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Microwaves and Radar Institute

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alberto Moreira
Director of the Institute, Wessling

Microwaves and Radar Institute

With its know-how and expertise in passive and active microwave remote sensing, the Microwaves and Radar Institute contributes to the development and advancement of ground-based, airborne and spaceborne sensors. The focus of its research work is on the conception and development of new synthetic aperture radar (SAR) techniques and systems, as well as sensor-specific applications.

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News

EUSAR 2024: The extended abstract deadline is approaching

EUSAR, the European Conference on Synthetic Aperture Radar, is the world’s leading international conference dedicated to SAR techniques, technology, and applications. It takes place every two years and is organized by VDE in collaboration Airbus, Fraunhofer, Hensoldt and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). In 2024, VDE and DLR’s Microwaves and Radar Institute are co-organizers. We would like to remind you that the extended abstract deadline for EUSAR 2024 is approaching: September 30, 2023. We look forward to your extended abstract submission!

TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X Science Team Meeting: Registration Deadline

On behalf of the Organizing Committee, we are pleased to invite you to the TerraSAR-X / TanDEM-X Science Team Meeting 2023 that will be held from Wednesday October 18th to Friday October 20th, 2023 at the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. Please let us remind you that attendees are required to register until September 22, 2023.

CEOS SAR Cal/Val 2023: Workshop Registration

The Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) Working Group on Calibration and Validation (WGCV), SAR Subgroup, is organizing the Synthetic Aperture Radar Workshop 2023 (CEOS SAR WGCV 2023). It will be held from Monday, October 16th to Wednesday, October 18th 2023 at the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. Please let us remind you that attendees need to register until September 15, 2023.

NASA's VERITAS mission prepares for Venus on volcanic Iceland

10 August 2023
NASA's Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography And Spectroscopy (VERITAS) mission will orbit Venus and acquire infrared spectroscopy, radar imaging, topography, and repeat pass interferometry data. The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) is a key partner in the mission and a field campaign currently under way in Iceland. DLR's advanced airborne F-SAR radar sensor is used for investigating and characterising surface properties to distinguish between various types of lava flows expected to be present on Venus in preparation for the return to Venus in the next decade. At the same time on the ground, DLR scientists use a field version of the Venus Emissivity Mapper (VEM) to map the near infrared spectral characteristics. The field campaign to Iceland is a joint expedition of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California, DLR and a group of international scientists from the VERITAS science team.

Studying rainforests from the skies – radar technology measures biomass

04 August 2023
At present, there are only estimates of how much forest biomass exists worldwide. However, its extent is crucial in order to accurately assess global warming. This information could be used to predict the consequences of climate change and to take appropriate countermeasures. Researchers at the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) are working on technologies to accurately identify and survey forest biomass worldwide with the help of radar satellites. To this end, a research team from DLR Oberpfaffenhofen initiated the five-week GABONX measurement campaign, which has now been successfully completed in Gabon, Central Africa.
Press Releases: WELT Süddeutsche Zeitung Focus BR24 Proplanta FLZ n-tv

Radar imaging from space – the stadiums of the Women's World Cup down under

20 July 2023
The Women's World Cup will take place in Australia and New Zealand from 20 July 2023. The radar satellite duo TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X imaged the tournament venues from space between May and July this year. By combining several images, vegetation such as parks or meadows appear in green and can be distinguished from urban buildings in blue/white. An elevation model of each venue was also generated.

IEEE Spectrum: Radar Imaging Could Be the Key to Monitoring Climate Change - The pioneering system can track rising sea levels and deforestation

30 June 2023
For his “leadership and innovative concepts in the design, deployment, and utilization of airborne and space-based radar systems,” Moreira is this year’s recipient of the IEEE Dennis J. Picard Medal for Radar Technologies and Applications. Moreira says he’s honored to receive the “most prestigious award in the radar technologies and applications field.” “It recognizes the 20 years of hard work my team and I put into our research,” he says. “What makes the honor more special is that the award is from IEEE.”

Press release: Radio telescopes seen from space

19 June 2023
The June highlight images from the twin TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X satellites show a selection of well-known radio telescope facilities. Radio telescopes look deep into space to explore the secrets of the Universe. Using the radio waves received by these telescopes, astronomers can study interstellar gases, the remnants of supernovae, the Sun and much more. They are also used in the search for potential radio signals from intelligent extraterrestrial beings. Radio astronomy was founded by the US physicist Karl Guthe Jansky, who detected microwave radiation from the Milky Way for the first time in 1933. The first radio telescopes were built in the years following this discovery. Today, more than 100 radio telescopes around the world are being used to explore the vastness of the cosmos.

Press Release: Is the rise in sea level underestimated?

10 May 2023
New research shows that the baseline of Greenland's Petermann Glacier shifts during tidal cycles, causing warm seawater to accelerate ice melt. This previously unknown interaction could lead to a 200% increase in sea level rise projections for glaciers that close off the ocean when included in models. Our colleagues Pietro Milillo, Jose-Luis Bueso-Bello and Paola Rizzoli were involved in this study. It was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on May 08, 2023.
More: Research Article Spiegel Finon Wissenschaft Hardware Infos

100 Years of Tutankhamun: Discovering the valley of the kings with radar

16 February 2023
100 years ago, British archaeologist Howard Carter opened Tutankhamun's burial chamber. For years he had been searching for the pharaoh's tomb in the Valley of the Kings, northwest of the Upper Egyptian city of Luxor. Almost giving up, he found Tutankhamun's tomb in the winter of 1922. However, several months of careful preparations were needed before the archaeologist could penetrate the interior of the burial chamber. On February 16, 1923, Howard Carter and his team finally broke through the door between the antechamber and the burial chamber. Inside, they found a treasure trove of almost completely preserved burial objects and the sarcophagus of the pharaoh - still a sensational find today (IN GERMAN).

PermaSAR - DLR research in the Canadian Arctic

15 February 2023
Permafrost - the foundation of the Arctic and Antarctic - is changing drastically. DLR researchers can use radar to determine exactly which ice layers freeze and thaw and when. This is important in order to better understand the interplay with climate change and to be able to derive recommendations for action. In the Canadian Arctic, DLR's PermaSAR project team tested novel radar technologies that allow us to see inside the permafrost. The results will also serve future satellite missions for Earth observation, such as the Tandem-L mission proposal (IN GERMAN).

Solar tower power plants - sunlight becomes electricity on demand

18 January 2023
Solar energy is becoming an increasingly important source of energy worldwide. In Germany, photovoltaic systems are currently predominantly in use. For sunny countries, solar tower power plants with integrated heat storage systems are also a valuable addition. They store heat and can thus generate electricity at any time - even when the sun is not shining. The new highlight images from the TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X radar satellites present unique images of the Earth in transition and also show solar thermal power plants around the world.

Season´s Greetings and wishes from TanDEM-X!

23 December 2022
Our Christmas picture this year features Sharm El Sheikh, an iconic Egyptian resort on the Sinai Peninsula. This year, Sharm ash-Shaykh hosted the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 27), held in November 6-12, 2022. Although the final agreement did not include a decisive shift away from fossil fuels, a historic decision was made to establish and operationalize a loss and damage fund, particularly for countries most vulnerable to the climate crisis.

Despite all challanges we faced around the wolrd this year, we wish you have a satisfied reflection on the past, faith in tomorrow and hope for the future.

Continue to be on the lookout for news from TanDEM-X on www.dlr.de/HR.

The DLR Microwaves and Radar Instittute wishes you Merry Christmas 2022 and above all a healthy, successful year 2023!

DLR Magazin: Looking deep into the forest - A combination of remote sensing data provides new insights into the structure of forests

28 November 2022
Forests are gigantic carbon stores: Half of the carbon bound on earth is stored in them. They also control the transport of water and carbon dioxide between the soil and the atmosphere. Accordingly their role in mitigating climate change. However, changes in temperature and precipitation and worsening weather extremes pose a major threat to forests and their function. Therefore, it is important to know the condition of the Earth's forests and how their structure is changing. To investigate this, DLR scientists combined data from remote sensing missions. But that's not all: a future satellite mission could depict forest structure and how it changes over time in unprecedented quality. More: DLR Magazin

Icelandic volcano Fagradalsfjall awakened again

09 September 2022
Iceland's Fagradalsfjall volcano has been active again since August 3, 2022. It last awoke on the island in March 2021 after a 6,000-year hiatus. Now, almost a year and a half later, it is once again spewing lava and toxic gases. The volcano is located in the Meradali Valley, about 40 kilometers from the capital Reykjavik. Images taken by the TerraSAR-X radar satellite on August 5 and 27, 2022, show how the current eruption is changing the shape of the volcano and its surroundings.

Press Release: 15 years in space and as fit as at launch - the German radar satellite TerraSAR-X

14 June 2022
15 years - who would have thought it! The German radar satellite TerraSAR-X was designed for a lifetime of five and a half years, until the end of 2012, when it was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 8:14 a.m. local time on June 15, 2007. Since then, it has provided data of outstanding quality, regardless of weather conditions, cloud cover or daylight. The TerraSAR-X scientific mission and the satellite are operated by the German Aerospace Center (DLR).
Mehr: Süddeutsche Zeitung

Press Release: Radar measurements for efficient agriculture

07 June 2022
Droughts and dry spells are increasingly threatening arable farming. In Europe, this particularly affects the Mediterranean region with its important fruit, vegetable and cereal areas. In order to continue to safeguard harvests in the face of global climate change, the water supply must be adapted. One important factor is soil moisture. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) is testing new radar technologies that should make it possible to map moisture distribution in plants and the top layers of soil so that targeted measures can be taken. Together with the Italian Institute for Electromagnetic Environmental Sensors IREA, the researchers conducted the first of two multi-day test campaigns in Italy in April 2022. The second campaign will take place from June 14 to 17, 2022. The data collected will be used to apply and test procedures for deriving the "soil moisture" information product with respect to current as well as future European radar satellite missions. The distribution of soil moisture in the mapped region is shown geographically in the form of a map. The results of the measurement campaigns are of particular importance for the radar satellite mission Tandem‑L, which in the future could take a global look at soil moisture in addition to other climate variables.
More: Niedersachsen AVIATION

Press Release: F-SAR flights at the North Sea coast

06 May 2022
Press releases (in GERMAN). The local press reports, e.g. the Ostfriesische Kurier "Projekt nimmt Küste in den Blick - Befliegung vor Baltrum und Langeoog: Zukunftstechnik im Einsatz" or Baltrum online: "Ein „Inselflieger" der besonderen Art machte vor diesem Hintergrund jetzt ungewöhnliche Luftaufnahmen des Küstengebietes bei Baltrum und Langeoog. Bei den Bemühungen um möglichst genaue digitale Gelände- und Oberflächenmodelle kam dabei ein spezieller Sensor des Deutschen Zentrums für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) zum Einsatz."
More: Baltrum Online, NLWKN Niedersachsen

News Archive

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TanDEM-X Latest News


TanDEM-X DEM Gallery

TanDEM-X Images [6 MB]

TanDEM-X Forest Map


TerraSAR-X Info

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EUSAR 2024


TSX/TDX Science Meeting'23


CEOS SAR WGCV 2023


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E-SAR and F-SAR Picture Gallery

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Status Report 2011 – 2018 (52.3 MB)

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Status Report 2000 - 2005 (11.12 MB)

Research and Projects (10 MB)

HR-Brochure (1.94 MB)

TerraSAR-X Brochure (9.06 MB)

TanDEM-X Brochure (8.05 MB)

Tandem-L Brochure (3.28 MB)

Helmholtz Alliance "Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics" (5.85 MB)

TanDEM-X - Die Erde in 3D (1.63 MB)


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Institute's History: A Retrospective 1908 - 2008 (PDF 34.39 MB)


LINKED IN: Mit dem Eisbrecher zum Wrack der „Endurance“


TWITTER: L-Band-Radar in der #Arktis im Einsatz


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Microwaves and Radar Institute

EUSAR 2024: The extended abstract deadline is approaching

TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X Science Team Meeting: Registration Deadline

CEOS SAR Cal/Val 2023: Workshop Registration

NASA's VERITAS mission prepares for Venus on volcanic Iceland

Studying rainforests from the skies – radar technology measures biomass

Radar imaging from space – the stadiums of the Women's World Cup down under

IEEE Spectrum: Radar Imaging Could Be the Key to Monitoring Climate Change - The pioneering system can track rising sea levels and deforestation

Press release: Radio telescopes seen from space

Press Release: Is the rise in sea level underestimated?

100 Years of Tutankhamun: Discovering the valley of the kings with radar

PermaSAR - DLR research in the Canadian Arctic

Solar tower power plants - sunlight becomes electricity on demand

Season´s Greetings and wishes from TanDEM-X!

DLR Magazin: Looking deep into the forest - A combination of remote sensing data provides new insights into the structure of forests

Icelandic volcano Fagradalsfjall awakened again

Press Release: 15 years in space and as fit as at launch - the German radar satellite TerraSAR-X

Press Release: Radar measurements for efficient agriculture

Press Release: F-SAR flights at the North Sea coast

SAR Technology

Radar Concepts

Satellite SAR Systems

Reconnaissance and Security