Optical Payloads for Space Missions is a comprehensive collection of optical spacecraft payloads with contributions by leading international rocket-scientists and instrument builders. Covers various applications, including earth observation, communications, navigation, weather, and science satellites and deep space exploration Each chapter covers one or more specific optical payload Contains a review chapter which provides readers with an overview on the background, current status, trends, and future prospects of the optical payloads Provides information on the principles of the optical spacecraft payloads, missions’ background, motivation and challenges, as well as the scientific returns, benefits and applications

Remote observations of Earth from space serve an extraordinarily broad range of purposes, resulting in extraordinary demands on those at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and elsewhere who must decide how to execute them. In research, Earth observations promise large volumes of data to a variety of disciplines with differing needs for measurement type, simultaneity, continuity, and long-term instrument stability. Operational needs, such as weather forecasting, add a distinct set of requirements for continual and highly reliable monitoring of global conditions. The Role of Small Satellites in NASA and NOAA Earth Observation Programs confronts these diverse requirements and assesses how they might be met by small satellites. In the past, the preferred architecture for most NASA and NOAA missions was a single large spacecraft platform containing a sophisticated suite of instruments. But the recognition in other areas of space research that cost-effectiveness, flexibility, and robustness may be enhanced by using small spacecraft has raised questions about this philosophy of Earth observation. For example, NASA has already abandoned its original plan for a follow-on series of major platforms in its Earth Observing System. This study finds that small spacecraft can play an important role in Earth observation programs, providing to this field some of the expected benefits that are normally associated with such programs, such as rapid development and lower individual mission cost. It also identifies some of the programmatic and technical challenges associated with a mission composed of small spacecraft, as well as reasons why more traditional, larger platforms might still be preferred. The reasonable conclusion is that a systems-level examination is required to determine the optimum architecture for a given scientific and/or operational objective. The implied new challenge is for NASA and NOAA to find intra- and interagency planning mechanisms that can achieve the most appropriate and cost-effective balance among their various requirements.

Hyperspectral Satellites and System Design is the first book on this subject. It provides a systematic analysis and detailed design of the entire development process of hyperspectral satellites. Derived from the author’s 25-year firsthand experience as a technical lead of space missions at the Canadian Space Agency, the book offers engineers, scientists, and decision-makers detailed knowledge and guidelines on hyperspectral satellite system design, trade-offs, performance modeling and simulation, optimization from component to system level, subsystem design, and implementation strategies. This information will help reduce the risk, shorten the development period, and lower the cost of hyperspectral satellite missions. This book is a must-have reference for professionals in developing hyperspectral satellites and data applications. It is also an excellent introductory book for early practitioners and students who want to learn more about hyperspectral satellites and their applications.

Full color publication. This document has been produced and updated over a 21-year period. It is intended to be a handy reference document, basically one page per flight, and care has been exercised to make it as error-free as possible. This document is basically "as flown" data and has been compiled from many sources including flight logs, flight rules, flight anomaly logs, mod flight descent summary, post flight analysis of mps propellants, FDRD, FRD, SODB, and the MER shuttle flight data and inflight anomaly list. Orbit distance traveled is taken from the PAO mission statistics.

Advances in Hyperspectral Image Processing Techniques Authoritative and comprehensive resource covering recent hyperspectral imaging techniques from theory to applications Advances in Hyperspectral Image Processing Techniques is derived from recent developments of hyperspectral imaging (HSI) techniques along with new applications in the field, covering many new ideas that have been explored and have led to various new directions in the past few years. The work gathers an array of disparate research into one resource and explores its numerous applications across a wide variety of disciplinary areas. In particular, it includes an introductory chapter on fundamentals of HSI and a chapter on extensive use of HSI techniques in satellite on-orbit and on-board processing to aid readers involved in these specific fields. The book’s content is based on the expertise of invited scholars and is categorized into six parts. Part I provides general theory. Part II presents various Band Selection techniques for Hyperspectral Images. Part III reviews recent developments on Compressive Sensing for Hyperspectral Imaging. Part IV includes Fusion of Hyperspectral Images. Part V covers Hyperspectral Data Unmixing. Part VI offers different views on Hyperspectral Image Classification. Specific sample topics covered in Advances in Hyperspectral Image Processing Techniques include: Two fundamental principles of hyperspectral imaging Constrained band selection for hyperspectral imaging and class information-based band selection for hyperspectral image classification Restricted entropy and spectrum properties for hyperspectral imaging and endmember finding in compressively sensed band domain Hyperspectral and LIDAR data fusion, fusion of band selection methods for hyperspectral imaging, and fusion using multi-dimensional information Advances in spectral unmixing of hyperspectral data and fully constrained least squares linear spectral mixture analysis Sparse representation-based hyperspectral image classification; collaborative hyperspectral image classification; class-feature weighted hyperspectral image classification; target detection approach to hyperspectral image classification With many applications beyond traditional remote sensing, ranging from defense and intelligence, to agriculture, to forestry, to environmental monitoring, to food safety and inspection, to medical imaging, Advances in Hyperspectral Image Processing Techniques is an essential resource on the topic for industry professionals, researchers, academics, and graduate students working in the field.

The objective of the book is to find an answer to the rationale behind the human quest for the Mars exploration. As a comprehensive assessment for this query is undertaken, it is realized that the basic question ‘Why Mars?’ seeks various responses from technological, economic and geopolitical to strategic perspectives. The book is essentially targeted to understand India’s desire to reach Mars. In the process, it also undertakes some implicit questioning of Mars programmes of various other states essentially to facilitate the setting up of the context for an assessment. The book is divided into two parts: Part I: This covers both science and politics associated with Mars missions in global scenario and discusses the salient features of various Mars Missions undertaken by various countries. Part II: This provides details in regards to India’s Mars Mission.