The NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) Earth-observing radar satellite’s first images of our planet’s surface are in, and they offer a glimpse of things to come as the joint mission between NASA and ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) approaches full science operations later this year.

“Launched under President Trump in conjunction with India, NISAR’s first images are a testament to what can be achieved when we unite around a shared vision of innovation and discovery,” said acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy. “This is only the beginning. NASA will continue to build upon the incredible scientific advancements of the past and present as we pursue our goal to maintain our nation’s space dominance through Gold Standard Science.”

Images from the spacecraft, which was launched by ISRO on July 30, display the level of detail with which NISAR scans Earth to provide unique, actionable information to decision-makers in a diverse range of areas, including disaster response, infrastructure monitoring, and agricultural management.

“By understanding how our home planet works, we can produce models and analysis of how other planets in our solar system and beyond work as we prepare to send humanity on an epic journey back to the Moon and onward to Mars,” said NASA Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya. “The successful capture of these first images from NISAR is a remarkable example of how partnership and collaboration between two nations, on opposite sides of the world, can achieve great things together for the benefit of all.”

On Aug. 21, the satellite’s L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system, which was provided by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, captured Mount Desert Island on the Maine coast. Dark areas represent water, while green areas are forest, and magenta areas are hard or regular surfaces, such as bare ground and buildings. The L-band radar system can resolve objects as small as 15 feet (5 meters), enabling the image to display narrow waterways cutting across the island, as well as the islets dotting the waters around it.

Then, on Aug. 23, the L-band SAR captured data of a portion of northeastern North Dakota straddling Grand Forks and Walsh counties. The image shows forests and wetlands on the banks of the Forest River passing through the center of the frame from west to east and farmland to the north and south. The dark agricultural plots show fallow fields, while the lighter colors represent the presence of pasture or crops, such as soybean and corn. Circular patterns indicate the use of center-pivot irrigation.

The images demonstrate how the L-band SAR can discern what type of land cover — low-lying vegetation, trees, and human structures — is present in each area. This capability is vital both for monitoring the gain and loss of forest and wetland ecosystems, as well as for tracking the progress of crops through growing seasons around the world.

“These initial images are just a preview of the hard-hitting science that NISAR will produce — data and insights that will enable scientists to study Earth’s changing land and ice surfaces in unprecedented detail while equipping decision-makers to respond to natural disasters and other challenges,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “They are also a testament to the years of hard work of hundreds of scientists and engineers from both sides of the world to build an observatory with the most advanced radar system ever launched by NASA and ISRO.”

The L-band system uses a 10-inch (25-centimeter) wavelength that enables its signal to penetrate forest canopies and measure soil moisture and motion of ice surfaces and land down to fractions of an inch, which is a key measurement in understanding how the land surface moves before, during, and after earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and landslides.

The preliminary L-band images are an example of what the mission team will be able to produce when the science phase begins in November. The satellite was raised into its operational 464-mile (747-kilometer) orbit in mid-September.

The NISAR mission also includes an S-band radar, provided by ISRO’s Space Applications Centre, that uses a 4-inch (10-centimeter) microwave signal that is more sensitive to small vegetation, making it effective at monitoring certain types of agriculture and grassland ecosystems.

The spacecraft is the first to carry both L- and S-band radars. The satellite will monitor Earth’s land and ice surfaces twice every 12 days, collecting data using the spacecraft’s drum-shaped antenna reflector, which measures 39 feet (12 meters) wide — the largest NASA has ever sent into space.

The NISAR mission is a partnership between NASA and ISRO spanning years of technical and programmatic collaboration. The successful launch and deployment of NISAR builds on a strong heritage of cooperation between the United States and India in space.

The Space Applications Centre provided the mission’s S-band SAR. The U R Rao Satellite Centre provided the spacecraft bus. The launch vehicle was provided by Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, and launch services were through Satish Dhawan Space Centre. Key operations, including boom and radar antenna reflector deployment, are now being executed and monitored by the ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network’s global system of ground stations.

Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, NASA JPL leads the U.S. component of the project. In addition to the L-band SAR, reflector, and boom, JPL also provided the high-rate communication subsystem for science data, a solid-state data recorder, and payload data subsystem. NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the Near Space Network, which receives NISAR’s L-band data.

To learn more about NISAR, visit:

https://nisar.jpl.nasa.gov

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Liz Vlock
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
elizabeth.a.vlock@nasa.gov

Andrew Wang / Jane J. Lee
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
626-379-6874 / 818-354-0307
andrew.wang@jpl.nasa.gov / jane.j.lee@jpl.nasa.gov

Driving rapid innovation in the American space industry, NASA has awarded Katalyst Space Technologies of Flagstaff, Arizona, a contract to raise a spacecraft’s orbit. Katalyst’s robotic servicing spacecraft will rendezvous with NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory and raise it to a higher altitude, demonstrating a key capability for the future of space exploration and extending the Swift mission’s science lifetime.

NASA’s Swift launched in 2004 to explore the universe’s most powerful explosions, called gamma-ray bursts. The spacecraft’s low Earth orbit has been decaying gradually, which happens to satellites over time. However, because of recent increases in the Sun’s activity, Swift is experiencing more atmospheric drag than anticipated, speeding up its orbital decay. While NASA could have allowed the observatory to reenter Earth’s atmosphere, as many missions do at the end of their lifetimes, Swift’s lowering orbit presents an opportunity to advance American spacecraft servicing technology.

“This industry collaboration to boost Swift’s orbit is just one of many ways NASA works for the nation every day,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington. “By moving quickly to pursue innovative commercial solutions, we’re further developing the space industry and strengthening American space leadership. This daring mission also will demonstrate our ability to go from concept to implementation in less than a year — a rapid-response capability important for our future in space as we send humans back to the Moon under the Artemis campaign, to Mars, and beyond.”

The orbit boost is targeted for spring 2026, though NASA will continue to monitor any changes in solar activity that may impact this target timeframe. A successful Swift boost would be the first time a commercial robotic spacecraft captures a government satellite that is uncrewed, or not originally designed to be serviced in space.

“Given how quickly Swift’s orbit is decaying, we are in a race against the clock, but by leveraging commercial technologies that are already in development, we are meeting this challenge head-on,” said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, acting director, Astrophysics Division, NASA Headquarters. “This is a forward-leaning, risk-tolerant approach for NASA. But attempting an orbit boost is both more affordable than replacing Swift’s capabilities with a new mission, and beneficial to the nation — expanding the use of satellite servicing to a new and broader class of spacecraft.”

Swift leads NASA’s fleet of space telescopes in studying changes in the high-energy universe. When a rapid, sudden event takes place in the cosmos, Swift serves as a “dispatcher,” providing critical information that allows other “first responder” missions to follow up to learn more about how the universe works. For more than two decades, Swift has led NASA’s missions in providing new insights on these events, together broadening our understanding of everything from exploding stars, stellar flares, and eruptions in active galaxies, to comets and asteroids in our own solar system and high-energy lightning events on Earth.

NASA has awarded Katalyst $30 million to move forward with implementation under a Phase III award as an existing participant in NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, managed by the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. This approach allowed NASA to pursue an orbit boost for Swift on a shorter development timeline than would otherwise be possible, given the rapid rate at which Swift’s orbit is decaying.

“America’s space economy is brimming with cutting-edge solutions, and opportunities like this allow NASA to tap into them for real-world challenges,” said Clayton Turner, associate administrator, NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters. “Orbital decay is a common, natural occurrence for satellites, and this collaboration may open the door to extending the life of more spacecraft in the future. By working with industry, NASA fosters rapid, agile technology development, advancing capabilities to benefit the missions of today and unlock the discoveries of tomorrow.” 

The NASA SBIR program is part of America’s Seed Fund, the nation’s largest source of early-stage, non-dilutive funding for innovative technologies. Through this program, entrepreneurs, startups, and small businesses with less than 500 employees can receive funding and non-monetary support to build, mature, and commercialize their technologies, advancing NASA missions and helping solve important challenges facing our country.

NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the Swift mission in collaboration with Penn State, the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, and Northrop Grumman Space Systems in Dulles, Virginia. Other partners include the UK Space Agency, University of Leicester and Mullard Space Science Laboratory in the United Kingdom, Brera Observatory in Italy, and the Italian Space Agency.

To learn more about the Swift mission, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/swift

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Alise Fisher / Jasmine Hopkins
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-2546 / 321-432-4624
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov / jasmine.s.hopkins@nasa.gov

Led by acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy, an agency delegation will participate in the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Sydney, Australia, from Sunday, Sept. 28 to Friday, Oct. 3.

The IAC, organized by the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), is hosted this year by the Space Industry Association of Australia.

During the congress, NASA will highlight America’s leadership in human exploration to the Moon and Mars, responsible exploration under the Artemis Accords, and support for the commercial space sector in the Golden Age of innovation and exploration.

To view select events, visit the IAF YouTube channel, onsite at International Convention Centre Sydney, and across social media channels, including NASA updates on @SecDuffyNASA and @NASA X accounts.

Sunday, Sept. 28

• 11:45 p.m. EDT (Monday, Sept. 29, 1:45 p.m. AEST): “One-to-One with Global Space Leaders” plenary featuring Duffy

Monday, Sept. 29

• 11:45 p.m. EDT (Tuesday, Sept. 30, 1:45 p.m. AEST): “Learning to Live on Another World: The International Community’s Return to the Moon” plenary featuring Nujoud Merancy, deputy associate administrator of the Strategy and Architecture Office, NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate
• 8:15 p.m. EDT (Sept. 30, 10:15 a.m. AEST): “From Low Earth Orbit to Lunar: Delivering Sustainable Innovation in Space” forum featuring Kevin Coggins, deputy associate administrator, NASA’s SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) Program
• 8:15 p.m. EDT (Sept. 30, 10:15 a.m. AEST): “Early Warnings for All – From Satellites to Action” special session featuring Karen St. Germain, division director, Earth Science Division, NASA’s Science Mission Directorate

Tuesday, Sept. 30

• 1 a.m. EDT (3 p.m. AEST): “The Artemis Accords: Safe, Sustainable, and Transparent Space Exploration” special session featuring NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Casey Swails

Wednesday, Oct. 1

• 7 p.m. EDT (Thursday, Oct. 2, 9 a.m. AEST): “Space Sustainability: Regional Priorities, Global Responsibility” plenary featuring Alvin Drew, lead, NASA space sustainability and acting director, Space Operations Mission Directorate’s Cross-Directorate Technical Integration Office 

Thursday, Oct. 2

• 9:35 p.m. EDT (Friday, Oct. 3, 11:35 a.m. AEST): “25 Years of the International Space Station: Yesterday – Today – Tomorrow” special session with Robyn Gatens, director, International Space Station and acting director, Commercial Spaceflight division, Space Operations Mission Directorate 

A full agenda for this year’s IAC is available online.

Members of the media registered for IAC will have an opportunity to meet with NASA leadership. To register, media must apply through the IAC website.

Monday, Sept. 29

• 3:15 a.m. EDT (5:15 p.m. AEST): Artemis Accords media briefing with Duffy, Head of Australian Space Agency Enrico Palermo, and UAE Minister of Sports and Chairman of UAE Space Agency Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi

In addition to the events outlined above, NASA will have an exhibit featuring the agency’s cutting-edge contributions to space exploration, including its science and technology missions. NASA will host subject matter expert talks throughout the week at the exhibit.

NASA’s exhibit booth number is 132, and will be located in hall one of the International Convention Centre Sydney.

To learn more about NASA international partnerships, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/oiir

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Bethany Stevens / Elizabeth Shaw
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
bethany.c.stevens@nasa.gov / elizabeth.a.shaw@nasa.gov