The blue streaks of the wind that ripples the water of the lakes of the German city of Wesenberg, the surface of the Hofsjökull glacier in Iceland, and the streets of Cinisello Balsamo, a municipality on the north-eastern outskirts of Milan. These are the first spectacular images, with unprecedented detail, captured by the first second generation Italian Cosmo-SkyMed satellite, launched on 18 December 2019.
"The new images, taken in February 2020, provide us with an even sharper picture of our planet", observes the Italian Space Agency (ASI), which manages the Cosmo-SkyMed program, born in 2007 from an agreement between the ministries of the Education, University and Research (MIUR) and Defense.
The southern part of the Icelandic Hofsjökull glacier (source: COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation © ASI. Processed and distributed by e-GEOS)
The second generation Cosmo-SkyMed satellite has a more keen look than its predecessors. It allows, for example, to see the geometric structures of the area, such as roads and houses, allowing you to appreciate details otherwise difficult to observe, such as the foliage of individual trees or the shadow of pedestrian bridge structures on motorway junctions. Its performance is, in fact, higher than that of the first generation satellites: the resolution of radar images is, for example, greater and data transmission occurs faster and in a much more flexible way.
The municipality of Cinisello Balsamo, north-east of Milan (source: COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation © ASI. Processed and distributed by e-GEOS)
Cosmo-SkyMed is a dual program, i.e. civil and military, for radar observation of the Earth, both day and night and in all weather conditions. Many of its applications: from infrastructure monitoring to disaster prevention, from environmental protection to archaeological heritage protection. In the new phase of the Cosmo-SkyMed program, the role of the Italian industry is important, with Thales Alenia Space Italia (Thales - Leonardo), Telespazio (Leonardo-Thales) and the participation of numerous small and medium-sized enterprises.
Like the first generation of Cosmo SkyMed, the second also includes 4 satellites. The launch of the second satellite of the new generation is expected in early 2021 with the new version of the Vega launcher (Vega C), built in Italy by Avio, in Colleferro (Rome).
