The Russian holding company Shvabe (part of Rostec, which develops and manufactures high-tech optoelectronic systems for military and civilian purposes) has created an "all-seeing" SWIR camera (short wave infrared) that will be included in the experimental project "Dryad".
Engineers have begun testing the camera before putting it into operation. The equipment will be launched into orbit in 2024, the state corporation said.
According to Rostec's press service, the implementation of the Dryad experiment will allow collecting data on the state of the carbon balance in the atmosphere, as well as its impact on the planet's ecology. It is noted that the camera will be installed outside the Russian segment of the ISS. The equipment can be controlled from a special scientific unit.
The SWIR camera created by Shvabe operates in the wavelength range of 0.9-1.7 micrometers, so it can record data even in poor visibility conditions. The Dryad experiment is the second stage of the Mermaid environmental project, which was conducted on the ISS from 2009 to 2012. Based on it, engineers were able to develop more advanced equipment for studying the impact of greenhouse gases on the Earth's ozone layer.
Earlier it was reported that 80% of the equipment on the ISS is already outdated. The Russian segment will operate until 2028, but repairs will have to be carried out there.