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Satellite Imagery FAQ

1. What are the resolutions available for imagery products?

High-resolution satellite imagery ranges from 0.3 m spatial resolution to 0.5m spatial resolution. Mid-Resolution Imagery ranges from 1.5m to 10m spatial resolution.

2. What is Atmospheric Compensation (A-Comp) and how can I get it?

Atmospheric compensation is a competitive differentiator that makes imagery to be of higher quality than the competition since it reduces haze in images and the effects of aerosols in an image. Less haze leads to higher aesthetics and a more accurate spectral response leads to more accurate feature/change detection. It is currently available for all images and will soon be available for Basemaps.

3. What is Advanced Elevation Series?

Provides High accuracy Digital Surface Models and Digital Terrain Models. It comes with numerous product configuration options for accuracy, resolution, type, and format. These product levels are Mapping – DSM or DTM, Precision – DSM or DTM, Very High Precision – DSM or DTM. Spatial resolution for Mapping is 8m, Precision 4m and Very High Precision 2m.

For the very high precision DEM having a 2m ground sampling distance, Ground Control Points (GCPs) have to be collected to enable production of this product

4. How are imagery products delivered and How long will it take to receive the imagery?

The images can be either, Archive, Fresh Archive or New. Archive imagery is imagery that was taken more than 90 days from the day of order i.e more than 3 months old. Fresh archive imagery, on the other hand, is imagery that was taken less than 90 days from the day of order i.e less than 3 months old. New imagery is imagery that is yet to be taken by tasking the satellite to pass over an area and take the image.

Archive imagery is usually shipped within 10 working days. Much of the delivery time depends on the product and where the area of interest is located.

5. In what projection and datum are imagery products delivered?

The imagery products are delivered in all common projections for example the Universal Transverse Mercator. The imagery products are also delivered in different datums including WGS84 and Arc1960.

6. What are the minimum order sizes for satellite Imagery?

  • The minimum order for new collections is 100 square kilometers.
  • The minimum order for Archive imagery is 25 square kilometers.
  • The minimum order for ortho-rectified and stereo imagery is 100 square kilometers.
  • The minimum order area for new tasking collections, for all sensors, is 100 sq. km with a 5km minimum order width.

7. I want a narrow corridor collected. Can you do that?

Corridors must be at least 5km in width in order to be collected. The minimum order size for archive imagery is 100 sq. km while the minimum order size for new imagery is 500 sq. km.

8. If I would like to monitor changes in an urban area, which kind of imagery should I use?

High-resolution imagery would be best suited for this work because at 0.5m spatial resolution, you can be able to notice changes in objects which are 0.5m or bigger.

9. What do you need to place an order?

  • Area of Interest (AOI) defined by bounding coordinates, KML or by a Shapefile;
  • Type of imagery i.e. Archived (specify date of collection) or New Imagery.

10. What does Oakar Services do with satellite imagery

Oakar Services are satellite imagery resellers. We partner with some of the largest satellite vendors on the globe such as Maxar and Planet. We can deliver raw imagery or ‘clean up’ an image with processing tools including ortho-rectification, pan sharpening, etc. We also provide data analysis on imagery including land use land cover classification, change detection and other data applications.

11. If I would like to monitor large agricultural fields, which kind of imagery should I use?

Planet’s high-frequency satellite imagery provides the most current and complete in-season coverage for monitoring fields anywhere on earth. With Planet imagery, you can build data-driven crop management solutions to increase overall farm productivity, profitability, and sustainability for your customers–whether they are agronomists, farmers, retailers, input providers, or commodities traders.

12. What image quality improvements have been made?

By applying advanced software techniques, our partners are reducing the number of artifacts and sharpening the visual quality of the imagery so that it is easier to discern the change.

13. How much does imagery cost?

Depending on your AOI (area of interest) and the service you require this can influence the price of a project as different satellites may be used. If you require only archive data or a fresh capture this is also taken into consideration as archive imagery is typically less expensive than a new tasked image. For more information on costs, contact us on sales@osl.co.ke.


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