ENVISAT Data

ENVISAT program, managed by the European Space Agency (ESA), is aimed at the earth surface, atmosphere, oceans and glacier cover study and monitoring. The program acronyms are self-descriptive: ENVIronment and SATellite.

The first satellite per this program – ENVISAT-1 - was launched on March 1, 2002. In line with the global mission of Earth observation, 10 different sensors, operating in a wide range of electromagnetic waves, were installed onboard the satellite: from micro- up to ultra-violet waves. In addition, ENVISAT-1 is equipped with the side-looking advanced synthetic aperture radar (ASAR), enabling to receive data at resolutions from 30 to 1000 meters and in the swath from 5 to 400 km wide regardless of clouds and sun exposure.

In March 2007 ScanEX R&D Center signed a license agreement with Eurimage S.p.A. on the direct reception and distribution of ENVISAT-1 radar data by Moscow and Magadan ground stations. Following the agreement the UniScanTM ground station of the ScanEx Center was successfully certified for the ENVISAT-1 data reception and processing. On May 25, 2007 an agreement for the ENVISAT-1 data distribution in the regions beyond the Moscow and Magadan stations coverage was signed between Eurimage S.p.A. and ScanEx R&D Center.

ScanEx Center launched the commercial project for oil spills monitoring in the Caspian Sea using radar data. The primary task of the project is to control the environmental situation within the oil and gas production area. ENVISAT-1 data is now being used along with well-known to the local users RADARSAT-1 radar images to increase the imaging frequency and field of view of the area in subject.