NISAR satellite

(Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, Nano-technology, bio-technology and issues relating to intellectual property rights.)

Context:

• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has received the NASA-ISRO SAR (NISAR) satellite from the U.S. space agency.

About NISAR:

• NISAR is a Low Earth Orbit observatory jointly developed by NASA and ISRO which is scheduled for launch in 2024 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
• NISAR carries L and S dual-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), which operates with the Sweep SAR technique to achieve large swaths with high-resolution data. 
• ‘SAR’ is a type of remote-sensing technology that uses radars instead of optical sensors to create high-resolution images of the earth’s surface which can penetrate clouds and vegetation to generate accurate data.
• The SAR payloads mounted on Integrated Radar Instrument Structure (IRIS) and the spacecraft bus are together called an observatory.
• According to ISRO, NISAR will map the entire globe in 12 days and provide 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.

Applications of NISAR:

• Disaster mapping: A collection of pre-disaster images will be used to better understand disasters and inform official policy on the best courses of action in future. 
• Satellite observations will also be uninterrupted by weather, thus providing quick and reliable information for rescue operations and loss estimates.
• Changes in permafrost:NISAR will be programmed to observe global changes in permafrost at regular intervals, updating scientists about its degradation, with implications for global water resources, aquatic ecosystems, coastal water levels, etc.
• Forests: Forests provide timber, fuel, and a variety of products, act as carbon sinks (sequestering excess carbon in the atmosphere), purify air and water resources, and are habitats for multiple plant and animal species. 
• NISAR will monitor global forest resources, their extent, and quality and provide information for their sustainable development and management.
• Agriculture and food security: SAR imaging of crop rotation, growth, and harvest can be used to streamline planned agricultural output and monitor the health of crops.