A suitcase-size satellite's big image of frozen earth below

New York

ABOUT two weeks ago, a satellite called Iceye-X1 hitched a ride into orbit aboard an Indian rocket. It's about the size of a suitcase and has already sent its first picture, constructed out of microwave radar reflections, back to Earth.

"I personally love this image," said Rafal Modrzewski, the chief executive of Iceye, a Finnish startup that built and operates the satellite, referring to a scene from the Noatak National Preserve in Alaska. "It's full of snow, but it's so much more complex than you think at first."

The swathe of the park visible in the …