Hisdesat – Partner’s Feature Presentation

Hours

Hisdesat Servicios Estratégicos S.A.

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Hisdesat Servicios Estratégicos S.A. was founded in 2001 as an operator of government satellites. The company’s mission is to provide satellite services in the fields of defence, security, intelligence and other civil applications. Hisdesat offers communications services in the X band, Mil-Ka and UHF bands, as well as Earth Observation in X band- by means of a radar satellite (named PAZ).

PAZ was launched on 22 February, 2018 from Vandenberg Space Force Base (California) on-board of a Falcon 9 rocket. PAZ is the first EO satellite to include an AIS (Automatic Identification System) receiver on board, useful to merge SAR imagery with simultaneous AIS data for maritime traffic monitoring applications.
PAZ features very-high-performance X-band with imagery resolution down to 25 cm, radiometry with a very low noise level (very low NESZ) and sub-metric geolocation error. It has a reliable interferometric capability for ground deformation measurements and change monitoring.

Thanks to the versatility of its electronically steerable antenna, PAZ offers a great variety of image modes, allowing for everything from small and detailed images for intelligence applications, to very large images with lower spatial resolution for maritime surveillance.

What is your organization’s role in the project? What unique contribution does it bring to the team?

Hisdesat will contribute to the use case ship activity monitoring, using among others, PAZ imagery and AIS data.  Hisdesat has a vast experience in maritime awareness applications, providing data ad derived products to different customers in the security domain, including public agencies like EMSA. Hisdesat owns different software solutions for SAR maritime applications, including an automatic vessel detection tool, which combines SAR imagery information with AIS data, an oil-spill detector and an automatic change detector.

Why is this project important for your organization?

The project provides a unique opportunity to combine state of the art technologies and innovative applications to improve user EO experience, which could increase the operability of maritime services and adopt if needed. This concept is completely align with the mission of Hisdesat and with user’s expectations and needs.

Who are the key people involved?

Ainhoa Mendizabal

Gemma Ventura

Juan Ignacio Cicuendez