ISRO’s EOS-08 Satellite Captures Thermal Images of Pune: Details
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) recently announced the start of operations for its Electro Optical-Infrared (EOIR) payload placed inside the EOS-08 Earth Observation Satellite. The satellite was launched on the space agency’s Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) on August 16. The main goal of this mission is to improve India’s thermal imaging capabilities. Said to be state-of-the-art, the EOIR payload is developed by ISRO’s Space Applications Centre (SAC), is equipped with mid-wave infrared (MIR) and long-wave infrared (LWIR) channels, offering high-resolution imaging capabilities.
First Thermal Images Captured
On August 19, the EOIR payload took its first thermal image over Pune, showcasing the accuracy of the MIR channel, confirmed the Indian space agency. Just two days later, on August 21, it captured images of the Namibia Desert, using the LWIR channel to display detailed thermal data.
EOIR Image Over Pune City
Photo Credit: ISRO
These images demonstrate the payload’s capacity to capture temperature variations with spatial accuracy down to eight metres, significantly enhancing thermal mapping. These technologies are set to play a crucial role in various sectors, including agriculture, wildfire management, and urban planning.
Comparison with Landsat-09
To validate the EOIR payload’s performance, its data was compared to that of the Landsat-09 satellite’s Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS). The comparison over Santiago, Chile, confirmed the superior resolution of Isro’s technology, enabling more precise and detailed thermal measurements.
Applications Across Fields
In agriculture, the EOIR payload’s data can improve water use and crop yields by mapping soil moisture and monitoring vegetation health. Its ability to detect heat emissions makes it an effective tool for wildfire detection and management. Urban planners can also benefit, using the high-resolution data to identify Urban Heat Islands (UHI) and design sustainable cities.
Ongoing Validation
The EOIR data is being processed at the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC-ISRO), using algorithms created by SAC-ISRO. This will help provide actionable insights, solidifying the payload’s role in environmental monitoring and addressing climate challenges.
Evidence has emerged pointing to a significant role played by an ancient geographic hotspot in shaping the Great Lakes. Researchers have linked the formation of these massive water bodies to a hotspot that interacted with the Earth’s lithosphere millions of years ago. While the lakes are commonly attributed to glacial activity during the Ice Age, recent findings suggest that deeper geological processes may have contributed to their formation, providing insight into their extraordinary depth and size.
Study Highlights Geological Interactions
According to research published in Geophysical Research Letters, a team of scientists from the University of Houston and the University of Arizona investigated the Cape Verde hotspot’s historical activity. Hotspots, known for generating heat and material flow from the Earth’s mantle, are believed to have influenced the Great Lakes region approximately 225 to 300 million years ago. As Pangea, the ancient supercontinent, moved over this hotspot, thinning of the lithosphere occurred, making the ground beneath more susceptible to external forces.
Seismic Clues Support Hotspot Theory
As reported by phys.org, data from seismic wave analyses supported these claims. Unusual horizontal wave movement beneath the lakes indicated lithospheric deformation. This anomaly aligned with the passage of North America over the hotspot during its drift over geological time. These conditions, as reported, would have created a weakened crust, later amplified by glacial activity during the Ice Age.
Hotspot’s Legacy in the Great Lakes Formation
The research outlines how the Cape Verde hotspot likely underlay Lake Superior, Lake Huron, and Lake Erie at different points in history, contributing to the geological features that enabled the Great Lakes to form. The fragile crust allowed ice to carve deeper and larger depressions than would have been possible otherwise, creating the unique landscape seen today.
These findings reshape understanding of the Great Lakes’ origins, suggesting that both deep-Earth processes and surface phenomena played critical roles in their formation.
Catch the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show on Gadgets 360, at our CES 2025 hub.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports9 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway