Venμs: The Roman Goddess of Love and Gardens helped modern day scientists study the changing environment

Aboard a satellite manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries, the unique space camera was a first for environmental studies and was a collaboration between the French Centre National d’ Etudes Spatiales (CNES), the Israeli Space Agency (ISA).

Central to the satellite was the highly advanced space camera, developed and manufactured by Elbit Systems’ ISTAR & EW-ELOP, that took hundreds of high-resolution spectral images each day from an altitude of 600 – 720km, with one day revisit time. The camera was used for a variety of applications, including a global scale monitoring of environmental changes.

The orbit designed for the Venμs satellite allowed imaging each selected site at the identical local time, and provided researchers with an unprecedented bank of images and data.

Venμs took high-resolution images from an altitude of hundreds of kilometers covering around 740 square kilometers. The space camera featured 12 narrow spectral bands (11 distinct), providing clear images, with 5.3 meter spatial resolution, through twelve dedicated TDI space qualified sensors.

The space camera gave researchers an unprecedented bank of images and data.

“Venμs was unique and special,” said Oren, Senior Director Airborne & Space, EO systems -Directorate RD&E-Elop. “It was Israel’s first scientific satellite and space camera and it was used to study the changing environment.” 

Scientists from around the world were able to monitor agriculture, the receding of forests and vegetation, desertification, air pollution, the detection of volcanic ashes, dehydration of water reservoirs, water contamination and more.

One such famous image taken by Venμs was of Israel’s Lake Kinneret that showed an algae bloom that was invisible to the human eye, but clear as day from space enhanced by index calculated from the different spectral bands of the Venus space camera. Another one, the first after completion of the in-orbit tests, was a very detailed photo of Jerusalem.

“We gave scientists the tools to study the environment and the changes over the years,” says Arik, Program Manager Space Systems Business Manager at Elop. “The camera was able to give scientists critical information, such as whether a field is getting enough water for agriculture or not.”

Elbit Systems’ Elop has been in the field of space for some 30 years and is a global leader in space cameras, with systems in use in a wide variety of major space programs for military, commercial and scientific applications. Eight payloads built by Elop are currently operational.

Elop has expert employees, from integrators to system engineers, optical designers, optomechanical engineers, materials engineers, and electrical engineers.

“Our employees are fulfilling a dream when they come to work,” said Oren, adding that “all the work is conducted in a unique and specially built facility that simulates the conditions in space.”

“The environment in space is completely different from what we have on earth. It is extreme, with temperatures ranging from 150 degrees Celsius to minus 150 degrees Celsius,” said Arik. “Our platforms and systems need to be reliable, because if there are any issues, they can’t anymore be fixed after launch.”  

According to Oren, intensive design work went into the unique light-weight design, which included newly developed technologies, in order for the launcher to carry the micro satellite into space and begin its all-important mission.

“Typically, the front mirror of an earth observation camera is massive. We must remove 80% of its weight, while preserving stiffness and optical quality. At the end of the process, we are able to achieve the lightest weight of its class worldwide,” said Oren.

For the engineers that worked on the project, it was a bittersweet moment.

“The camera was like a child to me,” said Avi who was a key integrator in the project. “Like a baby, launching the satellite into orbit felt like childbirth. And then it opens its eyes, like a newborn baby, and you see that first image. And now that Venus’s mission has been completed and the satellite will be decommissioned it’s heartbreaking.”

Seven years after it launched into space at 11.2km/second, Venμs finally ran out of fuel and ended its mission.

The name Venμs is an acronym for Vegetation and Environment monitoring on a New Micro Satellite, however Venus was also the Roman goddess of fertility, and true to its name, this satellite was indeed able to help researchers improve the fertility of agricultural fields, orchards and forests.

The content of the article does not constitute business or financial information about Elbit Systems Ltd. (the “Company”) and is not intended to be a basis for making investment decisions in the Company’s securities. In order to obtain business or financial information about the Company, please refer to the reports and filings that the Company regularly publishes on the website of the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR) and on the notification system of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (Maya). 

The article may contain forward-looking statements such as estimates, forecasts, estimates, plans, etc. that refer to future events that are considered forward-looking information as defined under the securities laws of Israel and the United States. There is no certainty that such information will be realized, in whole or in part, and the actual result may differ from what was presented in the article, among other things due to its dependence on external factors that are not under the control of the Company and that cannot be evaluated in advance. The forward-looking statements are based on the Company’s estimates at the time of publication, and the Company has no obligation to update or correct this data.