The Cartosat is a

series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...

of Indian optical earth observation satellites built and operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The Cartosat series is a part of the Indian Remote Sensing Program. They are used for Earth's resource management, defence services and monitoring.

History

The Department of Space (DoS) had launched and managed the

IRS series India's remote sensing program was developed with the idea of applying space technologies for the benefit of humankind and the development of the country. The program involved the development of three principal capabilities. The first was to desi ...

of remote sensing satellites for Earth's resource management and monitoring. These satellites were very successful in providing data in various scales ranging from 1:1 Million to 1:12,500 scale. Each of the

IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory tax ...

missions ensured data continuity while introducing improvements in the spatial, spectral and radiometric resolutions. Considering increased demand for large scale and topographic mapping data, the DoS launched the expanded Cartosat series of remote sensing satellites. The first satellite of the series, Cartosat-1, was launched in 2005.

Satellites

Cartosat-1

Cartosat-1 was launched by

PSLV-C6 PSLV-C6 was the sixth operational launch and overall ninth mission of the PSLV program. This launch was also the fifty-fourth launch by Indian Space Research Organisation since its first mission on 1 January 1962. The vehicle carried and injected ...

on 5 May 2005 from

Satish Dhawan Space Centre Satish Dhawan Space Centre - SDSC (formerly Sriharikota Range - SHAR) is a rocket launch centre ( spaceport) operated by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It is located in Sriharikota, Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh. Sriharikota ...

's SLP at Sriharikota. Images from the satellite are available from GeoEye for worldwide distribution. The satellite covers the entire globe in 1867 orbits on a 126-day cycle. It carries two state-of-the-art panchromatic (PAN) cameras that take black and white stereoscopic pictures of the earth in the visible region of the

electromagnetic spectrum The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of frequencies (the spectrum) of electromagnetic radiation and their respective wavelengths and photon energies. The electromagnetic spectrum covers electromagnetic waves with frequencies ranging fro ...

. The two cameras with 2.5 m spatial resolution, acquire two images simultaneously, one forward looking (FORE) at +26 degrees and one aft of the satellite at −5 degrees for near instantaneous stereo data. The time difference between the acquisitions of the same scene by the two cameras is about 52 seconds.

Cartosat-2

Cartosat-2 was launched by PSLV-C7 on 10 January 2007 from

's FLP at Sriharikota. Cartosat-2 carries a state-of-the-art panchromatic (PAN) camera that take black and white pictures of the earth in the visible region of the

. The swath covered by this high resolution PAN camera is 9.6 km and their spatial resolution is less than 1 metre. The satellite can be steered up to 45 degrees along as well as across the track. Cartosat-2 is an advanced remote sensing satellite capable of providing scene-specific spot imagery. The data from the satellite is used for detailed mapping and other cartographic applications at cad-astral level, urban and rural infrastructure development and management, as well as applications in Land Information System (LIS) and Geographical Information System (GIS).

Cartosat-2A

Cartosat-2A was launched by PSLV-C9 on 28 April 2008 from

in Sriharikota along with 9 other satellites. It is a dedicated satellite for the

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which is in the process of establishing an Aerospace Command. The satellite carries a panchromatic (PAN)

camera A camera is an optical instrument that can capture an image. Most cameras can capture 2D images, with some more advanced models being able to capture 3D images. At a basic level, most cameras consist of sealed boxes (the camera body), with a ...

capable of taking

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

pictures in the visible region of

. The highly agile Cartosat-2A can be steered up to 45 degrees along as well as across the direction of its movement to facilitate imaging of any area more frequently.

Cartosat-2B

Cartosat-2B was launched by PSLV-C15 on 12 July 2010 from Sriharikota. The satellite carries a panchromatic (PAN)

capable of taking

pictures in the visible region of

. The highly agile CARTOSAT-2B can be steered up to 26 degrees along as well as across the direction of its movement to facilitate imaging of any area more frequently.

Cartosat-2C

Cartosat-2C has a lower resolution of 25 cm (10"). It uses 1.2 m optics with 60% of weight removal compared to Cartosat-2. Other features include the use of adaptive optics, acousto optical devices, in-orbit focusing using MEMs and large area-light weight mirrors. The satellite was to be launched on board PSLV C-34 during 2014, but was delayed and finally launched on 22 June 2016. Its uses include weather mapping, cartography, and strategic applications.

Cartosat-2D

Cartosat-2D was launched by

PSLV-C37 PSLV-C37 was the 39th mission of the Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) program and its 16th mission in the XL configuration. PSLV-C37 successfully carried and deployed a record 104 satellites in sun-synchronous orbits. Launched on ...

on 15 February 2017 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre.

Cartosat-2E

Cartosat-2E was launched by PSLV-C38 on 23 June 2017. The PSLV-C38 rocket launched the 712 kg satellite along with 30 other nano satellites.

Cartosat-2F

Cartosat-2F was launched successfully by

PSLV-C40 PSLV-C40 was the 42nd mission of the Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) program in the XL configuration. PSLV-C40 successfully carried and deployed 31 satellites in sun-synchronous orbits. Overview Two Surrey Satellite Technology sate ...

on 12 January 2018. The PSLV-C40 rocket launched the 710 kg satellite, the seventh of the Cartosat-2 series, along with 30 other nano satellites from India, Canada, Finland, France, Republic of Korea, UK and the USA.

Cartosat-3

Cartosat-3 was launched on 27 November 2019 by

PSLV The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) is an expendable medium-lift launch vehicle designed and operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It was developed to allow India to launch its Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellites ...

-C47 rocket along with 13 other cubesats from USA. It has a panchromatic resolution of 0.25 metres making it the imaging satellite with highest resolution and Mx of 1 metre with a high quality resolution which is a major improvement from the previous payloads in the Cartosat series.

Launch Schedule

References

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