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RapidEye satellite imagery
5 RapidEye mini-satellites were launched on August 29, 2008 aboard Russian carrier booster Dnepr from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. RapidEye AG Company from Germany owns these satellites every of which was designed by British SSTL Company and Canadian MDA Company and equipped with multispectral electro-optical cameras Jena-Optronik for the purpose of survey with spatial resolution of 6.5 m. The weight of each satellite is 175 kg. The constellation was set into sun-synchronous orbit at the height of 630 km. The group of RapidEye satellites can provide imaging of 4 mn. sq. km. area on a daily basis with ability to repeat survey of the target territory in 24 hours.
Satellites image the surface in 5 bands. Red Edge band that is optimal for monitoring and assessing the vegetation growth and state is the unique ability for high resolution satellites. Active life is 7 years.
RapidEye satellite imagery application
- Agricultural fields inventory, creation of land use maps.
- Monitoring and assessment of the crop state and contamination, determination of the crop fragile, crop yields forecasting, precision farming.
- Forest inventory and forest vegetation examination.
- Monitoring impacts to the environment from human-caused and natural disasters.
- Assessing and estimating of drill site and transportation infrastructure facilities.
- Land use planning and managing the municipal and urban services.
- Updating of the road-maps and other special plans of the scale of 1:25000-1:50000.
- Monitoring of the ecological state in the areas of oil, gas and other mineral mining, refining and transportation.
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