High-Quality Stereo Data
Built for high-quality data with low distortion, ZiYuan-3 stereo imagery creates pristine digital elevation models (DEMs).
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ZiYuan-3 Satellite
ZiYuan-3 is a dedicated stereo satellite constellation with impressive 2.5-m to 3.5-m stereo and 2.1-m 4-band multispectral imagery.
Sample imagery
The ZiYuan-3 Advantage
Impressive Stereo Swath Width
An industry-leading swath width of 52-kilometers ensures large areas are collected in a single stereo pass.
Overview & History
ZiYuan-3 is the first commercial, stereoscopic satellite launched by China. It was constructed by China’s Academy of Space Technology and launched on January 9, 2012 from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. The second, similar satellite in the constellation was launched on May 30, 2016. Both ZiYuan-3 satellites are equipped with sensors collecting 2.1-meter (m) panchromatic and 5.8-m 4-band multispectral (i.e. blue, green, red and near-infrared [NIR]) mono imagery; as well as 2.5-m to 3.5-m panchromatic stereo imagery.
ZiYuan-3 is ideal for topographic mapping, tracking land use, urban planning and disaster management with its 52-kilometer swath width and stereo imaging capabilities. Since its launch in 2012, ZiYuan-3 has collected large swaths of up to 2.5-m resolution stereo data for the production of detailed digital surface models (DSMs) and digital terrain models (DTMs).
ZiYuan-3 Specifications
Launch Details
- Launch Date: January 9, 2012 (ZY3-01), May 30, 2016 (ZY3-02); two satellite constellation of similar but not identical sensors
- Vehicle: Long March 4B
- Site: Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, Shanxi province, China
ZiYuan-3 Components
- Satellite Mass: 2,636 kg
- Onboard Storage Capacity: 1 terabyte
- Ground Communication Systems:
- Imagery downlink–2 x 450 Mb per second
Orbit Characteristics
- Altitude: 506 km
- Period: 97.716 minutes
- Inclination: 97.42°
- Direction: sun-synchronous orbit, north to south (across the lit side of Earth)
- Equatorial Crossing Time: 10:30 local time (approximate; across lit side of Earth)
- Revisit Frequency: within 5 days, global average
Imaging System
- Spectral Bands:
- Panchromatic
- 4-band multispectral (blue, green, red and NIR)
- Sensor Resolution:
- Mono (at nadir)–2.1-m panchromatic & 5.8-m multispectral (MS)
- Stereo–3.5-m panchromatic (ZY3-01), 2.5-m panchromatic (ZY3-02); plus 2.1-m at-nadir tri-stereo panchromatic image (commonly collected with stereo but not always)
- Spectral Band Wavelength Range: (in nm)
- Panchromatic–500 to 800
- Blue–450 to 520
- Green–520 to 590
- Red–630 to 690
- NIR–770 to 890
- Dynamic Range: 10-bits
Collection Capabilities
- Footprint Width: 51 km, mono; 52 km, stereo (at nadir)
- Daily Collection Capacity: 1,000,000 sq km
- Georeferenced Horizontal Accuracy: 50-m CE90 (global average; depends on terrain and nadir pointing)
Pricing
Data Source
archive
Minimum Order Size
500 sq km (per area & date)
Product Type
mono georeferenced + 4-band
Price Per Sq Km
Interested in an accuracy assessment of DEM's extracted from ZiYuan-3 tri-stereo imagery?
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