EARTH OBSERVATION WITH SATELLITES AND AIRCRAFT; THE DLR'S 
(GERMAN AEROSPACE ESTABLISHMENT) CONTRIBUTIONS TO 
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH - AN OVERVIEW 
Rolf Dick Jr. 
Deutsche Forschungsanstalt fur Luft und Raumfahrt 
Programmdirektion Raumfahrt (Space Programs) 
P.O.Box 1116, Oberpfaffenhofen 
Webling D-82230, Germany 
ISPRS Commission VII / Working Group 1 
ABSTRACT 
The DLR concentrates it's research activities of earth observation in four programs: 
-  Atmospherical environment and climate research 
- Remote sensing of land and water 
- Remote sensing methods and techniques 
- Information systems and remote sensing data products 
Among the contributions to environmental research are: 
- Development of remote sensing methods as well as development of active and passive sensors 
- . Cooperation with universities and the industry regarding sensor development and their application 
- Acquisition, processing and archiving of remote sensing data and their provision to different discipline 
users 
- Management of earth observation pilot projects 
- Knowledge acquisition on: the dynamic and hydrological cycle in the atmosphere, the interrelationship of 
the atmosphere and the land surface, the distribution of various emissions and trace gases and their effect 
on the climate 
Various cooperation of the DLR with other research establishments and space agencies effect European, 
American and Russian remote sensing space missions (ERSI, 2; PRIRODA; X-SAR/SIR C). Additionally the 
DLR also uses different aircraft as research platforms to conduct environmental studies. During the nineties 
the DLR will add a new high altitude research aircraft (STRATO 2C) to it's fleet. It will serve as a 
sophisticated flying laboratory to contribute to the research of the atmosphere. 
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