The COSMO-SkyMed Programme is without a doubt the major Italian project in the space industry. It foresees a total constellation of 4 radar satellites for Earth Observation for dual (civilian and military) use. The constellation will acquire data in several SAR image modes, and will generate focused data products. Presently, two satellites are in orbit and the launch of the third satellite is scheduled for October. The constellation will be complete by 2009.
But why is SAR data so important? Because it allows for constant all weather Earth Observation. Coupled with COSMO-SkyMed’s fast site revisit time, the data from COSMO-SkyMed will be of extreme importance for EO products and applications. This is where INNOVA’s know-how and expertise come into play.
INNOVA has developed the Spotlight processors for Cosmo-SkyMed, and is currently developing the GSDView open source tool for SAR image manipulation and other SW to offer SAR image functionalities such as Data processing, Quality Analysis, Interferometry, Change Detection and MTI.
The qualitative analysis presented has been carried out with the support of the correspondent optical images. The approach used has been to:
-Individualize the targets and the characteristics of the SAR data.
-Verify the characteristics of the data, of the satellite configuration and of the SAR.
-Interpret the data and the connected phenomena.
GSDView was used to elaborate the CSK images. It is an Open Source Tool, currently under development by INNOVA under an ASI (Italian Space Agency) contract, which can manage SAR images from COSMO-SkyMed and other missions (ERS, Envisat, etc). Once completed, GSDView will be a comprehensive tool for SAR images. Currently, it has the following functionalities:-Ingestion / data exchange -Graphic Interface
For more information, visit GSDVIEW
Various contexts were analyzed within the SAR images, with specific attention to human interest areas, such as: metropolitan areas, ports and coasts and agricultural areas.
The data set used for the analysis has been predominantly from SCS (Single-look Complex Slant), DGM (Detected Ground Multilook), GEC (Geocoded Ellipsoid Corrected) and GTC (Geocoded Terrain Corrected) products acquired by the COSMO-SkyMed satellites SAR1 and/or SAR2 in StripMap and Spotlight acquisition modes.
The completed analysis shows the great potential of the sensor. The COSMO-SkyMed data regards the possible use in Earth Observation (EO) applications such as Change Detection (CD), Moving Target Detection (MTD) and Interferometry, of significant importance in both Military and Civilian spheres because they consent target detection with geometric and physical characteristics. The stability and high resolution characteristics of the sensor together with the fast revisit rate foreseen for the COSMO-SkyMed system will allow to define new high level product categories and make possible new innovative applications for the EO field.
Future activities will cover in-depth quantitative analysis with ground measuring and validation campaigns.
About INNOVA
Headquartered in Matera, Italy, INNOVA Consorzio per l’Informatica e la Telematica is a technology provider in the remote sensing field, with experience in the development of Fleet Management and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), know-how and expertise geared towards the Earth Observation industry and the Public Administration Sector, and highly specialized knowledge of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), High Performance Computing (HPC) and GRID technology.
For more information, please contact our International Relations Manager, Marina Doubell:
Email: doubell@consorzio-innova.it
Phone: +39.0835.307760
Website: www.consorzio-innova.com