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The joint NASA/ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) platform will create global maps to provide a better understanding of changes in Earth’s ecosystems, ice mass, vegetation biomass, sea level rise, ground water, and natural hazards.

Learn more about NISAR

Type

Earth Observation Satellite

Data Center

ASF DAAC

Launch

July 30, 2025

Objective

Observe and measure changes on Earth's surface
NASA and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) each provide SAR instruments, at two different radar frequencies, to measure changes on Earth's surface in unprecedented detail.
Learn more about NASA's partnership with ISRO
The logo for the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) in blue and orange

The NISAR Science Data System (SDS) team will generate the L-Band Level 0, Level 1, and Level 2 products; the NISAR Project Science and Science Teams will generate the Level 3 products.

ProductProduct Description
L0B RRSDLevel 0 unfocused raw SAR data
L1 RSLCLevel 1 Focused SAR image in range-doppler coordinates (zero-doppler steered)
L1 RIFGLevel 1 phase-wrappted interferogram in range-doppler coordinates (zero-doppler steered)
L1 RUNWLevel 1 phase-unwrapped interferogram in range-doppler coordinates (zero-doppler steered)
L1 ROFFLevel 1 pixel offsets in range-doppler coordinates (zero-doppler steered)
L2 GSLCLevel 2 Focused SAR image in geocoded coordinates
L2 GUNWLevel 2 phase-unwrapped interferogram in geocoded coordinates
L2 GOFFLevel 2 pixel offsets in geocoded coordinates
L2 GCOVLevel 2 SAR covariance product in geocoded coordinates
L3 SMLevel 3 Global Soil Moisture Product
Chart showing anticipated NISAR products with L0 on left and L3-4 on right

NISAR data product levels. Products through Level 2 will be produced for the entire mission dataset. Products at higher levels will be produced by the science team for calibration and validation purposes. Credit: NISAR Mission Science Users' Handbook, August 2019, Version 1.

Composite Release ID Table (CRID)

A Composite Release ID (CRID) is a unique identifier to provide provenance of the aggregate software and static input file versions used in the generation of a product granule.

CRIDRelease Date Manifest (.csv)Notes
P00407
July 30, 2025 00:00:00 UTC
Download NISAR_LSAR_CRID_P00407.csvLaunch release
Glossary of Terms
Item NameItem TypeItem Description
CRIDComposite Release IDComposite Release ID (CRID) is a unique identifier to provide provenance of the aggregate software and static input file versions listed in generation of a product granule
SDSSDS releaseScience Data System (SDS) version used to generate given product.
PCMPCM SWProcessing Control & Data Management Subsystem (PCM) used to orchestrate product generation within a given SDS
L0A_L_PGEPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L0A_L_PGE
L0A_CCPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L0A_CC
L0A_TEPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L0A_TE
L0A_CC_TEPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L0A_CC_TE
LSAR_Time_ExtractorPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of LSAR_Time_Extractor
L0B_L_PGEPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L0B_L_PGE
RSLC_L_PGE (l1_l2)PGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of RSLC_L_PGE
GSLC_L_PGE (l1_l2)PGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of GSLC_L_PGE
L2_L_GCOV (l1_l2)PGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L2_LGCOV
InSAR_L_PGE (l1_l2)PGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L2_InSAR_L_PGE
L3_L_SME2_PGEPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of L3_L_SME2_PGE
DC_RADAR_PGEPGE SWProduct Generation Executable (PGE) version of DC_RADAR_PGE
ISCE3 (l0b)ISCE3 SWAlgorithm version in l0b pge
ISCE3 (l1_l2)ISCE3 SWAlgorithm version in l1_l2 pges
ISCE3 (SME2)ISCE3 SWAlgorithm version in SME2_pge
ISCE3 (DC_RADAR)ISCE3 SWAlgorithm version in DC_RADAR_pge
L0A_L_RRSTProduct VersionProduct version of generated L0A_L_RRST product
L0B_L_RRSDProduct VersionProduct version of generated L0B_L_RRSD product
L1_L_RSLCProduct VersionProduct version of generated L1_L_RSLC product
L2_L_GSLCProduct VersionProduct version of generated L2_L_GSLC product
L2_L_GCOVProduct VersionProduct version of generarted L2_L_GCOV product
L1_L_RIFGProduct VersionProduct version of generated L1_L_RIFG product
L1_L_RUNWProduct VersionProduct version of generated L1_L_RUNW product
L1_L_ROFFProduct VersionProduct version of generated L1_L_ROFF product
L2_L_GOFFProduct VersionProduct version of generated L2_L_GOFF product
L2_L_GUNWProduct VersionProduct version of generated L2_L_GUNW product
DC_RADARProduct VersionProduct version of generated DC_RADAR product
L3_L_SME2Product VersionProduct version of generated L3_L_SME2 product
PRODUCT_VERSIONStatic FilePRODUCT_VERSION file used by SDS to lookup Product Version for a given CRID and PGE, which is then populated in metadata of the product
LSAR Parameter SetStatic FileLSAR Parameter Set used by SDS to help populate runconfigs at runtime for a given product by specifying processing parameters for a PGE
DEMStatic FileDigital Elevation Model (DEM) file set is digital representation of terrain elevation for the NASA-ISRO NISAR mission used by RSLC_L_PGE, GSLC_LPGE, L2_L_GCOV, InSAR_L_PGE, and DC_RADAR_PGE. 
- EPSG 4326 is based on the Copernicus DEM 30-m (2023_1). 
- EPSG 3413 is based on the Copernicus DEM 30-m (2023_1), referenced to the WGS84 ellipsoid and projected over the NSIDC Sea Ice Polar Stereographic North coordinate system. 
- EPSG 3031 is based on the Copernicus DEM 30-m (2023_1), referenced to the WGS84 ellipsoid and projected over the Antarctic Polar Stereographic coordinate system.
LIAStatic FileLocal Incidence Angle (LIA) version set used by the SDS to generate SME2 products. A copy of this LIA data is embedded in the L2_L_STATIC set for convenience for users to find all static layers in one location.
Water MaskStatic FileWater Mask version set used by the SDS to generate RUNW/GUNW products. A copy of this water mask data is embedded in the L2_L_STATIC set for convenience for users to find all static layers in one location.
VWCStatic FileVegetation Water Content (VWC) version set used by the SDS to generate SME2 products.
L2_L_STATICStatic FileL2_L_STATIC version used to provide static layer content matching the geographical area of a product in a single convenient .h5 file for the user. Static layer content includes:
- digitalElevationModel
- layoverShadowMask
- localIncidenceAngle
- losUnitVectorX
- losUnitVectorY
- projection
- rtcGammaToBetaFactor
- rtcGammaToSigmaFactor
- waterMask
TFDBStatic FileTFDB version used by the SDS to generate RSLC products. The TFDB specifies the collection modes of the observations around over the globe, which is delineated by track and frame number in the database.
RADAR_MODE_LUTStatic FileRADAR_MODE_LUT version used by PCM to map RCID to Radar Mode short text populated in filename of RSLC product
Flight Table WaveformStatic FileFlight Table Waveform version used by L0B_L_PGE
Flight Table ParametersStatic FileFlight Table Parameters version used by L0B_L_PGE
ANTPATStatic FileANTPAT file used by the SDS to generate RSLC_L_PGE and DC_RADAR_PGE products.
BFPQStatic FileANTPAT file used by the SDS to generate L0B_L_PGE
L_CHAN_DATAStatic FileANTPAT file used by the SDS to generate L0B_L_PGE
LSAR_EXT_CALStatic FileLSAR_EXT_CAL version used by RSLC_L_PGE
LSAR_INT_CALStatic FileLSAR_INT_CAL version used by RSLC_L_PGE
TSR_STATICStatic FileTSR_STATIC used by L3_L_SME2
PMI_STATICStatic FilePMI_STATIC used by L3_L_SME2
SM_STATICStatic FileSM_STATIC used by L3_L_SME2

L-Band: 1.25 GHz; 24 cm wavelength; polarimetric SAR

  • SP: HH or VV
  • DP: HH/HV or VV/VH
  • CP: RH/RV
  • QP (Quad Pol): HH/HV/VH/VV

 

S-Band: 3.20 GHz; 12 cm wavelength; polarimetric SAR

  • SP (Single Pol): HH or VV
  • DP (Dual Pol): HH/HV or VV/VH
  • CP (Compact Pol): RH/RV
  • QQP (Quasi-Quad Pol):HH/HV and VH/VV
ParametersS-BandL-Band
Orbit747 km with 98° inclination
Repeat Cycle12 days
Time of Nodal Crossing6 a.m./6 p.m.
Frequency3.2 GHz ± 37.5 MHz1.257 GHz ± 40 MHz
Available Polarmetric Modes

Single Pol (SP): H or VV

Dual Pol (DP: HH/HV or VV/VH

Compact Pol (CP): RH/RV

Quasi-Quad Pol (QQP): HH/HV and VH/VV

SP: HH or VV

DP: HH/HV or VV/VH

CP: RH/RV

Quad Pol (QP): HH/HV/VH/VV

Available Range Bandwidths10 MHz, 25 MHz, 37.5 MHz, 75 MHz5 MHz, 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz (additional 5 MHz iono band for 20 and 40 MHz modes at other end of pass-band)
Swath Width>240 Km (except for QQP mode)>240 Km (except for 80 MHz BW)
Spatial Resolution7 m (Az); 3 m - 24 m (Slant-Ra)7 m (Az); 3 m - 48 m (Slant-Ra)
Incidence Angle Range37-47 deg37-47 deg
Noise Equivalent 

-25 dB (baseline)

-20 dB (threshold)

-25 dB (for required full-swath modes)
Ambiguities<-20 dB for all modes except QQP

<-23 dB swath average in SP or DP modes

<-17 dB swath average in QP modes

Data Product AccessFree and Open

NISAR has a ~ 240 km swath, 7 m resolution along track and 2-8 m resolution cross-track (depending on mode).

Simulated NISAR Data Products

Simulated NISAR products are generated from Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle SAR (UAVSAR) data to emulate NISAR data characteristics in order to help users test their algorithms and get a sense of the quality of future NISAR products.

The simulated NISAR product names conform to the following naming convention: Sitename_LineID_FlightID_DT_Date_BandSquintPol_XtalkDither_NMode_Version.Ext
This adds the field NMode to the standard UAVSAR PolSAR naming convention.

Field NameCharactersField Description
Sitename6Abbreviated name for the target site
LineID5ID that describes a unique track, where the first 3 digit aircraft heading is followed by a 2 character incremental counter.
FlightID5Flight ID describing the unique flight the line is flown in, where the first two digits are the last two digits of the year, and the next three digits are the flight number counted sequentially from the first flight of the year.
DT3Data take counter indicating which acquisition during the flight this data was from, counted sequentially from the beginning of the flight and starting from zero.
Date6Acquisition date in YYMMDD format indicating the year, month, and day the data was collected in UTC time.
BandSquintPol4A single character indicating the frequency band, followed by the steering angle (three digits), sometimes followed by the polarization. If applicable, the polarization may be between 2 characters (first character is the transmit polarization, and second character is the receive polarization) and 4 characters (if the file represents a cross product)
Xtalk1Indicates whether cross talk has been calibrated or not: X - no crosstalk calibration, C - cross talk calibration has been applied.
Dither1Indicates whether the data has been dithered or not: X - not dithered, G - dithered with gaps, D - dithered with no gaps.
NMode4NISAR mode, where a 3-digit mode number associated a specific center frequency, bandwidth, and polarization, is followed by 1-digit character indicating the frequency (A or B).
Version2UAVSAR product version number. Increments with new product release of the same acquisition.
Ext2-5File extension

NISAR data will be fully and openly available to global data users in keeping with NASA's open data policies.

Instruments Aboard NISAR

Instrument Name Operational Date(s) Spectral Resolution Type of Instrument
NISAR L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (L-SAR) Imaging Radar
NISAR S-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (S-SAR) Imaging Radar

Frequently Asked Questions

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