[Source: ASTRIUM GEOInformation Services,
http://www.infoterra.de/terrasar-x-satellite ]
TerraSAR-X was successfully launched on June 15th, 2007, from Baikonur in Kazakhstan and has been fully
... operational since early 2008.
With its active antenna, the spacecraft acquires high-quality X-band radar images of the entire planet whilst circling Earth in a polar orbit at 514 km altitude. TerraSAR-X is designed to carry out its task for five years, independent of weather conditions and illumination, and reliably provides radar imagery with a resolution of up to 1m and a unique geometric accuracy.
Key Technical Features
Active phased array X-band SAR
Single, dual and quad polarisation
Side-looking acquisition geometry
Sun-synchronous dawn-dusk repeat orbit
Repetition rate: 11 days; due to swath overlay, a 2.5 day revisit time time (2 days at 95% probability) to any point on Earth can be achieved
Orbit altitude range from 512 km to 530 km
Operational imaging modes:
HighResolution Spotlight: up to 1m resolution, 5 to 10 km x 5 km (width x length)
SpotLight: up to 2m resolution, 10 km x 10 km (width x length)
StripMap: up to 3m resolution, 30 km x 50 km ( width x length)*
ScanSAR: up to 18 m resolution, 100 km x 150 km (width x length)*