Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Overview

Members of the Engineering Geology and Ground Water Branches, U.S. Geological Survey

doi:10.3133/fs20083066

Home/Archive/USGS

USGS · fs20083066

Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Overview

Members of the Engineering Geology and Ground Water Branches, U.S. Geological Survey

View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched Terra, the Earth Observing System's (EOS) flagship satellite platform on December 18, 1999. The polar-orbiting Terra contains five remote sensing instruments, which enable the scientific study and analyses of global terrestrial processes and manifestations of global change. One of the five instruments is the multispectral Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), which is built in Japan by a consortium of government, industry, and research groups. It has three spectral bands in the visible near-infrared region (VNIR), six bands in the shortwave infrared region (SWIR), and five bands in the thermal infrared region (TIR), with 15-, 30-, and 90-meter ground resolutions, respectively. This combination of wide spectral coverage and high spatial resolution allows ASTER to discriminate among a wide variety of surface materials. The VNIR subsystem also has a backward-viewing telescope for high-resolution (15-meter) stereoscopic observation in the along-track direction, which facilitates the generation of digital elevation models (DEM).

Explore related subjects

Fact Sheet Report

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeX RIS

Members of the Engineering Geology and Ground Water Branches, U.S. Geological Survey. 2008. Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Overview. https://doi.org/10.3133/fs20083066

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related USGS reports

USGS2026

U.S. Geological Survey science supports a thriving Chesapeake Bay watershed economy

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) science supports the Chesapeake Bay watershed economy by linking natural resources to key economic sectors. The roles of USGS monitoring, data, and analysis inform land-use and resource-management decisions for Department of Interior leadership and other stakeholders.

Chesapeake Bay watershed↗

USGS2026

Assessment of undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources in the Niger Delta Province of Nigeria and Cameroon, 2026

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean conventional resources of 11.4 billion barrels of oil and 88.2 trillion cubic feet of gas in the Niger Delta Province of Nigeria and Cameroon.

Niger Delta Province↗

USGS2026

Divisions of geologic time—Major chronostratigraphic and geochronologic units

Introduction The reports and maps of our Nation’s geological surveys inform and benefit the public, private industry, government officials, and scientists. The use of clear and consistent nomenclature and classifications can improve communication of data and interpretations. Since 1899, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Geologic Names Committee (GNC) has been responsible for defining standards that promote uniform geologic nomenclature and classifications among geoscientists. The GNC periodically publishes a geologic time scale, the “Divisions of Geologic Time,” that serves as the national standard for USGS publications (for example, refer to Orndorff and others, 2023). Authors may use other published geologic time scales, such as those of the Geological Society of America (GSA) or the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS), provided that they are clearly specified and referenced. Access to the USGS, GSA, and ICS geologic time scales is also available from the U.S. Geologic Names Lexicon (Geolex) website https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/Geolex/stratres/timescales. The geologic time scale serves a dual purpose by enabling authors to distinguish earth material units by position (chronostratigraphic) and time (geochronologic), as outlined in order of decreasing rank.

Fact Sheet↗