JERS-1 - Japanese Earth Resources Satellite-1

The Japanese Earth Resources Satellite-1 (JERS-1) is a joint project between the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI). JAXA is in charge of the satellite while MITI is responsible for the observation equipment.

JERS-1 was launched in February 1992 and ceased operation on 11 October 1998, four years more than the original two year mission plan. It observed the Earth's surface using optical sensors and a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensor. The optical sensors collected information from eight spectral bands, while the SAR sensor operated in the L-band of the microwave wavelengths.

ACRES acquired JERS-1 SAR data at the Alice Springs ground station between September 1993 and October 1998.

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Optical Data

Visible and Near Infrared (VNIR)

Band no.	Spectral Range (µm)	EM Region	Generalised Application Details
1	0.52 - 0.60	visible green	Vegetation surveys, land use, water monitoring
2	0.63 - 0.69	visible red	Chlorophyll absorption for vegetation differentiation
3	0.76 - 0.86	near infrared	Biomass surveys (nadir viewing)
4	0.76 - 0.86	near infrared	Biomass surveys (forward looking, at 15.3 degrees, to give stereo coverage with band 3)

Short Wave Infrared (SWIR)

Band no.	Spectral Range (µm)	EM Region	Generalised Application Details
5	1.60 - 1.71	middle infrared	Vegetation moisture
6	2.01 - 2.12	middle infrared	Hydrothermal mapping (eg. soils, geology)
7	2.13 - 2.25	middle infrared	Hydrothermal mapping (eg. soils, geology)
8	2.27 - 2.40	middle infrared	Hydrothermal mapping (eg. soils, geology)

Optical Data Characteristics (VNIR and SWIR)

Product Pixel Size	18 meters
Scene Size	75 km × 75 km
Data quantisation	6 bits

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Synthetic Aperture Radar Data (SAR)

The SAR sensor is an active microwave sensor capable of imaging the Earth regardless of time of day, cloud, haze or smoke over an area. The instrument is classified as "active" as it emits the microwave energy necessary to image the Earth's surface. In contrast, "passive" or "optical" sensors rely on the sun's reflected energy to image the Earth.

An important difference between ERS SAR, RADARSAT and JERS SAR is that the latter operates in L-band, while the former two operate in the C-band part of the spectrum, making JERS SAR data well suited to land based studies.

JERS SAR Characteristics

Frequency	1.3 GHz
Band Width	15 MHz
Band Name	L-Band
Wavelength	235 mm
Off Nadir Angle	35 degrees
Ground Resolution	18 meters
Swath Width	75 km
Polarisation	HH*
* H=horizontal.

Generalised Applications

Geology	Geological structural mapping
Forestry	Tree density, Forest-type mapping
Soils	Soil moisture studies
Agriculture	Crop type discrimination
Land Use	Surface feature discrimination

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Enquiries and orders for JERS-1 data

Enquiries for JERS-1 SAR data should be referred to ACRES JERS data distributors. Prices for coverage over the Australasian region, see ACRES JERS Price List.

Copyright

JERS SAR data is subject to ACRES End-User Licence covering its use.