completely destroy, the affected satellite. In December 2018, our WorldView-4 satellite experienced a failure in its control moment gyros, preventing the satellite from collecting imagery. See Part II, Item 7, “Management's Discussion and Analysis—Recent Developments—WorldView-4 Satellite” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 for additional information.
We cannot provide assurances that our satellites will continue to operate successfully in space throughout their expected operational lives. Even if a satellite is operated properly, technical flaws in that satellite’s sensors or other technical deficiencies or anomalies could significantly hinder its performance, which could materially affect our ability to collect imagery and market our products and services successfully. While some anomalies are covered by insurance policies, others are not or may not be covered, or may be subject to large deductibles.
If we suffer a partial or total loss of a deployed satellite, we would need a significant amount of time and would incur substantial expense to replace that satellite. We may experience other problems with our satellites that may reduce their performance. During any period of time in which a satellite is not fully operational, we may lose most or all of the revenue that otherwise would have been derived from that satellite. Our inability to repair or replace a defective satellite or correct any other technical problem in a timely manner could result in a significant loss of revenue. If a satellite experiences a significant anomaly such that it becomes impaired or is no longer functional, it would significantly impact our business, prospects and profitability. Additionally, our review of satellite lives could extend or shorten the depreciable lives of our satellites, which would have an impact on the depreciation we recognize.
Loss of, or damage to, a satellite and the failure to obtain data or alternate sources of data for our products may have an adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition.
In the Imagery segment, we rely on data collected from a number of sources including data obtained from satellites. We may become unable or limited in our ability to collect such data. For example, satellites can temporarily go out of service and be recovered, or cease to function for reasons beyond our control, including the quality of design and construction, the supply of fuel, the expected gradual environmental degradation of solar panels, the durability of various satellite components and the orbits and space environments in which the satellites are placed and operated. Electrostatic storms or collisions with other objects could also damage the satellites. Additionally, in certain instances, governments may discontinue for periods of time the access to or operation of a satellite for any particular area on the Earth and for various reasons may not permit transmission of certain data, whether from a satellite owned by the government or not.
We cannot offer assurances that each of our satellites will remain in operation. Our satellites have certain redundant systems which can fail partially or in their entirety and accordingly satellites may operate for extended periods without all redundant systems in operation, but with single points of failure. The failure of satellite components could cause damage to or loss of the use of a satellite before the end of its expected operational life. Certain of our satellites are nearing the end of their expected operational lives and we expect the performance of each satellite to decline gradually near the end of its expected operational life. We can offer no assurance that our satellites will maintain their prescribed orbits or remain operational and we may not have replacement satellites that are immediately available.
Interruption or failure of our infrastructure could hurt our ability to effectively perform our daily operations and provide and produce our products and services, which could damage our reputation and harm our operating results.
We are vulnerable to natural disasters and significant disruptions including tsunamis, floods, earthquakes, fires, water shortages, other extreme weather conditions, medical epidemics, acts of terrorism, power shortages and blackouts, and telecommunications failures. In the event of such a natural disaster or other disruption, we could experience: disruptions to our operations or the operations of suppliers, subcontractors, distributors or customers; destruction of facilities; and/ or loss of life.
The availability of many of our products and services depends on the continuing operation of our satellite operations infrastructure, satellite manufacturing operations, information technology and communications systems. Any downtime, damage to or failure of our systems could result in interruptions in our service, which could reduce our revenue and profits. Our systems are vulnerable to damage or interruption from floods, fires, power loss, telecommunications failures, computer viruses, computer denial of service attacks or other attempts to harm our systems. We do not currently maintain a back-up production facility from which we can continue to collect, process and deliver imagery in the event