INSAT-3DS
Topic: Remote Sensing, GIS and GNSS · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
INSAT-3DS is an Indian weather satellite launched in February 2024 by the GSLV-F14 rocket. It sits in geostationary orbit, about 36,000 km above the equator. There it moves with the earth's spin, so it watches the same part of the globe all the time. It carries an imager, which takes pictures of clouds, and a sounder, which measures temperature and moisture at different heights in the air. It helps with weather forecasts and cyclone tracking, and it relays distress signals for search and rescue.
Example
INSAT-3DS can follow a cyclone forming over the Bay of Bengal hour by hour. This gives early warning to coastal states such as Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
Don't confuse with
- IRS satellites: they fly in low sun-synchronous orbits (700-900 km) and give sharp images for earth resources. Geostationary INSAT satellites give coarse images (about 1 km) but watch the same area all the time.
Related concepts
- Landsat
- SPOT
- Sentinel satellites
- Bhaskara satellites
- Indian Remote Sensing satellites
- LISS
- Resourcesat
- Cartosat series
- Oceansat
- RISAT