# Satellogic and HEO Confirm Orbital Health of Merlin.01 Satellite

- URL: https://stocks.freetheai.org/news/satellogic-and-heo-confirm-orbital-health-of-merlin-01-satellite-915590
- Published: 2026-10-13T12:00:00Z
- Category: company_news; sentiment: mixed; impact: medium
- Symbols: [NASDAQ:SATL](https://stocks.freetheai.org/symbols/NASDAQ-SATL)
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Satellogic Inc. (NASDAQ:SATL) and space intelligence partner HEO have published images confirming that the newly launched Merlin.01 satellite is stable and functioning in orbit. The satellite lifted off on October 1, 2026, on SpaceX's Transporter-18 mission, just 18 months after program kickoff. Orbital photographs captured on October 4 by an existing Satellogic spacecraft showed the satellite's solar arrays fully deployed, matching telemetry data verified by engineers.

The rapid deployment highlights Satellogic's vertically integrated manufacturing model, which uses in-house components and design adaptations to accelerate satellite production. Merlin.01 represents the initial craft in a planned satellite network designed to provide regional detection and daily global remapping. The spacecraft includes onboard artificial intelligence to process imagery and quickly queue high-resolution follow-up shots across the company's fleet.

Merlin.01 remains in its early-orbit phase, with payload testing and system commissioning scheduled next. Commercial and government customers can expect full operational service to become available during the second half of 2027. Shares of Satellogic Inc. traded down 8.54% at $4.71 following the update.

## Key points

- Satellogic Inc. (NASDAQ:SATL) and HEO confirmed Merlin.01 is stable in orbit with solar arrays deployed after its October 1 launch.
- The satellite was developed and launched in 18 months using Satellogic's vertically integrated platform and in-house manufacturing.
- Merlin.01 is the first unit of a constellation designed for daily global remapping with onboard artificial intelligence processing.
- Full operational service for the Merlin constellation is expected to begin in the second half of 2027.

## Questions and answers

### When was Satellogic's Merlin.01 satellite launched into orbit?

Merlin.01 launched on October 1, 2026, aboard SpaceX's Transporter-18 mission, 18 months after program kickoff.

### When will full service from the Merlin satellite constellation be available?

Full service from the Merlin constellation is expected to be available in the second half of 2027 following payload testing and commissioning.