Video animation of RADARSAT-2
High resolution – (11.7MB) Low resolution – (1.5MB)
Step-by-step Description
1- RADARSAT-2 release
RADARSAT-2 will be in a
sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of approximately 800 km.
2- Stabilisation:
This stage will start automatically upon detection of the spacecraft separation from the
launch vehicle. Spacecraft initialisation consists of switching on sensors: GPS,
Magnetometer, Gyro and Sun Sensor. At launcher release, the spacecraft will autonomously
recognise its angular rate, damp it and acquire controlled attitude. Upon success of
de-spin and first sun acquisition, RADARSAT-2 will start to acquire a coarse stable
3-axes attitude. This process should take 2-3 orbits.
3- Solar Arrays deployment
Following the stabilisation of the spacecraft, the Solar Arrays will be deployed by
ground command. The Solar Arrays can be deployed one at a time or simultaneously. The
deployment will not exceed 2 minutes for each wing.
4- Antenna tie-downs release and SAR antenna deployment
The antenna tie-downs will be released automatically or by ground command. The Synthetic
Aperture Radar (SAR) antenna will then be deployed by ground command. The SAR wings can
be released one at a time or simultaneously and the deployment should not exceed 5
minutes for each wing.
Deployment State is completed at this point and RADARSAT-2 is ready to move in Mission
State.
5- Imaging state
RADARSAT-2 will be able to switch from right- to left-looking mode. This process will
take about 10 minutes. About 75% of imaging will be performed in right-looking: the
left-looking mode will be used for Antarctic mapping, emergency situations and to
improve market access.
Several imaging modes are available with RADARSAT-2 (incidence angles, resolution and
polarization). A single image take may vary from a minimum of 5 seconds to a maximum of
28 minutes.
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