July 16,2023 : NASA and ISRO join forces for the NISAR mission! What is NISAR? Read how NASA and ISRO are contributing towards this collaboration.
NASA( the National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) are teaming up to build an amazing Earth-observing satellite that will help us understand our planet even better. Let's embark on an exciting journey and explore the wonders of space!
Have you ever wondered how scientists learn about Earth from way up in space? Well, satellites are the key! They are like super-powered cameras that orbit our planet and capture valuable information. They help us study things like weather patterns, changes in the environment, and even how our cities are growing.
What is NISAR?
NASA, from the United States, and ISRO from India are working together to build a powerful new satellite. NASA-ISRO SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR (NISAR) is a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) observatory being jointly developed by NASA and ISRO.
Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) - it is a special kind of technology that helps us see and understand our planet from space. It's like having a super camera that can take pictures of Earth, even when it's cloudy or dark outside.Instead of using visible light like a regular camera, SAR uses something called radar. Radar sends out special signals, like invisible waves, and then listens for the echoes that bounce back. It's kind of like shouting into a canyon and hearing the echo come back to you.
Low Earth Orbit (LEO)- Low Earth Orbit (LEO) refers to a specific region of space relatively close to Earth. Satellites and spacecraft in LEO typically orbit at an altitude of around 100 to 1,200 miles (160 to 2,000 kilometers) above the Earth's surface.
How will NISAR work?
Simply explained:
NISAR will collect the radar data through a drum shaped reflector antenna almost 12 meters in diameter. The satellite will use InSAR or interferometric synthetic aperture radar, a signal-processing technique to detect the changes on Earth.
In its 3 year prime mission period, NISAR will track nearly the entire planet every 12 days, observing both day and night in every weather condition.
And now some more details:
The NISAR satellite will advance knowledge of climate change, deforestation, glacier melt, volcanoes, earthquakes, and other phenomena. This satellite will be equipped with advanced instruments to collect essential data about Earth. It's incredible to see scientists from different countries coming together to explore our home planet!
In ISRO, Bengaluru, India, two significant parts of the NISAR satellite were united to form a single spacecraft.It is scheduled to launch in early 2024. NISAR will aid scientists in understanding, among other observables, the dynamics of forests, wetlands, and agricultural fields as it scans practically every area of our world at least once every 12 days.
To make sure it can weather the challenges of launch and fulfill all of its operating needs once in orbit, the NISAR satellite is presently undergoing performance testing, which will be followed by numerous rounds of environmental testing.
After that, it will be moved about 220 miles (350 kilometers) east to Satish Dhawan Space Center,located in Sriharikota ,Andhra Pradesh, where it will be put into its launch fairing, mounted atop ISRO's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark II rocket, and launched into low Earth orbit.
Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark II rocket- is like a giant, powerful spaceship that takes satellites into space.
The NISAR mission's payload (the special instruments) went on an interesting journey before coming together. The S-band radar was built in India and then flown to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California. There, engineers were working on developing the L-band radar for the mission.
The two radar systems were attached to the payload's frame at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California. Later, the payload was flown to the U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) in India. At URSC, engineers and technicians worked on developing the main body of the spacecraft, which is called the bus. The bus provides power, navigation, control, and communications for the mission.
Teams from both NASA and ISRO have been collaborating at URSC to connect the radar payload and the bus with lots of cables. They still need to attach the satellite's solar panels and a big drum-shaped antenna that unfolds from a long boom. This antenna will be the largest radar antenna of its kind ever launched into space!
So, the NISAR mission is a joint effort between NASA and ISRO. The payload, including the radar instruments, traveled between India and the United States. Engineers and technicians from both agencies have been working together to assemble the spacecraft's main body, connect the instruments, and get everything ready for the mission.
The NASA-ISRO collaboration
NASA is also contributing other important components to the mission. They are providing things like the radar reflector antenna (which helps with the radar signals), the deployable boom (like a long arm that extends in space), a high-rate communication subsystem (to send and receive lots of data), GPS receivers (to help with navigation), a solid-state recorder (like a super-duper hard drive), and the payload data subsystem (to manage all the important information collected by the mission).
On the other hand, URSC (U.R. Rao Satellite Centre), which leads the ISRO part of the mission, is contributing different things. They are providing the spacecraft bus (which is like the "body" of the satellite), the S-band SAR electronics (another important radar instrument), the launch vehicle (the rocket that will take the satellite to space), and all the necessary launch services and satellite mission operations (to make sure everything goes smoothly).
This collaboration is super exciting because it shows how scientists and engineers from different countries can work together, share their knowledge, and create something truly amazing. By joining forces, NASA and ISRO are able to accomplish more and learn even more about our incredible planet Earth.
The NASA partnership may enable ISRO to quickly acquire the technologies it requires and re-energize India's aerospace sector.