China Receives Data from Newly Launched L-SAR 01B Satellite

On March 5, the China Remote Sensing Satellite Ground Station successfully received the first data transmitted from the newly launched land observation satellite L-SAR 01B, according to the Aerospace Information Research Institute (AIR), Chinese Academy of Sciences. 

The ground station located in Beijing's Miyun District has tracked and received the downlink data from the satellite. A total of 16.55 GB data was received, recorded, transmitted in the receiving task that lasted two minutes and 35 seconds, said AIR. 

The satellite was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Feb. 27, 2022.

China's L-SAR 01 is a satellite group composed of two satellites equipped with L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), namely the L-SAR 01A and the L-SAR 01B. The former, L-SAR 01A was put in space on January 26, and its first-track data was received by RSGS in Feb. 9. 

The SAR is a microwave-imaging radar system that emits electromagnetic waves to Earth and receives echoes. It can take all-weather, round-the-clock, high-resolution microwave pictures of the land surfaces.

The two satellites, tasked with providing data to support land resource, mapping, forestry, and disaster prevention and reduction, are designed to take high quality pictures. 

AIR is responsible for the SAR design and data reception of both the satellites. 

Engineers at the Miyun Station working on the data reception of L-SAR 01B. (Image by AIR)