India’s first space-borne receiver starts ops

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: ISRO on Thursday said that the GNSS-Reflectometry (GNSS-R) instrument that represents "a new mode of remote sensing" on the EOS-08 satellite has commenced operations.

The instrument, developed by the Space Applications Centre (SACISRO), is India's first space-borne precision receiver, according to ISRO. The space agency on August 16 had successfully launched the Earth Observation Satellite EOS-08 on board the third developmental flight of small satellite launch vehicle SSLV-D3.

GNSS-R commenced operations on August 18. The raw data is being processed at the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC-ISRO) in Shadnagar, Hyderabad, using algorithms and data processing software developed by the Space Applications Centre (SACISRO), Ahmedabad, and multiple levels of data products have been successfully generated, it said.

Noting that signals from Global and Regional Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS/RNSS), such as GPS and NavIC, are reflected off various Earth surfaces, including oceans, agricultural lands, and river bodies, ISRO said, these reflected signals are collected by a precision receiver onboard the satellite as it orbits the Earth at an altitude of 475 km.

This measurement system operates without dedicated transmitters and is shallow in resource consumptionrequiring minimal size, weight, and power, it said.

Additionally, it can scale up as a constellation of receivers for faster coverage, making this innovative remote-sensing mode highly useful.