The infrared camera DRAGO-2 captures La Palma, El Hierro, Chihuahua (Mexico), Doñana, and the Guadiana and Guadalquivir rivers.
LA LAGUNA (TENERIFE), Feb. 16 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The initial satellite of the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands (IAC), which was sent into space last December aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, has already transmitted its early images, demonstrating the flawless performance of its infrared camera DRAGO-2.
The event, held in the IACTEC building in the Las Mantecas Technology Park (La Laguna, Tenerife), was attended by Fernando Clavijo, the President of the Canary Islands Government, Rosa Dávila, the President of the Cabildo of Tenerife, as well as Rafael Rebolo, the director of the IAC, and members of the IACTEC-Espacio team involved in the project.
Rebolo expressed gratitude to the Government of the Canary Islands and the Cabildo of Tenerife for their support and collaboration in the IAC projects, emphasizing that “after these initial decades of the IAC as an international astrophysics centre with two of the finest terrestrial observatories globally, the focus is now on the next step, which involves having space telescopes that complement the capabilities of terrestrial observatories.”
He remarked that “the ALISIO-1 satellite demonstrates our technical competence and competitiveness by providing high-quality results at lower costs than our competitors.”
President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, acknowledged the technological leadership of the IAC over the past fifty years, positioning the Canary Islands as an international benchmark in the observation of the universe.
“Today, the Canary Islands have a vast array of aerospace technology possibilities,” he noted.
Clavijo expressed the government’s desire to “extend this technological expertise across all the islands to diversify the economy, create employment, and retain talent,” highlighting their determined collaboration with various programs to position the islands at the forefront nationally and internationally and to leverage advanced technology for the benefit of society.
The President emphasized that “achieving this will only be possible if public institutions and private entities work hand in hand. In recent years, we owe thanks to the IAC and Rafael Rebolo, who have been instrumental in the implementation of industrial technology in the Canary Islands.”
DÁVILA: TENERIFE TO BECOME THE “MOST DIVERSIFIED” ECONOMY IN THE CANARY ISLANDS
Rosa Dávila, President of the Tenerife Cabildo, stated that “Tenerife will be the most diversified economy in the Canary Islands within five years.”
She mentioned that the commitment to deploying this satellite, developed entirely in Tenerife for scientific purposes, is also a commitment to science and technology, complementing other future investments led by the Cabildo, including the development of clean and sustainable geothermal energy bearing Tenerife’s brand, thus securing the future and creating quality jobs for the locals.
A SIGNIFICANT LEAP IN QUALITY AND RESOLUTION
ALISIO-1 is equipped with two cutting-edge instruments. Firstly, there is DRAGO-2, the most compact infrared space camera in terms of weight, volume, and energy consumption, entirely developed at IACTEC-Espacio. Secondly, ALISIO-1 is the first Spanish satellite with an optical communications module using laser, enabling faster data transmission to Earth and a more precise characterization of the atmosphere over the Canary Islands Observatories, as stated in an IAC release.
Overall, ALISIO-1 is a valuable asset for developing prevention and response plans for natural disasters, facilitating the monitoring of fires, volcanoes, desertification studies, crop evolution, and the management of floods and oceanic oil spills.
The initial images processed by the IACTEC-Espacio team depict the Chihuahua region in Mexico, highlighting various growing areas and their differing humidity levels using false color.
EVIDENT QUALITY
The quality and resolution of the images are striking when compared to those from previous days taken by SENTINEL-2, a fleet of advanced satellites developed by the European Space Agency (ESA).
The selected regions include the mouths of the Guadiana and Guadalquivir rivers in the southern region of the Iberian Peninsula.
These false-color images showcase the areas of highest humidity in reddish tones.
The observations underscore the exceptional performance of the satellite and its DRAGO-2 infrared camera, especially when compared to images obtained from SENTINEL-2.
Regarding the images of the Doñana park, a noticeable decrease in current humidity levels can be seen.
According to Álex Oscoz, the project’s principal investigator, these images exemplify the quality and potential of DRAGO-2 and ALISIO-1: “An instrument developed in the islands is a key factor for the future prevention and monitoring of natural disasters and the impacts of climate change in the archipelago, as well as in other Spanish and global regions.”
The third set of processed images features La Palma and El Hierro. Here, the substantial vegetation of the islands benefits from varying humidity levels, influenced by multiple factors such as the terrain’s topography and its orientation with respect to the trade winds.
“The successful performance of the ALISIO-1 satellite during its initial weeks in orbit is the result of collaborative, intense work with the aerospace industry, particularly with Open Cosmos, the satellite platform developer,” asserts Alfonso Ynigo, systems engineer at IACTEC-Espacio and technical manager of the ALISIO-1 mission.
Apart from images obtained by the DRAGO-2 camera, a video of the pointing test conducted in the Earth station’s tracking mode was exhibited.
STURDINESS
The successful operation demonstrates the satellite’s stability in these conditions, essential for space-Earth communications.
The team is also devising a system for third parties to utilize the images regularly captured by DRAGO-2.
“In addition to generating humidity maps of the observed areas, the system will facilitate cross-referencing the information obtained by DRAGO-2 with other Earth observation satellites,” comments Carlos Colodro, the team’s electronic engineer.
The success of ALISIO-1 paves the way for developing a constellation of several ALISIO satellites providing daily, or even hourly, revisit time for imaging.
It also sets the stage for more complex missions like VINIS, a new surveillance instrument for Earth, observing in multiple visible and infrared spectrums with a sub-5 meters per pixel resolution, and IACSAT Astro-1, the IAC’s premier space telescope for confirming new Earth-like exoplanets and studying and monitoring near-Earth asteroids.
For the satellite’s development, the IAC collaborated with Open Cosmos for the satellite platform’s design and manufacture, and with Deimos and D-Orbit for the in-orbit door.
