BENGALURU: The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) Monday confirmed that the launch of the Nasa-Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (Nisar) will happen on July 30 at 5.40pm from the spaceport in Sriharikota. The $1.5-billion satellite is the first joint Earth observation satellite developed jointly by Isro and Nasa. “The launch will be carried out using Isro’s GSLV-F16 rocket,” Isro said. TOI had reported last week that Isro was targetting end of July to launch the satellite.Nisar is a 2,392 kg satellite equipped with a dual-frequency synthetic aperture radar (SAR), combining Nasa’s L-band and Isro’s S-band sensors. The satellite features Nasa’s 12-metre unfurlable mesh reflector antenna, integrated with Isro’s modified I3K satellite bus.“Once in orbit, GSLV-F16 will place Nisar into a 743 km sun-synchronous orbit with an inclination of 98.40°. Nisar will scan the entire globe every 12 days, providing high-resolution, all-weather, day-and-night data. Using SweepSAR technology for the first time, the satellite will observe Earth with a 242 km swath and fine spatial resolution,” Isro said. Stating that the satellite can detect subtle changes in the planet’s surface, including ground deformation, ice sheet movements, and vegetation dynamics, Isro said the mission will support a range of critical applications such as sea ice classification, ship detection, shoreline monitoring, storm tracking, soil moisture mapping, surface water resource management, and disaster response.“The launch marks a milestone in over a decade of collaboration between Isro and Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Technical teams from both agencies have worked together on the mission since its inception, building a platform that combines space-based radar observations with a focus on long-term global monitoring,” Isro said.Isro chairman V Narayanan had told TOI last week: “…This partnership is different from what we’ve had in the past. Like I’ve told you earlier, strength respects only strength and in this mission the fact that we are equal partners shows how Isro and India have grown.”