WorldView-3 Multispectral Earth Observation Satellite Launched
DigitalGlobe, a leading provider of commercial high-resolution earth observation and advanced geospatial solutions, has announced the successful launch of WorldView-3, the company's sixth and most advanced super-spectral, high-resolution commercial satellite. The satellite launched on a Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, USA.
The successful launch of WorldView-3 extends DigitalGlobe's commanding technological lead and will enable to help customers see through smoke, peer beneath the ocean's surface and determine the mineral and moisture content of the earth below - all with unprecedented clarity, said Jeffrey R. Tarr, CEO of DigitalGlobe.
WorldView-3 will collect super-spectral imagery at 0.31 meter resolution – delivering 5 times the clarity of the company's nearest competitor. In addition WorldView-3 will offer the most spectral diversity available commercially and arguably will be the first to offer multiple shortwave infrared (SWIR) bands that allow for accurate imaging through haze, fog, dust, smoke and other air-born particulates. The satellite also offers CAVIS, a cloud, aerosol, water vapour, ice and snow atmospheric correction instrument, which monitors the atmosphere and corrects data for a very high level of consistency.
The unmatched abilities that WorldView-3 brings to this constellation will enable DigitalGlobe to provide their customers with information and insight never before possible and advance the company’s efforts to create a living digital inventory of the earth, said Tarr.
The satellite and atmospheric monitoring instrument called CAVIS were built by Ball Aerospace. Exelis built the integrated, super-spectral payload consisting of a telescope, sensor and shortwave infrared system, making WorldView-3 the first commercial satellite to carry such capabilities. A United Launch Alliance Atlas V launch vehicle provided by Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services (LMCLS) delivered the satellite in orbit.
To learn more about WorldView-3, please visit WorldView3.DigitalGlobe.com.
Image courtesy: DigitalGlobe.
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