The Airborne Sensors and Aircraft Operations Division at the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), part of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), is responsible for overseeing the operation and maintenance of NRSC aircraft and the sensors they carry. NRSC is augmenting its airborne sensors with a lightweight hyperspectral camera covering the spectral range 400-2500nm for capturing high resolution data resulting in imagery with much higher spatial resolution. Headwall’s Co-Aligned HP VNIR/SWIR imaging spectrometer on a lightweight UAV by Dronix Technologies enables NRSC’s research groups to enjoy the immense power of airborne hyperspectral remote sensing. They also plan to validate and compare data from the AVIRIS-NG on a manned aircraft with data from the Headwall Co-Aligned HP hyperspectral imager on the drone, something that has previously been done by other groups.
The National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), ISRO team, Electrotek Intl (Headwall authorized reseller), and Dronix Technologies at the NRSC test facility. From left: Ms. Lajwanti (Technical B), Mr. Rajdip Paul (Scientist), Ms. Runjhun Chandra (Scientist – SE), Mr. Arun, Dronix Technologies (UAV Systems Engineer), Mr. Muralidharan, Dronix Technologies ( Senior UAV Systems Engineer), Dr. N. Madhusudhan Reddy (Head – GSD), Mr. Purushothaman (Sr. Engineer – Electrotek International), Dr. P. Chaitanya Babu (Head – AAD), Mr. S. S. Raghuwanshi (Scientist – SF), Mr. T. Devi Varaprasada Rao (Scientist – SF), Mr. A. Shaik Azeemuddin (Scientist-SE), Mr. Dheeraj Kumar (Scientist – SC), Mr. Jugal Kishor Mani (Scientist-SF), Mr. Narendra Singh Rawat (Technical D), Mr. Digamber Kumar Pandey (Scientist – SC), Mr. Sunil S. Kulkarni (Scientist- SF)
Aerial Services and Digital Mapping (ASDM) activities at NRSC are primarily involved in calibrating various onboard satellite payloads like Chandrayaan-2 which are carried out using aerial flights. NRSC utilizes the AVIRIS-NG (Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer – Next Generation) instrument, developed by JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory NASA, as part of its aerial services for high-resolution digital imaging and airborne LIDAR surveys. The AVIRIS-NG hyperspectral sensor (380-2510 nm) is mounted on an ISRO B200 aircraft, for various campaigns over Indian sites. NRSC and NASA have planned campaigns during September 2025 thru February 2026.
Electrotek International has been associated with Headwall Photonics for more than two decades. The company collaborated with the local drone manufacturer for the integration of the Headwall Co-Aligned HP sensor covering 400 – 2500 nm at NRSC, Hyderabad. Electrotek successfully integrated and installed the payload with guidance from Headwall Photonics. Electrotek, Headwall, and Dronix are proud to be part of leading research organization NRSC’s venture with their airborne hyperspectral remote sensing project.