director at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior and of the ICARUS project.
“From predicting the spread of zoonotic diseases to tracking the survival of endangered species, Icarus offers insights that will shape policies, guide conservation strategies, and deepen our understanding of the interconnectedness of life on Earth,” added Wikelski.
Last month’s launch is just the beginning of a pivotal new phase in global wildlife tracking: A second receiver is set to be launched into space in 2026 and a total of six receivers expected to be operational by 2027.
“With Icarus 2.0, we are building a truly planetary-scale observatory,” said Wikelski. “For the first time, we will be able to listen to the signals of animals worldwide in near real time, offering unique insights on biodiversity and environmental change.”
