Artist’s rendition of the Biomass satellite. Photo: Airbus Defence and Space

[Via Satellite 07-28-2016] Airbus Defence and Space has selected Harris Corporation to provide a 12-meter deployable reflector and precision boom assembly for its Biomass forest-carbon-monitoring satellite. Biomass refers to the amount of living matter in a given habitat, which is important to understand the Earth’s climate.

Scheduled to launch in 2021, the Biomass satellite will enable European Space Agency (ESA) scientists to explore the Earth’s surface using a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) in P-band frequency for the first time. It is expected to produce the highly accurate global maps of forest biomass, forest height and forest disturbances (e.g., burning of tropical forests).

The Harris deployable reflector is a major component of the SAR antenna and enables the Biomass satellite to obtain a high level of map accuracy not attainable by ground measurement techniques alone.