Nighttime Jilin-1 Satellite Imagery – London, England - Apollo Mapping
Posted on April 7th, 2020

Nighttime Jilin-1 Satellite Imagery – London, England

Launched and operated by CG Satellite, meet Jilin-1, the only world’s only high-resolution, color satellite constellation collecting nighttime imagery. Offered at 92-centimeter (cm) resolution, nighttime imagery from Jilin-1 is the ideal solution for a plethora of problems only now solvable by this satellite constellation, including:



  • Light pollution studies
  • Population estimates
  • Detection of burnt out street and building lights
  • Measurement of short-term disturbances in power delivery caused by natural disasters
  • Change detection
  • Monitoring of illegal nighttime fishing
  • Modeling of anthropogenic carbon emissions

In this perhaps brief series focused on the 92-cm nighttime satellite, Jilin-1, we feature new image samples and filters that can highlight different details or change the use case of the data. For April, we stay in Europe moving across the channel for our second Jilin-1 nighttime imagery sample of this series with data collected over London, England on October 27, 2018 (Image Courtesy: CG Satellite). The first two images are static JPEGs and they have been processed by Apollo Mapping for improved clarity, reduced noise and enhanced brightness. The third image is an animated GIF showing a typical nighttime image and then the same image with texture applied to the cones of light so they appear like mountains on the ground. This makes for a cool visual affect as well as a way to see the edges of the light cones very quickly.

Jilin-1 Specifications Summary

If you are new 92-cm color, nighttime Jilin-1 satellite imagery, here is a summary of its key specifications:

  • Imagery Resolution – 92-cm (at nadir), imagery delivered at native ground sampling distance (GSD)
  • Spectral Bands – blue, green and red
  • Approximate Equatorial Nighttime Imaging Time – 22:30 local time, Video 3/7/8; 0:00 local time, Video 4/5/6
  • Average Revisit Frequency –3 days, varies by off-nadir and latitude
  • Dynamic Range – 8-bits
  • Footprint Dimensions – 11 kilometers (km) x 4.5 km, Video 3 satellite; 19 km x 4.5 km, Video 4/5/6/7/8 satellites
  • Imaging Blackout Dates – varies by maximum North or South latitude, feasibility available with submission of project polygon

If you are interested in samples of Jilin-1 or additional specifications, you can check out our website here. And if you would like a price list that includes Jilin-1 nighttime imagery pricing or need help pricing out a specific project, send us an email anytime at sales@apollomapping.com.

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