The Argos-4 payload on board the GAzelle satellite is part of the international Argos program that collects data from thousands of sensors and transmitters located around the world. Argos data is collected and distributed for use in numerous applications, and helps provide a better understanding of Earth’s physical and biological environment, including its weather and climate, biodiversity and ecosystems, as well as assist with maritime security, offshore pollution, and humanitarian assistance. Information gathered via the Argos system also enables industries to comply with environmental protection regulations. Argos has most famously been used to track wildlife, particularly marine mammals and sea turtles since the 1980s. There are currently 22,000 active transmitters around the world that the Argos system is monitoring, with almost 7,800 tracking wildlife.

The delivery of the GAzelle satellite was contracted to General Atomics by the United States Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center under a Hosted Payload Solutions mission delivery order for the Argos Advanced Data Collection System, on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The Argos-4 instrument onboard spacecraft was provided by France’s National Centre for Space Studies.

The GAzelle satellite will become part of the Argos constellation supported by the NOAA Cooperative Data and Rescue Services Program and is the only payload aboard Electron for this mission.