Paul A Rosen, NISAR Project scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) in California has stated that the satellite will be launched shortly, following a “key test”.
As per The Hindu, the final tests including the acoustic tests are set to take place this week. The satellite is mainly concerned with studying crucial aspects of the earth’s ecosystem. Dr. Rosen further stated that the satellite will act as a repository for vast amounts of data which will be of great advantage to the scientific community. From agriculture monitoring to rise in sea levels, the low earth orbit (LEO) observatory aims at providing high-resolution data which will be made accessible to all.
NISAR’s Impeccable Earth-Observing Potential
The combined efforts of NASA’s long wavelength band (L-band) SAR payload and ISRO’s short wavelength (S-band) payload will acquire “spatially and temporally consistent data for understanding changes in earth’s ecosystems, ice mass, vegetation biomass, sea level rise, groundwater and natural hazards, including earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and landslides,” according to ISRO.
Minor Setback Pushed Launch-Date
The project was meant to commence in January itself, however, unforeseen circumstances led to rescheduling of the liftoff. It will be launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota using GSLV Mark II rocket. The NASA and ISRO led joint-venture has a mission life of three years.
Global Science Festival Kerala
A team involved in the mission, including Dr. Rosen and scientists Andrea Donnellan and Seung-bum Kim are currently in Thiruvananthapuram for the Global Science Festival where the former will further elaborate on the NASA-ISRO collaborated project.
