Table of Contents

RADARSAT-1

Early images series

The images listed along with selected enlargements below are available for viewing. Note that the images have been deliberately sub-sampled so that they are small enough for display on the web. Consequently, the amount of detail visible is drastically reduced from the original data sets. We recommend you use a display monitor with a resolution of at least 600 x 800 pixels with 256 colors to appreciate the remaining detail.

• Perth, Australia
• St. Lawrence River, Quebec, Canada
• Maui, Hawaii
• Osaka, Japan
• Image of the Flood in Oregon, United States (February 13-14, 1996)
• Image of the oil spill in Wales, United Kingdom

Perth, Australia

This RADARSAT image of the west coast of Australia extends approximately 100 kilometres south of Perth, capital Western Australia. The image clearly shows the two dominant landforms in this area, the coastal plains and the uplands of the Darling Range along the right side of the image.

The bright areas along the coast at the top of the image are from the city of Freemantle just south of Perth. A series of round lakes can be seen to the east and south of Freemantle. The two southernmost lakes are Thompson Lake (closest to the coast) and Lake Forrestdale. The causeway to Garden Island rom Freemantle is clearly visible as are several jetties in the bay north of Freemantle. South of Freemantle, the cities of Rockingham and Mandurah can also be seen along the coast. The lower half of the image shows a coastline which is largely uninhabited, with low-lying coastal vegetation (grey tones) interspersed with areas of open water (dark tones).

© 1995 Canadian Space Agency
Received by the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (CCRS), and processed and distributed by RADARSAT International (now MDA Geospatial Services).

St. Lawrence River, Quebec, Canada

This portion of a ScanSAR image shows where the Gulf of St. Lawrence at the Gaspé Peninsula. It covers an area of about 140 by 159 km. The original ScanSAR scene was 300 km square.

The image shows the landforms on either side of the St. Lawrence. Thicker river ice is compressed along the north shore of the Gaspé Peninsula. In the water to the north, strips and patches of newly formed ice can be seen.

Image Size: 129 Kb

© 1995 Canadian Space Agency (CSA). Image received by the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (CCRS), and processed and distributed by RADARSAT International (now MDA Geospatial Services).

DISCLAIMER: This data was obtained during the Commissioning Phase and may not be representative of data collected during the Operational Phase.

Maui, Hawaii

This first RADARSAT image of the Hawaiian Islands was acquired by the Canadian Space Agency to support the opening activities of the Pacific Disaster Center on Maui, Hawaii, February 21 to 23, 1996. This image was acquired on 10 February 1996, 06:08 hours, local Hawaii time, received by the Canadian Centre for Remote Sensing, and processed by RADARSAT International.

The Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) is a cooperative United States federal and State initiative, with a mandate to bring new resources to emergency management, which could be supported by RADARSAT's international partners: the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA), and/or RADARSAT International (now MDA Geospatial Services).

The Maui image features the Haleakala Volcano near the center of island along with evidence of previous lava flows toward the ocean.

Two features can be seen to the south (beneath) of the island may be coral reefs, but this is unconfirmed.

On a subsequent pass, RADARSAT collected additional data in Fine Beam 5. Shown here is an enlargement of the Kahului Airport, in the northwest portion of the island.

Osaka, Japan

This Standard beam mode (S3) image was acquired using one of RADARSAT'S two on-board tape recorders in the vicinity of Osaka and Kobe, Japan. The water body (nearly black) is Osaka Bay with Kobe visible along the top shore and Osaka to the right. The two reclaimed islands visible near Kobe were severely damaged during the January 17, 1995 earthquake. There is a distinct contrast between the urban areas and the steeper mountainous terrain which appears as darker tones along the north (upper) shore of Osaka Bay. There are many ships in Osaka Bay.

Oregon, United States

During Flooding

The first image (left) near Portland Oregon was taken February 13, just following the peak of the flood. It shows portions of the Columbia River and the nearby flooded areas.

Post Flooding

The second image (right ) was taken on February 14, of areas which appear to have been damaged by the flood waters.

© 1995 Canadian Space Agency (CSA). Image received by the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (CCRS), and processed and distributed by RADARSAT International (now MDA Geospatial Services).

DISCLAIMER: This data was obtained during the Commissioning Phase and may not be representative of data collected during the Operational Phase.

Wales, United Kingdom

This area shows the coast of Wales shortly after the oil tanker began leaking. The tanker has been moved to the port facilities at the river's mouth.

Image Size:
Approximately 212 Kb

© 1995 Canadian Space Agency (CSA). Image received by the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (CCRS), and processed and distributed by RADARSAT International (now MDA Geospatial Services).

DISCLAIMER: This data was obtained during the Commissioning Phase and may not be representative of data collected during the Operational Phase.