Remote sensing satellite Earth Station

Remote sensing satellites orbit the earth about 12 1/2 times each day at altitudes between 400 and 800 kilometres, scanning the earth at radio and optical frequencies. Amongst other things, Remote Sensing Satellites are typically used to monitor land use, oil pollution and ship movements, and provide Search And Rescue assistance.

Because the satellites generally are in polar orbit and the earth is rotating underneath them, the only two places they can consistently download the data they collect on each orbit are over the North and South Poles. There are a lot of downloading stations near the North Pole, but few in the Southern Hemisphere. Awarua offers excellent look-angles to spacecraft over the Tasman Sea and the Southern Ocean, including all of New Zealand's Exclusive Economic Zone.

Venture Southland is working with a number of parties to establish a satellite earth station at Awarua, which is a proposed site in the PrioraNet Global Ground Station Network. For more information, contact Robin McNeill.