Review Article Open Access

Very High Resolution Optical Satellites: An Overview of the Most Commonly used

Pasquale Maglione1
  • 1 Department of Science and Technology, University of Naples Parthenope, Centro Direzionale Is. C4, 80143, Naples, Italy

Abstract

Very High Resolution (VHR) satellite systems are platforms whose sensors acquire high geometric resolution images. Since 1972, when the first satellite was launched (Land sat ERTS), the spatial resolution of the satellite image has increased, making Ground Sample Distance (GSD) reaching 0.30 m at Nadir in panchromatic images. In this paper, after a brief introduction, concepts relative to orbits, types of sensors and resolutions are reported. Geostationary and sun-synchronous orbits are described; difference between push-broom and whisk-broom sensors are reported; the definition of the geometric, the radiometric and the temporal resolutions are listed. In the end, the characteristics of the most common VHR commercial optical satellite are mentioned: IKONOS-2, QuickBird-2, SPOT-5, GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 and WorlView-3 satellites.

American Journal of Applied Sciences
Volume 13 No. 1, 2016, 91-99

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3844/ajassp.2016.91.99

Submitted On: 12 November 2015 Published On: 25 January 2016

How to Cite: Maglione, P. (2016). Very High Resolution Optical Satellites: An Overview of the Most Commonly used. American Journal of Applied Sciences, 13(1), 91-99. https://doi.org/10.3844/ajassp.2016.91.99

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Keywords

  • VHR Satellites
  • Optical Sensors
  • WorldView-3
  • Spatial Resolution
  • Radiometric Resolution
  • Orbits