TAPAS-1

About TAPAS-1

• TAPAS-1 or Thermal Access Platform for Analytics & Solutions is a CubeSat-category payload.
• It is India’s first commercial private thermal-imaging payload.
• Developed by: It has been developed by Ahmedabad-based space technology startup Satleo Labs.
• It uses thermal infrared (TIR) sensing to capture temperature information that conventional optical satellite imagery cannot detect.
• Objective: It is to establish flight heritage for SatLeo’s thermal sensing technology.
  • The mission is also intended to provide the foundation for the company’s planned PYRO constellation of thermal imaging satellites.
• Features:
  • It is a CubeSat-category payload, which are a class of cubical nanosatellites that typically measure 10 cm x 10 cm x 10 cm.
  • It weighs 1.5 kg.
  • It will remain in orbit for three years.
  • It will operate in a sun-synchronous orbit.
    • It has been injected into an orbit 500 km high, from where the satellite will capture high-resolution images of heat and temperature variations at locations across the planet.
  • It has been designed to capture changes in the heat emitted from the Earth’s surface in the form of images.
    • This data can be analysed using artificial intelligence (AI). This data will be available directly from the satellite.
  • TAPAS-1 will carry a long-wave infrared sensor which will capture temperature information that is not visible in conventional optical imagery.
    • TAPAS-2 will add medium-wave infrared and optical sensing capabilities, creating a multi-sensor payload.
• Applications:
  • Disaster management: It can also help in detecting and monitoring disasters such as forest fires.
    • Thermal imaging tracks city temperatures in real time, helping authorities tackle urban heat stress.
  • Agriculture: In agriculture, thermal data can help monitor crop and water stress, enabling more accurate and modern crop planning.
    • It can also support better urban planning and resource management.
  • It has potential applications in archaeology and geology, where thermal imaging can help identify underground ruins and mineral deposits.
  • It can also support climate modelling by monitoring land and ocean surface temperatures, as well as weather forecasting, storm prediction, extreme-weather warnings, and climate-pattern analysis.