HIGH RESOLUTION REMOTE SENSING FOR EARTH OBSERVATIONS

THE PROPOSED EFFORT IS TO DESIGN AN OPTICAL SENSOR THAT WILL DEMONSTRATE THE CAPABILITY OF LINEAR DETECTOR ARRAYS, COUPLED WITH A SUITABLE TELESCOPE, TO PROVIDE 2.5 METER SPATIAL RESOLUTION FROM SPACECRAFT ALTITUDES. THE TWO MOST DIFFICULT PROBLEMS IN BUILDING SUCH A SENSOR ARE TO ARRANGE SEVERAL DETECTOR ARRAYS SO THAT THEY APPEAR TO BE CONTIGUOUS AND ALIGNED AND TO DESIGN A COLLECTOR TELESCOPE TO IMAGE A REASONALBY WIDE SWATH WIDTH ON THE ARRAYS WITH OPTICAL QUALITY TO MATCH THE REQUIRED RESOLUTION. THE PHASE 1 EFFORT IS TO CARRY OUT THE DESIGN, INCLUDING THE POSITIONING OF THE FILTERS THAT WILL DEFINE THE SPECTRAL BANDPASS, AND TO PRODUCE PLANS THAT CAN BE USED IN PHASE 2 TO FABRICATE A BREADBOARD FOR AIRCRAFT TESTING OF THE CONCEPT. THE ARRAYS TO BE USED ARE OFF THE SHELF ARRAYS, NOW BEING MANUFACTURED IN THE UNITED STATES. SEVERAL OPTIONS WILL BE EXPLORED FOR THE TELESCOPE TYPE INCLUDING THE TELESCOPE BEING DESIGNED FOR MODIS-T AND THE THEMATIC MAPPER TELESCOPE. CALCULATIONS SHOW THAT A COLLECTOR OF ABOUT A METER IN DIAMETER IS REQUIRED SO THE DESIGNS WILL BE CONSIDERED FOR LATER MANUFACTURE IN THAT SIZE. THE USE OF LIGHT WEIGHT MIRRORS, MADE BY CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION, WILL BE EXAMINED AS A POSSIBLE METHOD OF PRODUCING A LARGE MIRROR OF LIGHT WEIGHT MORE ECONOMICALLY THAN THAT POSSIBLE WITH PRESENT METHODS.