ISRO and NASA are jointly working on the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission to codevelop and launch a dual frequency synthetic aperture radar satellite. The NISAR mission is a dual frequency (L & S Band) Radar Imaging Satellite. In this joint mission,

• JPL/ NASA will be responsible for design & development of L-band SAR, 12m unfurlable antenna, GPS system and data recorder.
• ISRO will be responsible for design & development of S-band SAR, Spacecraft Bus, data transmission system, Spacecraft integration & testing, launch using GSLV and on-orbit operations.

Objectives of NISAR Mission

• Design, Develop and launch a Dual frequency (L and S Band) Radar Imaging Satellite.
• Explore newer application areas using L and S band microwave data, especially in natural resources mapping & monitoring; estimating agricultural biomass over full duration of crop cycle; assessing soil moisture; monitoring of floods and oil slicks; coastal erosion, coastline changes and variation of winds in coastal waters; assessment of mangroves; surface deformation studies due to seismic activities etc.

The cost of the project comprises of,

(i) cost of ISRO’s work share, which is estimated to be Rs 788.00 crore

(ii) cost of JPL’s work share, which is expected to be around US Dollar 808 millions.

Test Your Knowledge

Who is the current Chairman of ISRO?