Free Provision of TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X Data for Government Studies and Professional Training in Canada

Airbus Defence and Space has signed an agreement with the Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation (CCMEO) providing Canadian governmental and institutional data users free access to TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X satellite imagery for pre-operational use.

A delegation from the Northwest Territories (NWT) of Canada led by the Honourable Robert R. McLeod, Premier of NWT, along with senior officials from the Government of Canada recently visited Airbus Defence and Space in Ottobrunn, Germany. On this occasion, the long-lasting relation between Airbus Defence and Space and the Government of Canada was reinforced by the signature of this agreement.

The main goal of the agreement is to support current efforts of Canadian agencies working on the development of operational monitoring concepts that exploit the benefits of using Canada’s C-Band radar mission together with the German X-Band satellites for maritime surveillance, disaster management and environmental monitoring. Additionally the free data provision will support study purposes and capacity building through professional training and education.

The TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X radar satellite missions were established in 2007 and 2010 respectively as a Public-Private Partnership between the German Space Agency (DLR) and the Geo-Intelligence Programme Line of Airbus Defence and Space. Since the launch, the missions benefited from Canada’s Inuvik Satellite Station Facility (ISSF), which thanks to its location above the Arctic Circle provides access to most of the satellite’s orbits in a timely manner. The new Mackenzie-Valley-Fibre-Link currently under development for Inuvik will be providing further shortened access time to data as well as Near-Real-Time monitoring for large parts of Northern Canada in support of maritime surveillance and natural disaster monitoring.

Contact:
Fabienne GRAZZINI + 33 5 62 19 41 19

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TerraSAR-X satellite feeding of Copernicus Data Warehouse extended until 2020

Airbus Defence and Space, owner of the commercial distribution rights for TerraSAR-X data, and ESA have signed a contract securing the continued supply of TerraSAR-X data for the Copernicus Data Warehouse. The agreement is valid until the end of 2020, thus continuing the successful cooperation between Airbus Defence and Space and ESA for the provision of TerraSAR-X data to public institutions across Europe in place since 2008.

TerraSAR-X has been a key data source particularly for activities addressing emergency and security related issues, reliable monitoring needs, and land cover change, both in Europe and beyond. Its unique reliability and high accuracy make it an ideal data source within ESA's multi-mission approach.

The Copernicus programme is set to make a step change by providing reliable, timely and accurate services to manage the environment, understand and mitigate the effects of climate change and help respond to crises. The success of this initiative relies on the provision of robust data, predominately from a fleet of Earth observation satellites called Sentinel and supplemented by data from Member States’ satellites (e.g. TerraSAR-X, Pléiades and SPOT). The Copernicus Data Warehouse provides comprehensive and coordinated access for all users to all Copernicus space data both from the Sentinel missions as well as the contributing missions through a single harmonised interface.

The agreement includes the provision of archived and newly acquired TerraSAR-X data for the Copernicus core datasets in the area of maritime monitoring, as well as additional datasets for further maritime applications particularly sea ice monitoring. The contract also includes the maintenance for the Copernicus-specific interfaces for the ordering, delivery and reporting process that have been established during the previous phases.
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