Seeing Through Forests: How NISAR Reveals What Lies Beneath

<jats:p>What if a satellite could detect a water-logged surface beneath the dense forests, which is invisible to ordinary optical cameras? A new Radar Imaging Satellite, ‘NISAR,’ is making this possible, helping scientists and researchers to understand the forests, wetlands, vegetation, and environmental changes in a completely new way. NISAR is an exciting new Earth-observation satellite mission developed jointly by NASA and ISRO to better understand our changing planet. Unlike ordinary satellites that capture pictures using sunlight, NISAR uses advanced radar technology called Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), allowing it to observe Earth Day and night, even penetrating through clouds. With this technology, scientists can track subtle environmental changes, including shifting ground after earthquakes, changing forests, expanding wetlands, evolving agricultural landscapes, and glaciers.</jats:p>