NASA to preview advanced US-India radar mission ahead of July launch

NASA will preview the upcoming US-India Advanced Radar Mission ahead of its scheduled launch in late July from ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

The NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite, a first-of-its-kind Earth-observing collaboration between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), will provide a dynamic, three-dimensional view of Earth in unprecedented detail.

“The NISAR mission will lift off from ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, on India’s southeastern coast. Launch is targeted for no earlier than late July,” NASA said.

The satellite carries two advanced radar instruments: an S-band system provided by ISRO and an L-band system from NASA. Using a technique known as synthetic aperture radar (SAR), NISAR will scan nearly all of Earth’s land and ice surfaces twice every 12 days, detecting movements down to the centimeter.

These high-resolution capabilities will enhance scientists’ understanding of natural processes involved in hazards like earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, land subsidence, and landslides.

“Additionally, NISAR’s cloud penetrating ability will aid urgent responses to communities during weather disasters such as hurricanes, storm surge, and flooding. The detailed maps the mission creates also will provide information on both gradual and sudden changes occurring on Earth’s land and ice surfaces,” NASA said in a statement.

Multiple ISRO centers have contributed to the NISAR. The Space Applications Centre is providing the mission’s S-band SAR, while the U R Rao Satellite Centre provided the spacecraft bus.

The rocket is from Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, launch services are through Satish Dhawan Space Centre, and satellite mission operations are by the ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network.

Meanwhile, the National Remote Sensing Centre is responsible for S-band data reception, operational products generation, and dissemination.

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