Peru's first Earth-observing satellite PeruSAT-1 has sent a hundred views of the planet, 90% of which are shots of the country's territory, Peru's National Satellite Imagery Operations Center (CNOIS) announced today.
Launched on September 15 from French Guyana's Kourou Space Station, the satellite has been in orbit for 15 days and is currently at the calibration stage.
Photographs taken feature the Misti volcano (Arequipa region), the Nasca Lines (Ica region), Cuajone Mine (Moquegua region), as well as various Peruvian cities.
International views include the United Arab Emirates' capital Dubai, as well as Morocco and South Korea.
Such images comprise satellite's test period photos. “First images were received as of September 20. Although high-resolution, these are not the final product yet,” CNOIS Director Air Force Colonel Edgardo Barrueto told Andina news agency.
“Photographic records' calibration and quality control will last slightly over two months, so we expect the satellite will be ready to send optimum quality images by the end of November,” he projected.
The Colonel explained PeruSAT-1 is able to detect and photograph any object on Earth's surface measuring at least 70 cm.
Latin America's most sophisticated sub-metric observation satellite has a capacity of up to 300 images per day.
Likewise, the CNOIS representative highlighted the device use in development and national defense. Information sent by the satellite as required by various State institutions contributes to authorities' better decision-making.
In this respect, a communication network records the different image requirements, which range from emergency response to natural disasters (earthquakes, wildfires, flash floods, flooding, El Niño phenomenon impacts, among others) to impact measurement of illegal activities (illegal mining and logging, deforestation, drug trafficking, among others.)
“These requirements will be entered into a program, processed according to their level of priority and then made available to requesting institutions,” Barrueto said.
CNOIS is part of the National Commission for Aerospace Research and Development (CONIDA) and is composed of a cross-disciplinary team of 30 experts, among engineers and Armed Forces personnel.
(END) LZD/MAO/DHT/RMB
Published: 10/4/2016