QuickBird
The QuickBird satellite is the first in a constellation of spacecraft that DigitalGlobe is developing that offers highly accurate, commercial high-resolution imagery of Earth. QuickBird’s global collection of panchromatic and multispectral imagery is designed to support applications ranging from map publishing to land and asset management to insurance risk assessment.
Today, DigitalGlobe’s QuickBird spacecraft is able to offer sub-meter resolution imagery, high geolocational accuracy, and large on-board data storage.
Moreover, we are able to populate and update our digitalglobe.com archive at unprecedented speed because QuickBird’s system features allow us to efficiently collect over 75 million square kilometers of imagery data annually.
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Features |
Benefits |
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High resolution
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Acquire high-quality satellite imagery for map creation, change detection, and image analysis |
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Great image accuracy
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Geolocate features to within 23 meters (75.5 feet) and create maps in remote areas without the use of ground control points |
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Fast large-area collection
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Collect a greater supply of frequently updated global imagery products more quickly than competitive systems |
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High image quality
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Extend the range of suitable imaging collection targets and enhance image interpretability because images can be acquired at even the lowest light levels without sacrificing image quality |
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Quantization |
11 bits |
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Design and Specifications |
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Launch Information |
Date: October 18, 2001 |
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Orbit |
Altitude: 450 km, 98 degree, sun-synchronous inclination |
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Per Orbit Collection |
~128 gigabits (approximately 57 single area images) |
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Swath Width & Area Size |
Nominal swath width: 16.5 kilometers at nadir Accessible ground swath: 544 km centered on the satellite ground track (to ~30° off-nadir) Areas of interest
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Metric Accuracy |
23 meter circular error, 17 meter linear error (without ground control) |
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Sensor Resolution & Spectral Bandwidth |
Panchromatic
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Multispectral
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Dynamic Range |
11-bits per pixel |
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Communications |
Payload Data
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Housekeeping
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ADCS Approach |
3-axis stabilized, star tracker/IRU/reaction wheels, C/A Code GPS |
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Pointing and Agility |
Accuracy: less than 0.5 milliradians absolute per axis |
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Onboard Storage |
128 gigabits capacity |
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Spacecraft |
Expected end of life: 2010 |
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* Distribution and use of imagery at better than .50 m GSD pan and 2.0 m GSD multispectral is subject to prior approval by the U.S. Government.
