missions

TerraSAR-X

TerraSAR-X is a high-resolution X-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) mission operated by DLR, launched on 2007-06-15 into a sun-synchronous near-polar orbit at approximately 514-515 km altitude with an 11-day repeat cycle.^[1]^[2] The mission was developed under a public-private partnership with Airbus DS, which holds commercial exploitation rights and supports commercial tasking access.^[1] TerraSAR-X carries an X-band SAR instrument offering multiple imaging modes including high-resolution Spotlight, StripMap, and wide-area ScanSAR modes reaching swaths of up to 100 km.^[3] The instrument design and system architecture are described by Werninghaus and Buckreuss (2009).^[4] The mission has operated beyond its original design life and remains in an extended operational phase as of 2026-06-14.^[1] Applications include ground subsidence measurement via interferometry, disaster damage assessment, sea-ice monitoring, and land-cover change detection.^[1]^[4] The companion TanDEM-X mission, launched in 2010, operates alongside TerraSAR-X to generate global digital elevation models through bistatic SAR.^[1]

Full specification

All fields

current status	Extended operations
operator	Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft- und Raumfahrt
launch vehicle	Dnepr
Launched	2007-06-15
orbit type	Sun-synchronous near-polar orbit, 514-515 km
swath km	100
revisit days	11
tasking supported	Yes
current geographic priority	Global high-resolution X-band SAR imaging for scientific and commercial applications

Supply chain position

carries instrument TerraSAR-X SAR

operated by Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft- und Raumfahrt

launched on Dnepr

related to Subsidence

related to Disaster damage assessment

related to Sea ice

SAR backscatter imaging → demonstrated TerraSAR-X SAR

InSAR - surface deformation → demonstrated TerraSAR-X SAR

SAR backscatter - change detection → demonstrated TerraSAR-X SAR

Polarimetric SAR - target decomposition → capable TerraSAR-X SAR

Sources

[1]DLR TerraSAR-X mission overviewagency doc-2026-06-14
[2]WMO OSCAR satellite record: TerraSAR-Xagency doc-2026-06-14
[3]CEOS mission summary: TerraSAR-Xagency doc-2026-06-14
[4]The TerraSAR-X Mission and System Designpeer reviewed2009-01-012026-06-14

Cite https://eo-atlas.org/missions/terrasar-x Markdown twin → Field definitions → Suggest a correction →

How to cite this page

Plain text

TerraSAR-X. EO-Atlas, SpectraWorks B.V. https://eo-atlas.org/missions/terrasar-x (CC BY 4.0)

BibTeX

@misc{eoatlas:missions:terrasar-x,
  title = {TerraSAR-X},
  author = {{EO-Atlas}},
  publisher = {SpectraWorks B.V.},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
  url = {https://eo-atlas.org/missions/terrasar-x}
}