A render of the L-SAR 01 satellite duo. /CNSA
China's L-SAR 01 land observation satellite duo was officially put into use on Friday after completing in-orbit tests.
The L-SAR 01 satellite system comprises two satellites (L-SAR 01A and L-SAR 01B), which were launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on January 26 and February 27, 2022. They were put into orbit at an altitude of 600 kilometers.
The two satellites completed in-orbit testing in good conditions in 2023. Satellite cameras captured over 370 images of cloudy and rainy weather regions and ground deformations in China and other countries.
An image acquired by the satellite duo. /CNSA
Equipped with L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), the satellites are mainly used for disaster reduction, geological surveying and mapping, monitoring landslides and earthquakes, and the forestry industry.
The L-SAR 01 satellite system can provide high-resolution monitoring of ground deformations for geologists and operational surface classification and feature identification for land management.