NISAR payload integration completed, to arrive in India next year

The NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), or the NISAR mission, is a joint partnership between the two agencies. It is designed to observe and take measurements of some of the planet’s most complex processes which include natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and landslides. It will help scientists better understand the structural changes on the surface of the Earth.

While delivering a talk on NISAR at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), NASA’s Earth Science division Director Dr Karen M St Germain said, “So, NISAR is a dual synthetic aperture radar. NASA is building the L Band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and ISRO is building S band SAR. And by the way, it’s going to allow both radars to go through one single 12 meter antenna to get that spatial resolution. It’s an astounding system to see in person. We have now got the payloads integrated at our facilities at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. They’re going into testing; first will be launch configuration testing and then functional testing. Post this, the whole thing will get shipped back to ISRO for integration on the spacecraft on satellite and for integration on the launch vehicle and then launch.”

She added that NASA and ISRO have together worked on airborne testbeds for testing the radars. “By measuring changes in the Earth’s surface, we can gain insight into what is happening below the surface and potential impacts,” she said.

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Officials from NASA said NISAR’s global coverage will provide opportunities to quickly respond to natural disasters. The radars enable NISAR to collect data round the clock in any weather condition. It will image the entire Earth every 12 days. The data will be freely available and open to the public, officials from NASA said.

Dr Thomas Zurbuchen, Associate Administrator, NASA Science Mission Directorate, said the team from NASA would meet ISRO officials to deliberate further on the NISAR mission. “NISAR is a joint collaboration mission that will use advance radar imaging to provide an unprecedented detail view of earth, helping scientists better understand our planet’s procession and changing climate,” he said.