# Ziyuan-3 Laser Altimeter
*sensor . products*

Single-beam 1064 nm laser altimeter series flown on ZY-3 02 (2016), ZY-3 03 (2020), and ZY-3 04 (2025) for terrain elevation and canopy height measurement.

## Specifications
- **product status**: operational
- **deployment context**: orbital
- **manufacturer**: cast
- **sensor**: {"instrument_family":"lidar","measurement_principle":"active","wavelength_nm":1064,"return_type":"full-waveform","notes":"Laser altimeter carried on ZY-3 02 (launched 2016-05-30), ZY-3 03 (launched 2020-07-25), and ZY-3 04 (launched 2025-12-16). Same single-beam 1064 nm design across the series; incremental improvements in energy and detector per satellite. Operators: CRESDA/CNSA."}
- **entity type**: sensor
- **last verified date**: 2026-06-04
- **verified by**: agency-doc
- **claim status**: unclaimed
- **provider**: cast
- **attributes**: {"kind":"sensor","product_status":"operational","deployment_context":"orbital","manufacturer":"cast","description":"Single-beam 1064 nm laser altimeter series flown on ZY-3 02 (2016), ZY-3 03 (2020), and ZY-3 04 (2025) for terrain elevation and canopy height measurement.","sensor":"{\"instrument_family\":\"lidar\",\"measurement_principle\":\"active\",\"wavelength_nm\":1064,\"return_type\":\"full-waveform\",\"notes\":\"Laser altimeter carried on ZY-3 02 (launched 2016-05-30), ZY-3 03 (launched 2020-07-25), and ZY-3 04 (launched 2025-12-16). Same single-beam 1064 nm design across the series; incremental improvements in energy and detector per satellite. Operators: CRESDA/CNSA.\"}"}
- **technology**: lidar

## Editorial
The Ziyuan-3 laser altimeter is a single-beam spaceborne laser altimeter series flown on successive Ziyuan-3 (ZY-3) satellites: ZY-3 02 (launched 2016-05-30), ZY-3 03 (launched 2020-07-25), and ZY-3 04 (launched 2025-12-16). Manufactured by the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) and operated by CRESDA and CNSA, each instrument operates at 1064 nm.[^zy302-sensors-2017-pmc][^zy303-jggs-2021]

The design across the series uses a single nadir-pointing beam to provide terrain elevation profiles complementing the stereo optical cameras on each platform. For ZY3-02, the footprint diameter is 50 m in the tabulated design specification and approximately 75 m in the same characterisation, with the latter figure likely representing the effective nadir footprint.[^zy302-sensors-2017-pmc] ZY3-02 operates at an orbital altitude of approximately 484-500 km. Stereo imagery from ZY3-02 integrated with altimeter elevation data has been applied to terrain modelling.[^zy302-rs-2019-stereo]

Waveform recording capability differs across the series. ZY3-02 records ranging information without full-waveform data.[^zy302-sensors-2017-pmc] ZY3-03 represents a second-generation design with improved performance and underwent pointing bias calibration following its launch.[^zy303-jggs-2021] ZY-3 04, launched in December 2025, is the fourth satellite in the ZY-3 series and the third to carry a laser altimeter.[^zy304-gmw-2025][^zy304-peoples-2025]

## Compositional position
- zy-3-02 (missions) --[mission_payloads]--> Ziyuan-3 Laser Altimeter
- zy-3-03 (missions) --[mission_payloads]--> Ziyuan-3 Laser Altimeter
- zy-3-04 (missions) --[mission_payloads]--> Ziyuan-3 Laser Altimeter

## Sources
- [zy302-sensors-2017-pmc] | ZY3-02 Laser Altimeter Footprint Geolocation Prediction, Sensors 2017 | https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5677141/ | tier=peer-reviewed | accessed=2026-06-04
- [zy303-jggs-2021] | Preliminary Pointing Bias Calibration of ZY3-03 Laser Altimeter, JGGS 2021 | https://www.sciopen.com/article/10.11947/j.JGGS.2021.0308 | tier=peer-reviewed | accessed=2026-06-04
- [zy302-rs-2019-stereo] | Integrating Stereo Images and Laser Altimeter Data of ZY3-02 for Improved Earth Topographic Modeling, Remote Sensing 2019 | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/11/20/2453 | tier=peer-reviewed | accessed=2026-06-04
- [zy304-gmw-2025] | China launches satellite to enhance survey, mapping service capabilities (ZY-3 04), Guangming Online 2025 | https://en.gmw.cn/2025-12/18/content_38484452.htm | tier=operator-press | accessed=2026-06-04
- [zy304-peoples-2025] | China launches satellite to enhance survey, mapping service capabilities, People's Daily 2025 | http://en.people.cn/n3/2025/1217/c90000-20403469.html | tier=operator-press | accessed=2026-06-04

---
Source: https://eo-atlas.org/products/sensor/ziyuan-3-laser-altimeter
Maintainer: SpectraWorks B.V. (CC-BY 4.0)