TERRISCOPE: AN OPTICAL REMOTE SENSING RESEARCH PLATFORM USING AIRCRAFT AND UAS FOR THE CHARACTERIZATION OF CONTINENTAL SURFACES

Abstract. ONERA is developing TERRISCOPE, a new platform to characterize the environment and the continental surfaces by optical remote sensing using manned aircrafts and UAS (Unmanned Airborne System). The objective of TERRISCOPE is to make available to the scientific community combinations of optical measurements remotely sensed with the best level state-of-the-art sensors. Different kinds of sensors have already been acquired or are still being acquired: Hyperspectral sensors (0.5–2.5 μm range), visible high resolution cameras, multispectral infrared cameras and airborne laser scanners. Each sensor is declined in two versions: one high performance for manned aircrafts and one more compact for UAS. This paper describes the whole equipment, and presents the main characteristics and performances of the carriers, the sensors and the processing chain. Possible sensors combinations on airplanes and UAS are also presented, as well as preliminary results.