A compact thermal infrared imaging radiometer with high spatial resolution and wide swath for a small satellite using a large format uncooled infrared focal plane array

Kenji Tatsumi; Fumihiro Sakuma; Masakuni Kikuchi; Jun Tanii; Toneo Kawanishi; Shinichi Ueno; Hideki Kuga

doi:10.1117/12.2065658

7 October 2014 A compact thermal infrared imaging radiometer with high spatial resolution and wide swath for a small satellite using a large format uncooled infrared focal plane array

Kenji Tatsumi, Fumihiro Sakuma, Masakuni Kikuchi, Jun Tanii, Toneo Kawanishi, Shinichi Ueno, Hideki Kuga

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9241, Sensors, Systems, and Next-Generation Satellites XVIII; 92411F (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2065658
Event: SPIE Remote Sensing, 2014, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Abstract

In this paper, we present a feasibility study for the potential of a high spatial resolution and wide swath thermal infrared (TIR) imaging radiometer for a small satellite using a large format uncooled infrared focal plane array (IR-FPA). The preliminary TIR imaging radiometer designs were performed. One is a panchromatic (mono-band) imaging radiometer (8-12μm) with a large format 2000 x 1000 pixels uncooled IR-FPA with a pixel pitch of 15 μm. The other is a multiband imaging radiometer (8.8μm, 10.8μm, 11.4μm). This radiometer is employed separate optics and detectors for each wave band. It is based on the use of a 640 x 480 pixels uncooled IR-FPA with a pixel pitch of 25 μm. The thermal time constant of an uncooled IR-FPA is approximately 10-16ms, and introduces a constraint to the satellite operation to achieve better signal-to-noise ratio, MTF and linearity performances. The study addressed both on-ground time-delayintegration binning and staring imaging solutions, although a staring imaging was preferred after trade-off. The staring imaging requires that the line of sight of the TIR imaging radiometer gazes at a target area during the acquisition time of the image, which can be obtained by rotating the satellite or a steering mirror around the pitch axis. The single band radiometer has been designed to yield a 30m ground sample distance over a 30km swath width from a satellite altitude of 500km. The radiometric performance, enhanced with staring imaging, is expected to yield a NETD less than 0.5K for a 300K ground scene. The multi-band radiometer has three spectral bands with spatial resolution of 50m and swath width of 24km. The radiometric performance is expected to yield a NETD less than 0.85K. We also showed some preliminary simulation results on volcano, desert/urban scenes, and wildfire.

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Kenji Tatsumi, Fumihiro Sakuma, Masakuni Kikuchi, Jun Tanii, Toneo Kawanishi, Shinichi Ueno, and Hideki Kuga "A compact thermal infrared imaging radiometer with high spatial resolution and wide swath for a small satellite using a large format uncooled infrared focal plane array", Proc. SPIE 9241, Sensors, Systems, and Next-Generation Satellites XVIII, 92411F (7 October 2014); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2065658

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