ANTARCTIC SATELLITE RADAR REMOTE SENSING, AN 
INFORMATION SOURCE FOR RESEARCH AND OPERATIONAL ACTIVITIES 
D.M.Nazarenko 
D.J.Lapp 
RADARSAT International Inc. 
Dept. Applications Solutions 
Suite 200, 3851, Shell Road 
Richmond, BC V6X 2WZ, Canada 
ISPRS Commission VII / Working Group 8 
ABSTRACT 
The need a source of routinely available information in support of polar activities is being made available 
through RADARSAT, Canada's first earth observing satellite. The satellite will be launched in the first 
quarter of 1995 and will be equipped with a Synthetic Aperture Radar, a feature particularly well suited to 
the provision of remote sensing data over the Antarctic. Under normal operating circumstances, 
RADARSAT will provide effective land and sea coverage north of 80? S. supporting a variety of scientific 
and operational requirements, in addition to the planned acquisition of data by ground receiving stations, the 
satellite will be equipped with two on-board tape records, capable of acquiring data beyond the range of 
existing stations. One of the key scientific objectives of the RADARSAT will program will be to provide the 
first complete radar mapping of the Antarctic. On two occasions during the satellite's five year life, 
RADARSAT will be positioned to provide maximal coverage of the continent for mapping purposes. The 
purpose of these manoeuvres will be provide map mosaics of the Antarctic, as well as opportunities for 
stereo mapping and possibly interferometric data acquisition for selected sites. In this paper, we discuss key 
aspects of the RADARSAT program that are of relevance to interests in the Antarctic. 
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