The German Armed Forces’ SARah satellite-based reconnaissance system commenced “operational partial operation” this week and is transmitting its first reconnaissance data from space. Following successful acceptance, the first of a total of three satellites in the SARah system was transferred to the ownership of the German government along with the associated ground system components.
This milestone in the SARah project guarantees the provision of satellite-based reconnaissance capabilities. The German Armed Forces (-> here you can find the latest Bundeswehr news) is thus securing its long-term ability to conduct global reconnaissance regardless of the time of day or weather conditions. At the same time, the data obtained supports early crisis detection and crisis management. Last year, the phased array satellite, which weighs around four tons, was launched into space from the American Vandenburg Space Force Base using a Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX. Since reaching the target orbit, all the necessary performance tests have been successfully completed before the transition to the current partial operation.
The SARah project involves a total of three German satellites and two ground stations. SAR stands for “Synthetic Aperture Radar”, an imaging radar system. SARah is the successor system to the SAR-Lupe reconnaissance satellites and is intended to ensure operational service for at least ten years. According to current plans, the two remaining reflector satellites will be launched into space this year to complete the SARah system.
