Examination Completed, NISAR Satellite Ready To Observe Earth's Situation

NISAR satellite in space (photo: dock. NASA)

JAKARTA The NISAR satellite mission has completed all post-launch inspection stages according to a NASA report. Now, the Earth observer radar satellite is ready to start its scientific operations.

NISAR, short for NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar, launched on July 30 and has successfully deployed its 39-foot radar antenna. The technician team has turned on the L-band and S-band synthetic apertur radar system.

Both teams, both from NASA and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), ensure that the spacecraft is functioning normally. The mission is now starting to lift satellites into operational orbit at an altitude of 747 kilometers.

The mission team anticipates getting a scientific quality radar image in the coming weeks. Scientific operations have also been scheduled, which is about 90 days after the satellite launches.

NISAR is the first mission to carry two SAR systems. The L-band radar will track soil moisture, forest biomass, and ice surface movement. Meanwhile, the S-band radar is more sensitive to small vegetation and is suitable for monitoring agriculture and the seaweed ecosystem.

This radar system can collect data through clouds and rainfall, both day and night. This ensures continuous observation. This satellite will monitor most of Earth's land and ice surface every 12 days.

NISAR measurements will track changes in forests, frozen surfaces, infrastructure, and the earth's crust even to the smallest changes. This data will help scientists understand the movement of the earth's surface before, during, and after natural events.