Anshu Miglani
Assistant Editor
GIS Development
[email protected]
TerraSAR-X is the first German satellite out of a public- private partnership (PPP) between German Aerospace Center (DLR) and Astrium GmbH. These two share the costs of the development, construction and deployment of the satellite. TerraSAR-X’s greatest and most obvious benefits are its weather independent radar sensor, which is an advantage over the high-resolution optical satellites available today; and the high resolution acquisition capability of up to 1m – which none of today’s commercial radar satellites are capable. Further, its flexible antenna enables a near-realtime data acquisition in time critical situations. Its three different operational modes allow targeted data acquisition tailored to individual application needs; e.g. large-area assessment at 16m resolution for cartography applications, and dedicated imagery of at 1m resolution for the detailed assessment of infrastructure settings.
The Launch
Initially delayed; finally the launch was a sucess The German radar satellite TerraSAR-X was successfully launched on June 15th from the Russian Cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Launch of TerraSAR was initially announced to be during the second quarter of 2006, but there has been a shift of a few months due to some technical reasons.
The main delay was caused by the Russian Dnepr launch failure in July 2006, which entailed an in-depth investigation of the failure cause and a careful implementation of corrective measures.
This waiting period was used to perform additional testing, especially in combination of the satellite with Ground Control and SAR Processing elements of the mission.
First Images
The first satellite images from TerraSAR- X have been received just five days after its launch.
The first TerraSAR-X image acquired on June 19, were delivered by DLR’s processing system for a region in Southern Russia; about 500 km northeast of the Black Sea and 50 km west of Wolgograd. Only 30 minutes after the data had been received by the ground station in Neustrelitz – the first images appeared on the monitors at the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) space centre in Oberpfaffenhofen.
Launch Team with Space Head Module Credits: Astrium GmbH
Data & Pricing
The price depends up on various specifications. The pricing of a TerraSAR-X scene depends on its individual specificiations, e.g. image resolution, requested processing and treatments, or the time frame set for the acquisition. An image of 100 x 150 sqm in size with a 16m resolution, ordered in a nontime- critical frame, can be purchased for ¤2.750. If the desired area of interest has already been captured and is available in the archive, this price is further reduced by up to 50%. However, if a near-real-time, high resolution image acquisition must be performed within a few hours time, and a rapid evaluation through experts is demanded, such an acquisition may cost up to ¤13.500. Infoterra is inviting interested users to apply for the delivery of a free TerraSAR-X scenes. At this point in time, the application can be accessed at www.terrasar.de/promotional
Partner Networks First TerraSAR-X Direct Access Partner: PASCO, Japan In order to ensure a secure and reliable marketing of the TerraSAR-X data, Infoterra is establishing a global network of distribution partners. TerraSAR-X users may either place their data orders directly with Infoterra, or order through a partner located in their respective country or region. At this point, more than 30 partners worldwide have joined the network. Processing
Leica announced TerraSAR-X processing capabilities in ERDAS. On 25 June, Leica Geosystems Geospatial Imaging announced the development of a TerraSAR-X processing capabilities in ERDAS IMAGINE Radar Mapping Suite 9.1. The Radar mapping suite will allow users to display and manipulate images captured by the TerraSAR-X satellite. The Remote Sensing Technology Institute of the DLR has assisted Leica Geosystems in developing the new suite for processing radar images. According to Infoterra they are taking a great interest that all relevant geospatial software handles TerraSARX data optimally. Also they are supporting the software providers with detailed information on format and sensor parameters and,free sample data sets to use for their development purposes.
First TerraSAR-X image Acquisition date: 19. June, 2007, 15 :03 :24 Credits: DLR, Infoterra
First TerraSAR-X Direct Access Partner: PASCO, Signing
Future
The future has already started with TerraSAR-X2 and TanDEM-X The course has already been set for the successor TerraSAR-X2, which is scheduled for launch in 2012. Astrium is preparing to implement the TanDEM-X project (TerraSAR- addon for Digital Elevation Measurement) on behalf of DLR. This consists of an additional satellite, similar in construction to TerraSAR- X, that will fly alongside TerraSAR-X at a distance of between 500 metres and two kilometres. TanDEM-X will also be financed under the PPP model, and could be launched in March 2009.
TanDEM-X Mission Concept © EADS Astrium
