Isro unveils first Nisar S-Band radar dataset, shares sample images

Bengaluru: Isro has released the first batch of S-Band radar data from Nasa-Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), or Nisar mission, making it publicly available through Bhoonidhi portal.The space research agency also shared sample images from Tamil Nadu (Nagapattinam), Antarctica, Assam (Brahmaputra basin), Idaho, Greenland and Indonesia, highlighting the radar’s ability to track coastal wetlands, map irrigation patterns and monitor ice movement.The images underscore Nisar’s relevance to both scientific research and resource management, including coastal planning, precision farming and disaster monitoring.Nisar is a joint mission between Nasa and Isro and the first spaceborne radar to carry two frequency bands — L-band and S-band — on a single satellite. It uses a 12-metre reflector antenna and a scanning technique called SweepSAR, enabling it to capture a 240km-wide swath of the Earth’s surface at high resolution without compromising coverage.Orbiting Earth at an altitude of 747km, the satellite revisits the same location every 12 days, generating a steady stream of images that can be used to track floods, glaciers, farmland and other rapidly changing features, regardless of weather or daylight.Isro said the mission is now in its science phase, gathering data from locations around the world as per its observation plan. S-band data is received at Isro’s ground stations and processed at Integrated Multi-Mission Ground Segment for Earth Observation Satellites in Shadnagar, Telangana, operated by National Remote Sensing Centre.A nationwide network of ground-based reflectors is being used to verify the data’s accuracy, alongside other reference targets selected for specific scientific purposes.“...All data gathered from Cycle 25 onwards, which began on July 8, 2026, is now available for download as soon as it is processed. Older data, collected before Cycle 25, will be reprocessed in stages and added to the archive over time,” Isro said.The release includes several categories of processed imagery, ranging from raw radar scans to geocoded and interferometric products that can detect subtle shifts in the Earth’s surface, making them useful for monitoring subsidence, landslides and glacier movement.Users can search, view and download the data on Bhoonidhi. Isro has also added two tools to the portal: one that converts radar files into widely used formats such as GeoTIFF, and another, built for QGIS software, that helps researchers analyse the data further.Isro noted that some scenes may show faint striping over featureless areas such as deserts and oceans, along with occasional interference from radio signals. It added that both issues would be addressed in future updates as calibration improves.Launched on July 30, 2025, Nisar beamed back its first images of Earth in September last year. Nasa had said at the time that the spacecraft would begin full operations later that year.You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Bengaluru | Silver Rate in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru | Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Petrol Price in Bengaluru | Diesel Price in Bengaluru | CNG Price in Bengaluru | LPG Price in BengaluruStay updated with the latest Bengaluru news. Download the TOI App.