Produced by: Tarun Mishra Designed by: Manoj Kumar
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Indian Space Research organisation (ISRO) are gearing up for the much-anticipated launch of the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission, scheduled for the first quarter of 2024.
The launch is set to take place at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, onboard ISRO’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-II.
NISAR embarks on a three-year mission, featuring a groundbreaking survey of Earth's land and ice-covered surfaces, with observations every 12 days.
Before the survey commences, a crucial 90-day satellite commissioning period is earmarked to ensure the satellite's operational readiness.
NISAR is currently undergoing vibration testing, a pivotal step in the comprehensive testing regimen. Subsequent tests include battery, simulation, and performance evaluations.
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Director, Dr. Laurie Leshin, emphasized that NISAR represents a leap forward, surpassing the capabilities of its predecessors.
Acknowledging the importance of observing Earth's changes over extended periods, there's speculation about extending NISAR's mission if it performs exceptionally well.
NISAR's objectives encompass mapping the entire globe in a 12-day cycle, providing consistent and detailed data on Earth's ecosystems, ice masses, vegetation, sea levels, groundwater, and natural hazards.
The satellite, comparable in size to an SUV, hosts advanced instruments such as Synthetic Aperture Radar Instrument, L-band SAR, S-band SAR, and Antenna reflector.
NISAR's instruments boast an extraordinary capability to detect minute changes, even as small as one centimetre from space. The satellite, powered by two solar arrays, is equipped with enough fuel for a minimum of five years of operational life.