Satellite - Imagery - Product - Guide 2018 PDF
Satellite - Imagery - Product - Guide 2018 PDF
Satellite - Imagery - Product - Guide 2018 PDF
Version 2.4.0
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Satellite Imagery Product Catalog
Table of Contents
1. Satellite Imagery Products ................................................................................................................................ 7
1.1 Overview of this Document ................................................................................................................................ 7
1.2 Satellite Imagery Product Overview ................................................................................................................... 7
1.3 Constellation Order Fulfillment .......................................................................................................................... 9
1.4 Imaging Band Options ......................................................................................................................................... 9
1.4.1 Panchromatic Products .............................................................................................................................. 9
1.4.2 Multispectral Products ............................................................................................................................... 9
1.4.3 Pan-Sharpened Products ............................................................................................................................ 9
1.4.4 SWIR Products ............................................................................................................................................ 9
1.4.5 Band Option Summary ............................................................................................................................. 10
1.5 System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery Products ...................................................................................................... 10
1.5.1 Processing ................................................................................................................................................ 10
1.5.2 Accuracy ................................................................................................................................................... 11
1.5.3 Physical Structure ..................................................................................................................................... 11
1.5.4 System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery Product Specifications ........................................................................ 11
1.5.5 System-Ready (Basic) 1B SWIR Imagery Product Specifications .............................................................. 12
1.6 System-Ready Stereo (Basic) 1B Pair Imagery Products ................................................................................... 13
1.6.1 Processing ................................................................................................................................................ 13
1.6.2 Accuracy ................................................................................................................................................... 13
1.6.3 Physical Structure ..................................................................................................................................... 13
1.6.4 System-Ready (Basic) 1B Pair Imagery Product Specifications ................................................................ 15
1.7 View-Ready (Standard) 2A and OR2A Imagery Products .................................................................................. 16
1.7.1 Processing ................................................................................................................................................ 16
1.7.2 Accuracy ................................................................................................................................................... 17
1.7.3 Physical Structure ..................................................................................................................................... 17
1.7.4 View-Ready (Standard) 2A and OR2A Imagery Product Specifications .................................................... 18
1.7.5 View-Ready (Standard) OR2A SWIR Imagery Product Specifications....................................................... 19
1.8 View-Ready Stereo (Standard) OR2A Imagery Products ................................................................................... 20
1.8.1 Processing ................................................................................................................................................ 20
1.8.2 Accuracy ................................................................................................................................................... 21
1.8.3 Physical Structure ..................................................................................................................................... 21
1.8.4 View-Ready Stereo (Standard) OR2A Imagery Product Specifications .................................................... 21
1.9 Map-Ready (Ortho) Imagery Products .............................................................................................................. 22
1.9.1 Map-Ready (Ortho) 1:12,000 Imagery Products ...................................................................................... 22
1.10 Map-Ready (Ortho) Custom Imagery Products................................................................................................. 24
1.10.1 Map-Ready (Ortho) Custom Product Summary ....................................................................................... 24
1.10.1.1 Quickbird Only – Map-Ready (Ortho) 1:50,000 ................................................................................. 24
1.10.1.2 Map-Ready (Ortho) 1:4,800 and 1:5,000 ........................................................................................... 24
1.10.1.3 IKONOS............................................................................................................................................... 24
1.10.1.4 Map-Ready (Ortho) Built to Order ..................................................................................................... 24
1.10.1.5 Advanced Ortho Series ...................................................................................................................... 24
1.11 Geo and GeoStereo Imagery Products.............................................................................................................. 24
2. Satellite Constellation..................................................................................................................................... 25
2.1 IKONOS Satellite................................................................................................................................................ 26
DigitalGlobe Proprietary Version 2.0 3
Satellite Imagery Product Catalog
List of Tables
Table 1.1: Satellite Imagery Product Overview.............................................................................................................7
Table 1.2: Core Imagery Products Suite.........................................................................................................................8
Table 1.3: Product Band Options and Pixel Resolutions ..............................................................................................10
Table 1.4: System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery Product Specifications ..........................................................................11
Table 1.5: System-Ready (Basic) 1B SWIR Imagery Product Specifications .................................................................12
Table 1.6: System-Ready (Basic) 1B Pair Imagery Product Specifications ...................................................................15
Table 1.7: View-Ready (Standard) Imagery Product Specifications .............................................................................18
Table 1.8: View-Ready (Standard) OR2A SWIR Imagery Product Specifications .........................................................19
Table 1.9: View-Ready Stereo (Standard) OR2A Imagery Product Specifications .......................................................21
Table 1.10: Map-Ready (Ortho) 1:12,000 Imagery Product Specifications .................................................................23
Table 2.1: Satellite Resolution .....................................................................................................................................25
Table 2.2: Product Availability by Satellite ..................................................................................................................25
Table 2.3: IKONOS Satellite Characteristics .................................................................................................................26
Table 2.4: QuickBird Satellite Characteristics ..............................................................................................................27
Table 2.5: WorldView-1 Satellite Characteristics.........................................................................................................28
Table 2.6: WorldView-2 Satellite Characteristics.........................................................................................................29
Table 2.7: GeoEye-1 Satellite Characteristics ..............................................................................................................30
Table 2.8: WorldView-3 Satellite Characteristics.........................................................................................................31
Table 3.1: Select New Collection Parameters ..............................................................................................................35
Table 3.2: Select Plus New Collection Parameters ......................................................................................................36
Table 3.3: Single Shot Tasking Parameters ..................................................................................................................37
Table 7.1 Resampling Kernels ......................................................................................................................................42
Table 8.1: Standard Map Projections, Ellipsoids, and Datums ....................................................................................43
Table 8.2: Non-Standard Map Projections, Ellipsoids, and Datums ............................................................................43
Table 9.1: Expected Delivery Times, By Product Type and New Collection Type ........................................................44
Table 10.1: Summary of Product Band Options ..........................................................................................................48
List of Figures
Figure 1.1: Stereo Imagery - 14 km Legnth - Order Scenario 1....................................................................................14
Figure 1.2: Stereo Imagery - 14 km Legnth - Order Scenario 2....................................................................................14
Figure 1.3: Stereo Imagery - 14 km Legnth - Order Scenario 3....................................................................................15
Figure 1.4: Product Structure for projected Single-Strip Products ..............................................................................17
Figure 1.5: Product Structure for Projected Multi-Strip Products ...............................................................................18
Figure 6.1: Tile Naming ................................................................................................................................................40
Figure 6.2: Tile Map Naming Example .........................................................................................................................40
Figure 10.1: Visual Comparison of Image Accuracy .....................................................................................................47
Orthorectified
Corrected
and
1 Excluding the effects of terrain and up to 30 degrees off-nadir angle and this is representative of a pointing accuracy
statement and not a map accuracy
2 Map Scale (Ortho) Custom products are products that are customized to meet the customer’s orthorectification
requirements
DigitalGlobe Proprietary Version 2.0 8
Satellite Imagery Product Catalog
1.5.1 Processing
System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery products are radiometrically corrected and sensor corrected,
but not projected to a plane using a map projection or datum. The sensor correction blends all
pixels from all detectors into the synthetic array to form a single image. The resulting GSD varies
over the entire product because the look angle slowly changes during the imaging process.
1.5.2 Accuracy
The System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery product is in the satellite frame of reference; it is not tied
to ground location, and is therefore a geometrically raw product with no implied accuracy.
However, when the data is processed with the supplied refined Image Support Data (ISD), a
horizontal geolocation accuracy of 5 m CE90, excluding terrain and off-nadir effects, can be
achieved at less than 30° off-nadir. The System-Ready (Basic) 1B accuracy statements are
representative of a pointing accuracy and not a map accuracy statement.
Pan Strip Width (km, approx. at nadir) 13.1 km – 17.6 km (see section 1.5.3 Physical Structure)
Processing Specifications
Absolute Geolocation Accuracy (nadir) Geometrically raw. With supplied Image Support Data (ISD),
imagery can be processed to 5 m CE90 (WorldView-1,
WorldView-2, GeoEye-1, WorldView3) or 23 m CE90
(QuickBird) at less than 30° off-nadir, excluding terrain
effects.
Product Parameters
Product Options Panchromatic, 4-Band MS, 8-Band MS, Pan + 4-Band MS
Bundle, Pan + 8-Band MS Bundle
Number of Bits per Pixel in Delivered Product 8 or 16
Digital Scaling Method (applies to 8-bit only) Linear with a maximum value set to 255
1.6.1 Processing
System-Ready Stereo (Basic) 1B Pair Imagery products are radiometrically-corrected and sensor-
corrected, but not projected to a plane using a map projection or datum. The sensor correction
blends all pixels from all detectors into the synthetic array to form a single image. The resulting
GSD varies over the entire product because the attitude & ephemeris slowly change during the
imaging process.
1.6.2 Accuracy
The System-Ready Stereo (Basic) 1B Pair Imagery product is in the satellite frame of reference. It
is not tied to ground location, and is therefore a geometrically raw product with no implied
accuracy. However, when the data is processed with the supplied refined Image Support Data
(ISD), a horizontal geolocational accuracy of 5 m CE90, excluding terrain and off-nadir effects, can
be achieved at less than 30° off-nadir. Vertical accuracy is 5 m LE90 at less than 30° off-nadir.
The System-Ready accuracy statements are representative of a pointing accuracy and not a map
accuracy statement.
Products cut up into 14 km lengths will be delivered in 14 km increments, except for the last
increment in the strip, which may be a fractional increment. Products that are divided into equal
segments can be divided by 1, 2, 4, or 7 parts. Customers who require small, manageable file
sizes or who are interested in achieving higher processing speeds should opt to divide the strips
into more parts by selecting a larger number of parts. Those users who can manage large file
sizes and desire a fewer number of images to cover the Area of Interest (AOI) should select
smaller number of parts. For either method of division, there will be at least 1 km overlap
between adjacent stereo pairs.
1.7.1 Processing
View-Ready (Standard) products are radiometrically corrected, sensor corrected, and projected
to a plane using the map projection and datum of the customer's choice. View-Ready (Standard)
2A Imagery products are available in panchromatic at 30 cm, 40 cm, 50 cm or 60 cm GSD, pan-
sharpened at 30 cm, 40 cm, 50 cm or 60 cm GSD, multispectral at 1.2 m, 1.6 m, 2.0 m or 2.4 m
GSD depending on the sensor. All View-Ready (Standard) Imagery products can have a uniform
GSD throughout the entire product or have satellite-standard GSD.
The radiometric corrections applied to this product include: relative radiometric response
between detectors, nonresponsive detector fill, and a conversion for absolute radiometry. The
sensor corrections account for internal detector geometry, optical distortion, scan distortion, any
line-rate variations, and registration of the panchromatic and multispectral bands. Geometric
corrections remove spacecraft orbit position and attitude uncertainty, Earth rotation and
curvature, and panoramic distortion. Standard Imagery comes in two varieties:
1.7.2 Accuracy
View-Ready (Standard) Imagery product accuracies vary by sensor. For QuickBird imagery, the
geolocation accuracy specification is 23 m CE90. The WorldView-1, WorldView-2, GeoEye-1 and
WorldView-3 accuracy specification is 5 m CE90 at less than 30° off-nadir for panchromatic and
multispectral products. The System-Ready accuracy statements are representative of a pointing
accuracy and not a map accuracy statement. The shortwave infrared (SWIR) product has a
geolocational accuracy of 7.5 m CE90. These accuracies are excluding any topographic
displacement and off-nadir viewing angle. Ground location is derived from refined satellite
attitude and ephemeris information without requiring the use of Ground Control Points (GCPs).
When View-Ready (Standard) OR2A Imagery is processed using supplied Rational Polynomial
Coefficients (RPCs), a high quality Digital Elevation Model (DEM) (e.g. DTED Level 2) and sub-
meter GCPs, accuracies in the range of 4 m CE90 may be achieved.
View-Ready (Standard) Imagery products are delivered as one image file for each strip the order polygon
intersects. If the order polygon intersects more than one strip, the imagery in each strip will be delivered as
separate files and will not be mosaicked together to form a single image or be radiometrically balanced.
1.8.1 Processing
View-Ready Stereo (Standard) OR2A Imagery is map projected, but has no topographic relief
applied with respect to the reference ellipsoid, making it suitable for orthorectification. View-
Ready Stereo (Standard) OR2A Imagery is projected to a constant base elevation, which is
calculated on the average terrain elevation per order polygon or can be supplied by the
customer.
View-Ready Stereo (Standard) OR2A product takes on all of the same stereo collection angle
specifications as the System-Ready Stereo (Basic) 1B Pair Imagery products, however are
available for customers who either prefer a map corrected stereo product or require a smaller
minimum Area of Interest.
1.8.2 Accuracy
View-Ready Stereo (Standard) OR2A Imagery product accuracies vary by sensor. The WorldView-
1, WorldView-2, GeoEye-1 and WorldView-3 accuracy specification is 5 m CE90 at less than 30°
off-nadir. These accuracies are excluding any topographic displacement and off-nadir viewing
angle. Ground location is derived from refined satellite attitude and ephemeris information
without requiring the use of Ground Control Points (GCPs). Vertical accuracy is 5 m LE90 at less
than 30° off-nadir. The System-Ready accuracy statements are representative of a pointing
accuracy and not a map accuracy statement.
1.10.1.3 IKONOS
See the IKONOS Product Guide for available Ortho IKONOS offers.
2. Satellite Constellation
The DigitalGlobe Constellation consists of six high-resolution satellites. Quickbird and IKONOS are
no longer collecting new imagery and are available from the Image Library only.
Characteristic Detail
Launch Information Date: September 24, 1999
Launch Vehicle: Delta II 7920
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Orbit Altitude: 681 kilometers
Type: Sun-synchronous, 10:30 am descending node
Period: 98 minutes
Sensor Bands Panchromatic: 450 - 520
Multispectral:
Blue: 450-550 nm
Green: 520-600 nm
Red: 630-690 nm
Near-IR1: 760-900 nm
Sensor Resolution 0.82 meters GSD at nadir panchromatic
(GSD = Ground Sample Distance) 3.28 meters GSD at nadir multispectral
0.91 meters GSD at 20° off-nadir panchromatic
3.64 meters GSD at 20° off-nadir multispectral
NIIRS Equivalency NIIRS potential of > 5.0
Dynamic Range 11-bits per pixel
Swath Width 11 kilometers at nadir
Pointing Accuracy & Knowledge Accuracy: < 500 meters at image start and stop
Knowledge: Supports geolocation accuracy below
Retargeting Agility Acceleration: 1.43 deg/s/s
Rate: 3.86 deg/sec
Time to slew 200 kilometers: 10 seconds
Pan Point Target Rate (50 km spacing) 4 points/min
Onboard Storage 2199 gigabits solid state with EDAC
Max Viewing Angle / Accessible Ground Swath Nominally +/-45° off-nadir = 1651 km wide swath Higher
angles selectively available
Per Orbit Collection 524 gigabits
Daily Collection (km2) 240,000 km2
Max Contiguous Area Collected in a Single Pass 138 x 112 km mono
63 x 112 km stereo
Nominal Scene Size 121 km2
Characteristic Detail
Revisit Frequency to target at 40° N latitude 1.1 days at 1 meter GSD
3.7 days at 20° off-nadir or less (0.52 GSD)
Revisit Time 3 days at 40° latitude with elevation > 60°
Geolocation Accuracy (CE90) Specification of 15 meters CE90 at less than 30° off-nadir
excluding terrain and off-nadir effects
With registration to GCPs in image: 2 meters
Characteristic Detail
Altitude 400 km Altitude 300 km
Launch Information Date: October 18, 2001
Launch Vehicle: Delta II
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Orbit Altitude: 400 kilometers Altitude: 300 kilometers
Type: Sun synchronous, Type: Sun synchronous,
10:00 am 10:25 am
descending node descending node
Period: 92.4 minutes Period: 90.4 minutes
Sensor Bands Panchromatic: 405-1053 Multispectral:
Blue: 430 - 545
Green: 466 – 620
Red: 590 – 710
NIR1: 715 - 918
Sensor Resolution 0.55 meters GSD at nadir 0.41 meters GSD at nadir
(GSD = Ground Sample Distance) panchromatic panchromatic
2.16 meters GSD at nadir 1.63 meters GSD at nadir
multispectral multispectral
NIIRS Equivalency NIIRS potential of 4.9
Dynamic Range 11-bits per pixel
Swath Width 14.9 kilometers at nadir 11.2 kilometers at nadir
Pointing Accuracy & Knowledge Accuracy: < 500 meters at image start and stop
Knowledge: Supports geolocation accuracy below
Retargeting Agility Acceleration: .086 deg/s/s Time to slew 200 kilometers:
Rate: 2.4 deg/sec 44 seconds
Time to slew 200 kilometers:
38 seconds
Onboard Storage 128 gigabits capacity
Characteristic Detail
Altitude 400 km Altitude 300 km
Max Viewing Angle / Accessible Ground Swath Nominally +/-45° off-nadir = 1005 km wide swath Higher
angles selectively available
Per Orbit Collection 331 gigabits
Daily Collection (km2) 240,000 km2
Max Contiguous Area Collected in a Single Pass 14.9 x 360 km mono 11.2 x 360 km mono
Revisit Frequency to target at 40° N latitude Revisit time may vary from 2 to 12 days depending on target
location as the orbit decays
Geolocation Accuracy (CE90) Geolocation Accuracy specification of 23 meters CE90,
excluding terrain and off-nadir effects
Demonstrated 17 meters LE90 (without ground control)
Characteristic Detail
Launch Information Date: September 18, 2007
Launch Vehicle: Delta II 7920
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Orbit Altitude: 496 kilometers Altitude: 496 kilometers
Type: Sun synchronous, Type: Sun synchronous,
10:30 am 1:30 pm
descending node descending node
Period: 95 minutes Period: 95 minutes
Sensor Bands Panchromatic 397 - 905
Sensor Resolution 0.50 meters GSD at nadir
(GSD = Ground Sample Distance) 0.55 meters GSD at 20° off-nadir
NIIRS Equivalency NIIRS potential of > 5.0
Dynamic Range 11-bits per pixel
Swath Width 17.7 kilometers at nadir
Pointing Accuracy & Knowledge Accuracy: < 500 meters at image start and stop
Knowledge: Supports geolocation accuracy below
Retargeting Agility Acceleration: 2.29 deg/s/s
Rate: 4.45 deg/sec
Time to slew 200 kilometers: 10 seconds
Onboard Storage 2199 gigabits solid state with EDAC
Max Viewing Angle / Accessible Ground Swath Nominally +/-45° off-nadir = 1035 km wide swath Higher
angles selectively available
Characteristic Detail
Per Orbit Collection 331 gigabits
Daily Collection (km2) 240,000 km2
Max Contiguous Area Collected in a Single Pass 111 x 112 km mono
51 x 112 km stereo
Revisit Frequency to target at 40° N latitude 1.7 days at 1 meter GSD or less
5.4 days at 20° off-nadir or less (0.55 meter GSD)
Geolocation Accuracy (CE90) Geolocation Accuracy specification of 5 meters CE90 at less
than 30° off nadir, with actual accuracy in the range of 4.0 –
5.5 meters CE90 at nadir, excluding terrain and off-nadir
effects
With registration of GCPs in image: 2 meters
Characteristic Detail
Launch Information Date: October 8, 2009
Launch Vehicle: Delta II 7920
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Orbit Altitude: 770 kilometers
Type: Sun synchronous, 10:30 am descending node
Period: 100 minutes
Sensor Bands Panchromatic: 447 - 808
Multispectral:
Coastal Blue: 396-458 nm Red: 624-694 nm
Blue: 442-515 nm Red Edge: 699-749 nm
Green: 506-586 nm Near-IR1: 765-901 nm
Yellow: 584-663 nm Near IR2: 856-1043 nm
Sensor Resolution 0.46 meters GSD at nadir panchromatic
(GSD = Ground Sample Distance) 1.85 meters GSD at nadir multispectral
0.52 meters GSD at 20° off-nadir panchromatic
2.07 meters GSD at 20° off-nadir multispectral
NIIRS Equivalency NIIRS potential of > 5.0
Dynamic Range 11-bits per pixel
Swath Width 16.4 kilometers at nadir
Pointing Accuracy & Knowledge Accuracy: < 500 meters at image start and stop
Knowledge: Supports geolocation accuracy below
Characteristic Detail
Retargeting Agility Acceleration: 1.43 deg/s/s
Rate: 3.86 deg/sec
Time to slew 200 kilometers: 10 seconds
Onboard Storage 2199 gigabits solid state with EDAC
Max Viewing Angle / Accessible Ground Swath Nominally +/-45° off-nadir = 1651 km wide swath
Higher angles selectively available
Per Orbit Collection 524 gigabits
Max Contiguous Area Collected in a Single Pass 138 x 112 km mono
63 x 112 km stereo
Revisit Frequency to target at 40° N latitude 1.1 days at 1 meter GSD
3.7 days at 20° off-nadir or less (0.52 GSD)
Geolocation Accuracy (CE90) Specification of 5 meters CE90 at less than 30° off-nadir
excluding terrain and off- nadir effects.
With registration to GCPs in image: 2 meters.
Characteristic Detail
Launch Information Date: September 6, 2008
Launch Vehicle: Delta II
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Orbit Altitude: 681 kilometers
Type: Sun-synchronous, 10:30am descending node
Period: 98 minutes
Sensor Bands Panchromatic
Black&White: 450-800 nm
Multispectral:
Blue: 450-510 nm
Green: 510-580 nm
Red: 655-690 nm
Near-IR: 780-920 nm
Characteristic Detail
Sensor Resolution 0.41 meters GSD at nadir panchromatic
(GSD = Ground Sample Distance) 1.65 meters GSD at nadir multispectral
NIIRS Equivalency NIIRS potential of > 5.0
Dynamic Range 11-bits per pixel
Swath Width Nominal swath width:
15.3 at nadir
Pointing Accuracy & Knowledge Accuracy: < 500 meters at image start and stop
Knowledge: Supports geolocation accuracy below
Retargeting Agility Time to slew 200km: 20 seconds
Onboard Storage 1 Tbit
Max Viewing Angle / Accessible Ground Swath Nominally +/-45° off-nadir = 1651 km wide swath
Higher angles selectively available
Per Orbit Collection 524 gigabits
Max Contiguous Area Collected in a Single Pass 138 x 112 km mono
63 x 112 km stereo
Revisit Frequency to target at 40° N latitude 2.6 days at 30° off nadir
Geolocation Accuracy (CE90) Specification of 5 meters CE90, 3 meters CE90 (measured)
Characteristic Detail
Launch Information Date: August 13, 2014
Launch Vehicle: Atlas V
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base
Orbit Altitude: 617 kilometers
Type: Sun synchronous, 10:30 am descending node
Period: 97 minutes
Sensor Bands Panchromatic: 445 – 808 nm
Multispectral:
Coastal Blue: 397-454 nm Red: 626-696 nm
Blue: 445-517 nm Red Edge: 698-749 nm
Green: 507-586 nm Near-IR1: 765-899 nm
Yellow: 580-629 nm Near-IR2: 857-1039 nm
Shortwave Infrared (SWIR):
Characteristic Detail
SWIR-1: 1184-1235 nm SWIR-5: 2137-2191 nm
SWIR-2: 1546-1598 nm SWIR-6: 2174-2232 nm
SWIR-3: 1636-1686 nm SWIR-7: 2228-2292 nm
SWIR-4: 1702-1759 nm SWIR-8: 2285-2373 nm
Sensor Resolution Panchromatic:
(GSD = Ground Sample Distance) 0.31 meters GSD at nadir
0.36 meters GSD at 20°off nadir
Multispectral:
1.24 meters GSD at nadir
1.38 meters GSD at 20° off-nadir
3. Imagery Acquisition
3.1 New Collection
There are three New Collection options for DigitalGlobe Satellite Imagery products: Select, Select
Plus, and Single Shot. Each option offers a different level of service to the customer, and offers
different benefits, so the customer should choose the option which aligns best with their needs
in terms of collection window, cloud protection, and price. New collection orders have single or
multiple acquisition opportunities and different customer-defined tasking parameters depending
on the New Collection type selected.
For Select and Select Plus collection, DigitalGlobe offers a 0-15% default cloud cover. Clouds are
defined as pixels through which ground features are obscured either partially or in their entirety
due to atmospheric conditions; to be considered cloud cover, a definite boundary between the
affected pixels and the unaffected pixels must be visible. All acquired image strips are assessed
for cloud cover. Cloud shadows are not accounted for in assessment.
When preparing its collection plan, DigitalGlobe creates the best plan for every pass, which
maximizes the benefit to our customer base while adhering to the parameters associated with
each New Collection option. Several factors are considered in the collection plan, including New
Collection option, date an order was received, the customer-specified collection window, and the
cloud cover forecast. In rare instances, DigitalGlobe may pre-empt some orders due to collection
efficiency and/or satellite calibration and maintenance.
The IKONOS and QuickBird satellites are no longer acquiring new imagery and therefore cannot
be used for new collections. IKONOS and QuickBird data are available through the ImageLibrary
only.
Competitive Feasibility assesses DigitalGlobe’s ability to collect your order based upon
other orders already on the tasking deck and impact of climate and weather on the
physical access. Areas with long term demand, seasonal or long term persistent clouds, or
low sun elevations will have longer competitive feasibilities.
The output of the feasibility studies will be combined into an expected feasibility to be shown on
the customer’s order quotation and confirmation form as the DigitalGlobe Suggested End Collect
Date; it will vary depending on the New Collection level selected (see below for more detail). The
DigitalGlobe Suggested End Collect Date is a probability; not a guarantee. The feasibility is based
on conditions on the day it is submitted.
3.1.2.4 Demand
Due to global geopolitical conditions there are areas of the globe that have persistent high
demand. High demand may also be created in areas where there is medium or low demand from
customers, but have limited imaging opportunities due to weather or sun elevation. When
demand is high in areas of the globe, these areas will continue to have longer collection
timelines.
3
30 cm/40 cm products may require constrained off nadir collection
DigitalGlobe Proprietary Version 2.0 35
Satellite Imagery Product Catalog
4
30 cm/40 cm products may require constrained off nadir collection
DigitalGlobe Proprietary Version 2.0 36
Satellite Imagery Product Catalog
4. ImageLibrary
DigitalGlobe’s high-resolution satellite constellation has a daily collection capacity of 3 million
square kilometers and an annual collection capacity of close to 1 billion square kilometers. All of
this imagery is loaded into the ImageLibrary. When not collecting customer orders, the
ImageLibrary is populated with proactive collections of targeted regions, countries, and
metropolitan areas as well as project areas worldwide.
The advantage of having an expansive ImageLibrary is that it enables quick access to all of the
imagery you need to complete your project, whether it involves change detection, feature or
Digital Elevation Model extraction, base mapping, or site planning.
You can search DigitalGlobe’s ImageLibrary for and assess numerous images from multiple
satellites based on band options and seasonal, atmospheric, and temporal considerations to
determine which will best meet your project requirements.
The minimum and maximum size for an order polygon depends on the order type and the
product selected.
6. Product Delivery
DigitalGlobe provides its Core Imagery products to customers on a variety of industry standard
image formats and media. In addition to the imagery products, DigitalGlobe also delivers the
Image Support Data files as defined in the DigitalGlobe Imagery Support Data document.
6.3 Media
DigitalGlobe supports delivery on DVD media for its Core Imagery products. Those customers
who select electronic delivery via FTP (pull) will not receive imagery on media. As a non-standard
option, customers may choose Hard Drive for delivery.
6.4 Tiling
Because some Core Imagery products cannot fit in their entirety on all available media types or
may be cumbersome to work with due to their large size, DigitalGlobe offers you the option to
break up imagery into smaller pieces called tiles. Most image processing, GIS, and cartographic
applications cannot open files over 2 GB in size and file formats have size restrictions as well. For
example, the size restriction for GeoTIFF 1.0 is 4GB.
DigitalGlobe will not tile if the product is less than 2GB. If the product size exceeds 2GB, then
tiling will occur based on a pixel-based grid. Pixel-based tiles are defaulted to 16,384 by 16,384
pixels (16k x16k) in size. Customers who do not wish to tile their imagery may change their media
type to one that will accommodate the full size of their product, but should understand that
large data files may be difficult to import into some software packages.
Non-standard options, 8,192 pixels by 8,192 pixels (8k x 8k) and 14,336 pixels by 14,336 pixels
(14k x 14k), can be requested, but may have longer timelines. Map-based are also a non-
standard option and these tiles are based on map coordinates in product units (meters or feet)
and are defined by tile size and tile overlap.
Tiling is an option for all products, except System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery.
If an order polygon crosses strip boundaries, then the imagery product will be divided into
product components, denoted as P001, P002, etc. When an individual product component
exceeds the size limit for the media selected, it is tiled. Each tile, regardless of the tiling option
(pixel-based or map-based) is then given a number corresponding to its position in rows and
columns. (See Figure Below).
A tile map file (.til) is delivered with every product to help place the tiles in product coordinates.
For more information on the tile map file and more technical information on tiling, see the
DigitalGlobe Imagery Support Data document.
If the amount of imagery in a tile is fewer than 16,384 x 16,384 pixels, then the tile is cut off at
the edge of the imagery. Some padding, or blackfill, pixels may be included to complete the
block. A block is comprised of 1024 panchromatic pixels or 256 multispectral pixels.
6.4.3 No Tiling
DigitalGlobe strives to respect the wishes of its customers in regards to tile size selection.
However, individual image size, file size, and media type may determine whether an image
requires tiling regardless of the option selected. An order polygon whose boundaries intersect
multiple images may need to have individual images tiled. An individual image will be tiled if it is
larger than 4 GB for any available media choice.
7. Resampling Kernels
Resampling is necessary to align the pixels in an image to a coordinate grid. DigitalGlobe offers
the following resampling options:
System-Ready
View-Ready
Map-Ready
SWIR
Nearest Neighbor Selects the radiance value from the nearest pixel in the Y Y Y Y
input image; does not alter the radiance values of the
original image. This method can result in a blocky or
disjointed image because no averaging is performed.
2x2 Bilinear A linear interpolation using four pixels to resample the N N Y N
image. This resampling method is available only for SWIR
imagery
4x4 Cubic Considers nearest 16 pixels synthesizing digital numbers Y Y Y Y
Convolution using a polynomial calculation. This method produces a
smoother appearance than nearest neighbor method while
providing slightly sharper edge detail.
MTF Uses an 8 by 8 pixel window to determine the value of the Y Y N Y
destination pixel. Based on an empirical modeling of the
optical and electronic properties of the sensors. The method
produces the sharpest edge detail of all of the methods.
Not available with pan-sharpened products.
9. Delivery Timelines
Delivery time for products depends on the product and product options that a customer selects.
Table 9 establishes the average timetables for product delivery. Times in this table indicate the
number of business days to shipment, after DigitalGlobe receives all of the necessary support
data to process an order. For ImageLibrary products, this time is number of days after order
confirmation. Your product is delivered immediately upon completion of processing. For System-
Ready (Basic) 1B and View-Ready (Standard) 2A New Collection Imagery, this is after imagery
acquisition. For Orthorectified New Collection Imagery, this is after imagery acquisition, and the
collection of appropriate Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) and Ground Control Points (GCPs).
Processing time for System-Ready (Basic) 1B and View-Ready (Standard) 2A level products is 1-3
days; for Orthomosaic products, the processing time depends on the area of the order.
If you need your ImageLibrary imagery as soon as possible, a Rush ImageLibrary option is
available for System-Ready (Basic) 1B and View-Ready (Standard) 2A level products. With the
Rush option, the processing time is 24-48 hours, depending on the level of processing selected.
TABLE 9.1: EXPECTED DELIVERY TIMES, BY PRODUCT TYPE AND NEW COLLECTION TYPE
5 All timelines based on business days (Monday-Friday). Processing assumes one image. Additional contiguous images in a
single order will add a nominal number of days.
DigitalGlobe Proprietary Version 2.0 44
Satellite Imagery Product Catalog
What is the difference between View-Ready (Standard) 2A Imagery and View-Ready (Standard)
OR2A Imagery?
View-Ready (Standard) 2A has a coarse DEM applied to it, which is used to normalize for
topographic relief with respect to the reference ellipsoid. The degree of normalization is
relatively small, so while this product has terrain corrections, it is not considered orthorectified.
Because View-Ready (Standard) 2A Imagery has terrain corrections applied, it is not suitable for
orthorectification by the customer. View-Ready (Standard) OR2A Imagery has no topographic
corrections. This product is mapped to the average base elevation of the terrain covered by each
individual satellite scene. Other than the lack of terrain correction, View-Ready (Standard) OR2A
Imagery products have all the same specifications as View-Ready (Standard) 2A Imagery
products. View-Ready (Standard) OR2A Imagery can be orthorectified using commercial
photogrammetric software such as ERDAS IMAGINE, PCI Geomatica, ENVI, and SOCET GXP.
What is an RPC?
RPC’s or Rational Polynomial Coefficients are simpler empirical mathematical models relating
image space (line and column position) to latitude, longitude, and surface elevation. Using the
View-Ready (Standard) OR2A image, its rational polynomial coefficients, and a DEM to supply the
elevation values, end users can produce an orthorectified image using commercial
photogrammetric software such as ERDAS IMAGINE, PCI Geomatica, ENVI, and SOCET GXP.
What are the geolocational accuracies of the Core Imagery product series? 6
System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery product accuracy is 5 m CE90 for WorldView-1,
WorldView-2, WorldView-3, GeoEye-1, and 23 m CE90 for QuickBird.
System-Ready (Basic) 1B Imagery SWIR product accuracy is 7.5 m CE90 for WorldView-3.
6
Excluding the effects of terrain and up to 30 degrees off-nadir angle.
DigitalGlobe Proprietary Version 2.0 46
Satellite Imagery Product Catalog
Why is the Core Imagery product accuracy better than Map-Ready (Ortho) 1:12,000 Image
accuracy?
Absolute geolocation accuracy is a measure of the location of an object, as it appears in a
product, with respect to its true location on the Earth. It is determined by comparing a known,
surveyed location (typically a Ground Control Point), to the corresponding photo-identifiable
feature in an image product. DigitalGlobe specifies geolocation accuracy using the CE90 and LE90
standards. Basic, View-Ready (Standard) 2A, and View-Ready (Standard) OR2A products are not
corrected for terrain-induced offsets, and therefore exclude terrain-induced offsets when
calculating horizontal accuracy. An example of how accuracy is measured in System-Ready (Basic)
1B and View-Ready (Standard) 2A products is depicted in Figure 10.1: Visual Comparison of
Image Accuracy (in the left image). However, Advanced Ortho Series and Map Scale Ortho
products are terrain corrected and therefore the accuracy assessment does include terrain-
induced offsets, depicted in Figure 10.1: Visual Comparison of Image Accuracy (in the right
image). The geolocation error for orthos is higher because it is calculated by summing the pixel
error and the error introduced by the terrain model while the accuracy of System-Ready (Basic)
1B and View-Ready (Standard) 2A products only uses the pixel error.
What are the different color options that I can purchase from DigitalGlobe?
DigitalGlobe offers four image band options:
Panchromatic. Products include only one band and are black and white.
Multispectral. Products include 4 or 8 multispectral bands.
Multispectral Bundle. Products include the panchromatic band and 4 or 8 multispectral
bands.
Pan-sharpened. Products combine the visual information of the multispectral data with
the spatial information of the pan data, resulting in a higher GSD color product.
DigitalGlobe offers three options for pan-sharpened products; 4-band pan-sharpened, 3-
band Natural Color and 3-band False Color. SWIR products include 8 shortwave infrared
bands.
What is Pan-sharpening?
Pan-sharpening combines the visual information of the multispectral data with the spatial
information of the panchromatic data, resulting in a higher GSD color product.
What Core Imagery Products can I get Pan-sharpened and what bands can I get?
Pan-sharpened products are offered as 3-band and 4-band products. 3-band Color products are
available in Natural Color (Blue, Green and Red bands) and in Color Infrared (Green, Red and
NIR1 bands). The 4-band pan-sharpened product uses the Blue, Green, Red, and NIR1 bands.
Most pan-sharpened products are tiled due to large file sizes. Pan-sharpened products are
available in 30 cm²⁸, 40 cm, 50 cm and 60 cm GSD and are only available as View-Ready
(Standard) 2A (2A) and View-Ready (Standard) OR2A.
What are the minimum order sizes for the Core Imagery product series?
System-Ready (Basic) 1B minimum order size is 183 km² - 272 km2 (sensor dependent).
System-Ready (Basic) 1B (1B) Stereo Pair minimum order size is 183 km² - 210 km2 (sensor
dependent).
Standard (2A) and View-Ready (Standard) OR2A minimum order size is 25 km2
(ImageLibrary) (NOTE: New Collections are subject to minimum price for the New
Collection level selected, not less than 100km2).
Ortho Ready (2A) Stereo minimum order size is 100 km2 (300 km2 max).
What is the benefit of Ortho Ready Stereo Imagery products over System-Ready Stereo (Basic)
1B Imagery products?
Ortho Ready Stereo provides the end user with a product that is map corrected and application
ready. It also allows the customer to order a smaller area of interest (minimum 100 km²) as
compared to System-Ready Stereo (Basic) 1B. System-Ready Stereo (Basic) 1B is geared towards
the end user who has a higher level of image expertise and desires a large area for stereo
applications.
I have ordered a Stereo product and I see a .STE file in the file folder. What is this file for?
The .STE file identifies the strip ID for both pairs in the stereo mate. It also contains the geometry
for collection angles (convergence angle, bisector elevation angle, and asymmetry angle) to help
orient the stereo pair within commercial photogrammetry software packages. The .STE file
comes with both the System-Ready Stereo (Basic) 1B product and View-Ready (Standard) OR2A
Stereo product.
What is resampling?
When a satellite image is acquired, the pixels do not line up with any regular grid. Resampling
takes those pixels from the satellite image and aligns them to the grid. When an image is
resampled the coordinates of each pixel or the original image are transformed to their new
corresponding location in the new regular coordinate system (grid). A pixel in the new grid will
not generally overlay a pixel in the original grid. Therefore, the intensity value, or Digital Number
(DN), assigned to a cell in the output grid is determined by using the pixel values that surround its
position in the original grid. This is resampling.
Pan-sharpening is for fusing the high resolution panchromatic band with the spectral
(color) data from the multispectral bands to produce a high resolution color product.
The Enhanced Kernel results in very fine detail and is recommended for any user doing
feature extraction or delineation. As with all sharpening kernels, it may introduce artifacts.
Enhanced is recommended for pan-sharpened products.
What are my options for file formats for Core Imagery products?
Imagery products are available in the following formats:
GeoTIFF
NITF 2.0
NITF 2.1
Glossary
AOI
Area of Interest. The area on the Earth that you want to view.
Acomp
Atmospheric Compensation. Physically based normalization of the image values.
CAVIS
An atmospheric correction instrument allowing for identification of clouds, aerosol, vapor, ice,
snow.
CE
Circular Error.
CE90
Circular Error at 90% confidence. Indicates that the actual location of an object is represented on
the image within the stated accuracy for 90% of the points.
CIR
Color Infrared.
COTS
Commercial-Off-The-Shelf.
DEM
See Digital Elevation Model.
Digital Elevation Model (DEM)
A digital model of terrain relief usually derived from stereo imagery. A DEM is used to remove
terrain distortions from Orthorectified Imagery products.
DRA
Dynamic Range Adjustment. An optional post-processing feature that enhances the visual
interpretability of the image.
DTED
Digital Terrain Elevation Data.
FTP
File Transfer Protocol.
GCP
See Ground Control Point
GE01
GeoEye-1 satellite.
Geographic Projection
Maps longitudes as straight vertical lines and latitudes as straight horizontal lines; all spaced out
consistently for constant intervals.
GeoTIFF format
Georeferenced tagged image file format. A GeoTIFF file is a TIFF file that is embedded with
geographic data tags.
GML
Geography Markup Language. GML is XML code used to express geographical features.
Ground Control Point (GCP)
A known geographic coordinate location on the ground. A GCP can be collected from ground
survey or maps (Primary GCP), or derived via triangulation of primary GCPs (Secondary GCP).
GCPs can be planimetric (x, y; latitude, longitude) or vertical (x, y, z; latitude, longitude,
elevation).
Ground Sample Distance (GSD)
The size of a single pixel as measured on the ground. This is also referred to as “resolution”.
GSD
See Ground Sample Distance.
IK02
IKONOS satellite.
Image Support Data (ISD)
A set of files which contain all the necessary data necessary to use and process Core Imagery
products. These files can be viewed as a collection point for all ancillary data that is expected to
be useful to a customer.
ISD
See Image Support Data.
JPEG2000 format
The JPEG2000 format is a JPEG format that was introduced in the year 2000. It has considerable
advantages over basic JPEG format including error resilience and progressive transmission.
LE
Linear Error.
LE90
Linear Error at 90 percent confidence. Indicates that the actual elevation of an object is
represented within the stated accuracy for at least 90% of elevation posts.
MBR
Minimum-bounding rectangle.
Metadata
Ancillary data that describes and defines the imagery product. DigitalGlobe provides metadata in
a set of Image Support Data files.
Mosaic
The process of digitally assembling images to create contiguous large-area coverage.
MS
See Multispectral.
Multispectral
Imagery with data recorded in multiple discrete spectral bands. Imagery collected in four or eight
ranges of wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum.
Nadir
The point on the ground vertically beneath the sensor.
National Imagery Transmission Format.
See NITF format.
Nearest Neighbor Interpolation
Uses the value of the closest point and disregards all other values, yielding a piecewise-constant
interpolant.
NED
National Elevation Dataset DEM. NED DEM is available in the United States. Accuracy in Alaska is
not as high as in the contiguous United States.
NIIRS
National Image Interpretability Rating Scale.
NIR1
Near Infrared 1.
NIR2
Near Infrared 2.
NITF format
National Imagery Transmission Format. A United States Department of Defense standard for
transmitting and storing digital imagery.
NRG
Near-Infrared, Red, Green.
Off-nadir Angle
The angle between nadir and the point on the ground that the sensor is pointing. Off-nadir angle
can be measured in the along-track (forward) direction or across-track (sideways) direction.
Orthorectification
The process of removing image distortions introduced by the collection geometry and variable
terrain, and re-sampling the imagery to a specified map projection. Also referred to as ortho-
correction or terrain correction.
Pan/Panchromatic
A wide spectral band which is comprised of reflected light in the visible spectrum (blue, green,
red, and NIR). It is displayed as a black and white image.
Pan-sharpened
Processed used to create a high resolution color image by fusing multispectral and panchromatic
bands.
Photogrammetry
The art, science, and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the
environment through the process of recording, measuring, and interpreting photographic images
and patterns of electromagnetic radiant imagery.
Pixel
Picture element. The smallest element comprising a digital image.
PNIIRS
Predicted National Image Interpretability Rating Scale.
Product Framing
The manner in which Core Imagery products are delivered. Products are either Scene-based or
Area-based.
QB02
QuickBird satellite.
Radiometric Correction
The correction of variations in data that are not caused by the object or scene being scanned,
such as non-responsive detectors, scanner inconsistencies, and atmospheric interference.
Remote Sensing
The measurement or acquisition of data about an object by an instrument not in contact with the
object. Satellite imagery, aerial photography, and radar are all types of remotely sensed data.
Resolution
The resampled image pixel size derived from GSD.
RGB
Red, Green, Blue.
RMSE
Root Mean Square Error.
RPC
Rational Polynomial Coefficient camera model. RPCs provide the camera geometry obtained at
the time of the image collection.
Scale
The ratio of distance on a map as related to the true distance on the ground. Products with a
larger scale have higher geometric accuracies than products with a smaller scale.
Seamlines
Seamlines are the lines at which two separate images overlap. These overlapping images can be
blended along the seamline to show a more uniform image.
Sensor Azimuth
The azimuth of the sensor measured from the target.
Sensor Correction
The correction of variations in data that are caused by variations in sensor geometry, attitude,
and position.
Spatial Mosaic
The assembly of multiple images, each of which shows a portion of the order polygon, into a
single image. Usually involves edge matching adjacent images.
SRTM
Shuttle Radar Topography Mission digital elevation models.
Stereo
The collection of two or more images of the same Area of Interest (AOI) from different viewing
angles.
Sun Azimuth
The azimuth of the sun as seen by an observer sitting on the target measured in a clockwise
direction from north.
Sun Elevation
The angle of the sun above the horizon.
Sun-Synchronous
An orbit which rotates around the Earth at the same rate as the Earth rotates on its axis.
Swath Width
The width of an image.
SWIR
Shortwave infrared.
Target Azimuth
The azimuth of the target as seen by an observer sitting on the satellite measured in a clockwise
direction from north.
Terrain Correction
The correction for variations in data caused by terrain displacement due to off-nadir viewing.
TLC
Time-lagged Line Count.
Universal Transverse Mercator Geographic Coordinate System (UTM).
See UTM.
USGS
United States Geological Survey.
UTM
Universal Transverse Mercator Geographic Coordinate System. UTM utilizes a two-dimensional
Cartesian system to specify locations on the Earth’s surface.
WV01
WorldView-1 satellite.
WV02
WorldView-2 satellite.
WV03
WorldView-3 satellite.