China Opens Satellite Data from SDGSAT-1 to the World

At the ministerial meeting of the Group of Friends of the Global Development Initiative (GDI) held in New York on September 20, China announced that the data acquired by the Sustainable Development Science Satellite-1, or SDGSAT-1, will be open and available globally to provide science-based decision-making support for the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda.

SDGSAT-1 is the first sustainable development science satellite launched by China on November 5, 2021. The satellite was developed and operated by the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals (CBAS).

SDGSAT-1 is equipped by three payloads of the Thermal Infrared Spectrometer, Glimmer and Multispectral Imagers, which can provide Earth observation data for the monitoring, evaluation and research of SDG indicators that representing the interactions between human activities and natural environment.

The Glimmer Imager reflects the level of social and economic development and the pattern of human settlements by detecting the intensity and distribution of night lights.

The Multispectral Imager monitors the watercolor index and transparency of various turbid water bodies, and its data can be used to analyze changes in glaciers, melting snow and vegetation coverage.

The Thermal Infrared Imager can detect changes in land surface and water temperature as well as urban heat energy distribution, providing basic data for crop cultivation, pest control and disease control.

In July 2022, after 6-month in-orbit testing, the satellite started its scientific services. By the end of August, 33,338 scenes of satellite data had been obtained and processed.

The "SDGSAT-1 Open Science Program" was launched to facilitate its data sharing, which is among seven practical measures of China to implement the outcomes of the High-level Dialogue on Global Development and GDI cooperation.