The Lightweight Synthetic Aperture mission, or "LightSAR," is part of NASA's long-term effort in the development and productive use of imaging radars. Past NASA radar missions, which have been short in duration, have established the potential of imaging radar to expand scientific knowledge of Earth and the planets.

The satellite's capability to observe the Earth day and night in all weather is expected to result in numerous scientifically valuable and commercially lucrative applications. For example, LightSAR will have the unique capability to continuously monitor minute changes in the Earth's surface, down to the one-millimeter level, which will lead to improved understanding of natural hazards such as earthquakes and volcanoes.

The satellite's advanced capabilities also will greatly help improve governments' emergency management efforts and may prove useful to industries involved in disaster recovery. Other applications of the satellite will include observing the movements and changing size of glaciers and ice floes as part of long-term Earth climate studies. Forest regrowth and global vegetation maps produced by LightSAR will support NASA's on-going studies of the Earth's environment.

LightSAR's high-resolution imaging capability has significant commercial potential for mapping the Earth's surface, environmental surveillance, crop monitoring and land management, planning and development. One of the unique features of this NASA program will be to encourage proposers to share the costs of developing and deploying the satellite's capabilities in return for commercial rights to data.

Proposals for mission development and operations using LightSAR are being sought from many organizations, including educational institutions, industry, nonprofit institutions, NASA field centers, federally funded research and development centers and other government agencies.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, is managing the LightSAR project for NASA's Office of Earth Science, Washington, DC, which oversees a long-term, coordinated research enterprise designed to study Earth as a global environmental system. Proposals must be submitted by May 10, 1999. A pre-proposal conference will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. EST March 18 at the Crystal City Sheraton Hotel, Arlington, VA. Further information about the LightSAR mission is available from Richard M. Monson, NASA's associate director for exploratory missions, at 202/358-3552, or via email to: [email protected].