Space Imaging announced that it has signed an agreement with Antrix Corp., a division of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), to extend its sales and marketing agreement through 2010. The agreement gives Space Imaging exclusive rights to market and sell data from ISRO’s RESOURCESAT-1 (IRS-P6) satellite worldwide outside of India. The agreement also includes the Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) 1-C and IRS 1-D, and CARTOSAT (P-5) satellites. K.R. Sridhara Murthi, executive director, Antrix, and Robert Dalal, CEO of Space Imaging, signed the agreement in Bangalore, India, in the presence of G. Madhavan Nair, chairman, Space Commission and secretary, Department of Space, government of India and chairman, Antrix.
Space Imaging also offers international ground station access to the IRS constellation that includes RESOURCESAT-1, the most advanced remote sensing satellite built by ISRO that was launched into its 817 km orbit on Oct. 17, 2003. RESOURCESAT-1 is intended to not only continue the remote sensing data services provided by the older IRS-1C and IRS-1D satellites, but also offer enhanced data quality. Imagery can be used for environmental monitoring, agriculture, land use planning, and disaster management and assessment.
“ISRO, Antrix and Space Imaging have worked as partners to fulfill India’s vision of a global commercial Earth-observation program,” said G. Madhavan Nair. “The Indian Remote Sensing systems have emerged as one of the most high-profile programs in the commercial imaging industry.”
RESOURCESAT-1 carries three cameras:
§ A high-resolution Linear Imaging Self Scanner (LISS-4) operating in three spectral bands in the visible and near-infrared region with 5.8-meter resolution and steerable up to ± 26 degrees across track to obtain stereoscopic imagery and achieve five-day revisit capability.
§ A medium-resolution LISS-3 sensor operating in four spectral bands in visible, near-infrared and short wave infrared with 23-meter resolution.
§ An Advanced Wide Field Sensor (AWiFS) operating in four spectral bands in visible, near-infrared and one short wave infrared with 56-meter resolution.
§ In addition, RESOURCESAT-1 has a solid-state recorder with a capacity of 120 gigabits to store the images taken by its cameras.
To commemorate the signing of this agreement, Space Imaging is releasing a RESOURCESAT-1, LISS-3 satellite image of the Potomac River Basin in the United States. The image was taken on Dec. 12, 2003 and is available on Space Imaging’s Web site at https://www.spaceimaging.com/gallery/spacepics/LISS_3_Resourcesat_Potomac.jpg.
The 23-meter resolution, false-color image shows an overview of the Potomac River spanning portions of Maryland and Virginia.
Antrix Corporation Limited, the commercial arm of Department of Space (DOS) was incorporated in September 1992 for the promotion and commercial exploitation of products and services from the Indian Space Programme. Antrix draws upon its strength and the heritage from the experience and proven scientific achievements of the Indian Space Programme over the past four decades.
