Patent ID: 6493021
Filing Date: 2002-12-10
Classification: G01C,H04N

Abstract:
A method of acquiring and processing a satellite observation image of the earth by means of at least one strip or matrix of detectors of a charge coupled device type, said detectors travelling over an observed zone, in which a plurality of image pixels are initially acquired in a given sampling, the method being characterized in that the array of said sampling includes â€œeâ€  subarrays corresponding to sampling satisfying Shannon's condition, where â€œeâ€  is an integer or rational number greater than 1, and in that processing is implemented that enables a noise-reduced image to be interpolated at a resolution corresponding to that of a sampling subarray on the basis of the initially acquired image pixels, and in that the strip or matrix of detectors is oriented relative to the projection of the travel direction of the satellite on a focal plane containing the detectors at an angle &agr;, where &agr;,=arctan (1/n) and where n is an integer, and in that the sampling pitch in said travel direction is equal to p{square root over (1+n2)}/2n where p is the pitch between two elementary detectors of the strip or matrix.