Crowdfunded by ordinary Ukrainians, the “People’s Satellite” has become one of the most effective intelligence tools in modern warfare. In this video, we explore how Ukraine turned public donations into a powerful SAR satellite capable of tracking Russian forces in real time, guiding precision strikes, and exposing hidden military assets in any weather, day or night. From its incredible origin story to the billions in damage it helped inflict on Russia, this is the remarkable story of Ukraine’s eye in the sky.
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NewsTranscript
00:00The phrase knowledge is power is particularly pertinent in the world of warfare. The more you
00:06know about your enemy, the easier it becomes to defeat them. If you know where their troops and
00:11armor are moving, you can take the necessary measures to stop them. If you know where their
00:15most important assets are located, you can plan and execute strikes to take them out.
00:20In the past, that kind of knowledge was provided by scouts and spies. Today, it comes from space,
00:26hundreds of miles above the Earth's surface. Satellites track troop movements, spot supply
00:32depots, monitor air bases, and expose hidden positions deep behind enemy lines. Ukraine
00:38relies heavily on these systems in its war with Russia, but Kiev's most important eye in the sky
00:43wasn't launched by an allied superpower or billionaire tech company. It was crowdfunded.
00:49Bought and paid for by ordinary Ukrainians, the so-called People's Satellite has become one of
00:55the most effective intelligence assets in the world, and a veritable nightmare for the Russian
01:00war machine as well. Before we get into how it works and the unique benefits it brings,
01:05here's a look at the fascinating origin story of this one-of-a-kind satellite system.
01:10It all started in 2022, during the opening stages of the conflict. The Sahih Pritula Charity Foundation
01:17decided to organize a fundraising campaign for three Turkish Bayraktar drones, calling on the general
01:23public to make donations. It was a way for regular Ukrainian men and women to play their part in
01:28defending their homeland, without necessarily having to take up arms themselves, and plenty of
01:33people answered the call. Indeed, at the time, large swathes of the Ukrainian public were doing
01:38everything they possibly could to support the country's defense forces, whether through donations
01:43or providing support in other ways. So even though the drones came with high price tags,
01:48people were only too happy to donate whatever they could afford. For some, that was just a few
01:53dozen ravinias, while others were able to make larger donations in the hundreds or even thousands.
01:58It all counted, and it all added up, and before long, literally millions of Ukrainians had pulled
02:03together to raise the 600 million ravinias, close to $50 million, necessary to cover the cost of the
02:10drones. They did it all in just three days. It was an almost miraculous feat, and the Turkish drone
02:17manufacturer was so impressed by the spirit and dedication of the Ukrainian people, that it decided
02:22to waive the fee and hand over the drones for free. So all of a sudden, the Foundation was left
02:27with a massive amount of money, and a burning question, how best to spend it? Of course, it
02:32could have simply refunded the millions of people who made donations, but those people donated for
02:36a reason. They wanted to improve their country's chances in the war. They wanted to be a part of
02:41the defensive effort, and to contribute something that would help them fend off the enemy's invasion.
02:45So after much debate and discussion, the Foundation came up with a rather out-of-the-ordinary
02:50solution. It decided to use the funds to purchase a satellite, and it would be called the People's
02:56Satellite, in honor of the countless hard-working Ukrainians of all different backgrounds, age
03:01groups, and professions who had paid for it. The satellite in question was a Finnish ICEYE
03:06synthetic aperture SAR model, and the Foundation was excited about the benefits it could bring to
03:12the Ukrainian army, stating that the purchase represented a significant step in responding to
03:17the government of Ukraine's urgent request for critical Earth observation data, and it
03:21will greatly benefit our armed forces. Some people, however, were a little nonplussed by
03:26the decision. Originally, they'd raised money for drones, military assets with the power to
03:31provide almost immediate results on the battlefield. Instead, however, all of those funds had gone to
03:36something that, at least on the surface, wouldn't be able to provide such a rapid return on investment.
03:41However, even though Ukraine had to show a little patience, the People's Satellite soon proved that
03:47it was a far smarter purchase than any drone could ever be.
03:50By June 2024, less than two years after the purchase officially went through, the satellite had helped
03:56Ukraine capture more than 4,000 images of enemy targets, including 370 airfields, 238 air defense
04:04positions and radio reconnaissance sites, 153 oil depots and fuel storage facilities, 147 depots of
04:12missiles, ammunition, and aviation weaponry, and 17 naval bases. As Ukraine's main intelligent
04:18director at GUR noted at the time, approximately 38% of all data collected by ICI has been used
04:25directly to prepare and execute strikes against the enemy, resulting in billions in losses for Russia
04:30as the cost of its aggression mounts. That's not an exaggeration. This satellite helped Ukraine's
04:36armed forces plan and execute numerous successful strikes, like the attack on Sevastopol Bay in
04:42September 2023, which saw multiple Russian warships, including the Minsk landing ship and the Rostov-on-Don
04:48submarine, wiped off the map. Those assets alone were worth several hundred million, so it's easy to
04:54imagine how the People's Satellite has contributed to billions of dollars' worth of losses in the long run.
04:59And it's only become more useful and valuable as the war has progressed, especially as Ukraine has
05:05ramped up its campaign of striking Russian targets like oil refineries and ammo depots to weaken the
05:10enemy's ability to keep the war going. Indeed, in a more recent update issued on May 27, 2026,
05:17the GUR noted that the People's Satellite has now provided almost 6,000 images, many of which have
05:23proven crucial in finding and identifying enemy assets and helping Ukraine plan its attacks.
05:28The GUR Space Intelligence units receive daily satellite images, and this data is used to
05:34track objects in occupied territories in Russia, identifying enemy military targets, planned
05:39strikes, and also assess the consequences of attacks. Andriy Yousov, her spokesperson for the
05:44Defense Ministry of Ukraine, went further, explaining just how influential this technology truly is.
05:51For modern warfare, access to space technologies plays a crucial role, and it was precisely the
05:55People's Satellite that became Ukraine's first sharp eyes in orbit. We see where to aim. We understand
06:01what is best to strike. We have control over the consequences of strikes. The multi-billion dollar
06:05losses of the Russian aggressor. These are the results, including the People's Satellite, which
06:10strengthens our resilience, and this systematic work continues. The Ministry also cited several
06:15examples of locations that the satellite has helped them track and monitor, even sharing actual images
06:20captured from space of places like Olenaya Air Base, fuel storage sites in Russia's Krasnodar region,
06:26and the Zyabrovka airfield, as well as naval vessels docked in Novorossysk, a location that was
06:32recently targeted in a hugely successful drone strike that dealt massive damage to one of the Kremlin's
06:37best warships. And the People's Satellite isn't just helpful for finding these locations and tracking
06:42enemy movements, but also for confirming and understanding the impact of Ukraine's attacks. After a deep
06:48strike on a Russian facility far behind enemy lines, for example, Ukraine's GUR can rely on
06:54the satellite to provide clear, detailed images of the aftermath. They can use those pictures to
06:59see which targets were struck, how much damage was done, if fires are still burning or repairs are
07:04ongoing, and so on. It all makes a difference because the more information Ukraine's military has,
07:09the more it can improve and optimize its future operations. This is all part of the country's larger
07:15strategy and overall approach to the war, which revolves heavily around the idea of always seeking
07:20improvement, never simply settling for the way things are, but always striving to do more,
07:25to hit harder, to cause more chaos for the enemy, and to extract more value from every asset.
07:31And the most astonishing part of all of this is that it was all made possible by the general public
07:35of Ukraine. Every single person who donated to that initial fundraiser has, in effect, played their
07:42part in helping the army find and strike hundreds of Russian targets, dealing literally billions of
07:47dollars in damage to the invaders. Of course, this isn't the only satellite that Ukraine relies on
07:51to provide intelligence and imagery, but it does have a few unique characteristics that make it perhaps
07:56the most valuable and important one. Before we get into that, just like the People's satellite itself,
08:01the military show brings you the full picture, not just the headlines. Hit subscribe to stay ahead of the curve.
08:08To understand the true value of this satellite, it's important to look at how it works.
08:13Because this isn't just any satellite, it's a SAR satellite. In simple terms, that means it emits
08:18radar waves and measures the reflections to capture images of the Earth below. That's very different from
08:23a conventional optical satellite, which functions a lot like a camera in space, snapping photos of the
08:29scene below. And just like regular cameras, optical satellites work best in clear conditions, but can
08:34struggle at other times. They can have a hard time capturing images at night, for example, and they
08:39can't see through clouds, smoke, fog or rain, meaning they can effectively be useless for hours or even
08:45days at a time when bad weather comes up. They're also not the best at detecting camouflaged or hidden
08:50equipment. And Russia, like many militaries, often makes use of camouflage to hide troop movements or
08:55attempt to conceal assets under trees and among foliage, so they're harder to spot. Conventional satellites can
09:01also be easily fooled by decoys. They might take a picture of what looks like a field full of tanks
09:07or an airfield with dozens of bombers and fighters waiting to take off, but it could actually be a
09:11clever ruse by the enemy to fool their opponent. The beauty of Ukraine's SAR satellite is that it
09:16faces almost none of those problems. As the GUR notes, it has the power to obtain imagery at any
09:22time of day and in any weather conditions. It doesn't even matter if there's heavy cloud cover,
09:27because the People's satellite has the power to see right through it. This is so important because
09:31if Ukraine had to rely on conventional satellites alone, there would always be the risk of low
09:35quality or entirely useless images, caused by clouds or other bad weather conditions, leaving
09:40the country's armed forces with less intelligence to work with, which would, in turn, make it harder
09:45to plan attacks. Russia could also take advantage of fog and cloud cover to move assets or plan surprise
09:50assaults on Ukrainian positions, which could lead to important breakthroughs along the front lines.
09:55With the People's satellite, however, Ukraine has ever-present eyes in the sky that never fail
10:00to generate the data that it needs to stay one step ahead of its opponent. In addition, because the
10:05satellite works with radar, rather than regular camera technology, it does a much better job of
10:10spotting camouflaged troops or concealed equipment, and it can differentiate between decoys and real
10:16military assets more effectively too, by providing exceptionally high-quality images. Indeed, ICI,
10:22the company behind the satellite, says that certain images can reach a resolution of up to 0.25 meters
10:27per pixel, and a single image can cover an area of up to 225 square kilometers. That allows Ukraine
10:34not just to see vast patches of land, but to zoom in and make out even the smallest details with
10:39ease.
10:39Many other countries have access to SAR satellite technology too, including some of Ukraine's biggest
10:44allies across Europe and beyond. Because of this, one of the big arguments against the very idea of the
10:49People's satellite back in 2022 was, why can't Kyiv simply rely on its foreign partners to provide the
10:55intelligence and imagery it needs? Well, it's true that those partners have been very generous in their
10:59support of Ukraine, with the likes of France and the United States in particular helping out greatly
11:04with satellite imagery. However, the problem with relying on others to give you the intel that you need
11:09is that you can't always count on them to be as rapid, responsive, or perfectly aligned with your
11:13specific needs and demands as you want them to be. It's the same story when it comes to other forms
11:19of
11:19military aid. Yes, plenty of countries have sent everything from missiles to air defense systems
11:24and even main battle tanks to Ukraine. But it was always up to those countries to decide what they
11:28sent and when they sent it. Kyiv was able to make requests and influence decisions, but it wasn't the
11:33final decision maker. It was always at the mercy of other countries' politics and choices.
11:38So when it comes to satellite imagery, Ukraine sometimes had to wait relatively long periods to get
11:43the images it needed. Its partners could also choose to impose strict restrictions on what
11:47images they were willing to provide. They might not have been willing to share pictures of certain
11:52locations, for example, or might have been concerned about escalating the conflict somehow by providing
11:57too much intelligence too quickly. With the People satellite, it's a totally different story.
12:02A story where Ukraine isn't just a side character, but the star of the show. Because it's the exclusive
12:07operator of this satellite, it's in charge of what data it collects, when it collects it, and even the
12:12format in which the images are provided. This allows Kyiv's forces to gather the exact data they require
12:18with the utmost speed and efficiency. Indeed, the Serhi Pratula Charity Foundation has confirmed that
12:24the satellite passes over Ukrainian territory twice every day, with ISAI founder Rafal Modzevsky
12:30noting that Ukraine is able to use it to monitor Russian troop movements almost in real time,
12:35capturing up to 24 images of the same target on a daily basis. And in conflict situations,
12:40that matters more than you might think. Because in the world of war, nothing stays the same for long.
12:45Russia is regularly repositioning its assets, like air defenses and missile batteries for example.
12:50Its troops too are constantly on the move, with formations making their way across frontline
12:55territories on a near constant basis. At airfields too, planes and assets may be repositioned or relocated
13:01to other fields and hangars. And at sea, ships can move from port to port. If you have to rely
13:06on
13:06satellite images that take days to arrive, you might be looking at pictures that no longer reflect
13:10reality. One of France's satellites could capture an image of a mechanized brigade somewhere near the
13:15front for example, but it could have already moved on somewhere completely different by the time that
13:20picture has made its way to Ukraine. But with the People's satellite, Ukraine has incredibly fast
13:24access to this imagery, with the Defense Ministry noting that it often only takes a few hours for images
13:29to come through. And that speed makes it much easier to make decisions based on that data.
13:35Only Ukraine's GUR knows just how many decisions the satellite has helped to influence, how many
13:40attacks it's played a part in, how many lives it's saved, and how much damage it has helped Kyiv's
13:45forces to deal to Russia. But it's not hard to see what a vital piece of the puzzle it is.
13:50Throughout the war, but especially in 2025 and into 26, we've seen Ukraine carry out countless
13:55devastating precision strikes on Russian assets across regions like Donetsk, Luhansk, and even as far
14:01as Crimea. So many of these attacks are remarkably successful, with Ukraine's drones and missiles
14:07striking their intended targets with remarkable efficiency. At the front lines too, we've seen
14:12Ukraine's defenders lay traps for Russian forces, defend small settlements for months on end,
14:17and eliminate one Russian assault group after another. That's not down to luck, it's down to
14:22intelligence. Ukraine is able to carry out these kinds of attacks and defend its territory so well,
14:27because it strives to be one step ahead of its opponents at all times. It actively takes steps
14:33to see where Russia's best assets are being moved to and tracks its troops' movements, and there's no
14:37doubt at all that the People's satellite has played a huge part in all of that, capturing thousands of
14:42images that have helped the country make hundreds of intelligent, data-backed decisions. It's yet another
14:48example of how Ukraine has leveraged technology and innovation to its advantage in the war.
14:54We've seen Kyiv's forces make use of cutting-edge drones, state-of-the-art electronic warfare systems,
15:00and even artificial intelligence to strengthen its defenses and even the odds with its opponent,
15:05and the People's satellite is yet another inspiring demonstration of Ukraine's forward-thinking
15:10approach to emerging technologies. And arguably the best part of all of this is that there's nothing
15:16Russia can do to stop it. Even if the Kremlin's forces decided to take some sort of military action
15:21against the satellite, using cyber warfare for example, or even anti-satellite missiles, it
15:26wouldn't matter. Because the People's satellite is fully insured. ICI has promised that if anything
15:32happens to it, Ukraine will be provided with an identical replacement. So for as long as this
15:36war goes on, the satellite will continue to hover far above, out of sight but not out of mind,
15:42playing its silent but invaluable role in this war and leaving the Russians with nowhere to hide
15:46whatsoever.
15:47For another amazing example of Ukraine's technological mastery, check out this video
15:51which explores how Kyiv's defenders have found an astonishing way to nullify Russia's missiles
15:57without having to fire a single shot. Alternatively, check out this video to see how Ukraine has
16:01liberated a large amount of land in 2026 so far, not just stalling Russia's advances but actively
16:07undoing them and sending the Kremlin's war machine back to square one.
16:11And to make sure you don't miss out on more videos like this, subscribe to The Military Show today.
16:16And thank you for watching.
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