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| Milestone Buildings Exist
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No, MDA moved to a new building in the early 1990s.
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| Milestone Distinguishing Features
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The events of November 1978 marked a turni … The events of November 1978 marked a turning point in the history of synthetic aperture radar. Demonstration that data from spaceborne SARs could be digitally processed using general purpose digital computers helped to dramatically reduce the cost of SAR imagery and make it much more widely available for civilian applications. Until 1978, military applications of SAR were predominant. Since 1978, civilian applications of SAR have assumed steadily increasing importance.
The reputation that MDA earned from this accomplishment fuelled its rapid growth into the world's largest supplier of SAR processors and Canada's largest space technology company. Canada's largest space technology company.
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| Milestone Obstacles Overcome
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MDA's accomplishment underscored a lesson … MDA's accomplishment underscored a lesson that would be repeated many times as the digital revolution progressed. Other teams had access to the same SEASAT data and similar general purpose digital computers. However, it was the MDA team's careful mastery of algorithm design and software engineering that allowed them to win the race to become the first to produce a digitally processed data from Seasat-A data.
MDA exploited their early success to become one of the most influential and prolific developers of digital SAR processing algorithms and digital SAR processors in the world. Teams at MDA developed three of the four common SAR processing algorithms in use today: Range/Doppler, Chirp Scaling, and SPECAN. MDA also developed the digital SAR processors used by such notable NASA, ESA and CSA programs as SIR-B, SIR-C, ERS-1, J-ERS-1. RADARSAT-1, ENVISAT and, most recently, RADARSAT-2 [7]. NVISAT and, most recently, RADARSAT-2 [7].
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| Milestone Plaque Mounting Details
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We propose to mount the plaque in the lobby of MDA's headquarters.
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| Milestone Present Site Owner
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MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates
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| Milestone References
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[1] R. O. Harger, "Synthetic Aperture Rada … [1] R. O. Harger, "Synthetic Aperture Radar Systems: Theory and Design." Academic Press, New York, 1970.
[2] Herbert J. Kramer, "Observation of the Earth and Its Environment: Survey of Missions and Sensors," 4th ed., Springer, 2002, p. 32.
[3] "Seasat Imagery Shows St. Lawrence," Aviation Week and Space Technology, 26 Feb. 1979. [Clipping Available Online.] http://rsl.ece.ubc.ca/AWST-Seasat-26Feb1979.png
[4] I. Cumming and J. Bennett, "Digital processing of Seasat SAR data," in Proc. IEEE ICASSP '79, Apr 1979, pp. 710-718. [Available Online.] http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=1170630
[5] John R. Bennett and Ian G. Cumming, "A Digital Processor for the Production of Seasat Synthetic Aperture Radar Imagery," LARS Symposia, Purdue Univ., 1979, Paper 316. [Available Online.] http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/lars_symp/316
[6] R. L. Jordan, "The Seasat-A synthetic aperture radar system," IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering, vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 154-164, Apr. 1980. [Available Online.] http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=1145451
[7] I. G. Cumming and F. H. Wong, “Digital Processing of Synthetic Aperture Radar Data”, Artech House, 2005. [Summary Available Online.] http://www.artechhouse.com/Main/Books/Digital-Processing-of-Synthetic-Aperture-Radar-Dat-643.aspx g-of-Synthetic-Aperture-Radar-Dat-643.aspx
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| Milestone Site Access Details
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The plaque will be located in the lobby, w … The plaque will be located in the lobby, which is outside the secure area of the building. All visitors to MDA will be able to view the plaque alongside other historical exhibits including a scale model of the Prince Albert Earth Station, the Canadarm, etc. e Albert Earth Station, the Canadarm, etc.
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| Milestone Site Description
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We propose to mount the plaque in the lobb … We propose to mount the plaque in the lobby of MDA's headquarters at 13800 Commerce Parkway Richmond, BC V6V 2J3. Although this is not the location where the achievement occurred, it is where all follow on work at MDA in the area of SAR processing and applications has been pursued since the early 1990s. ns has been pursued since the early 1990s.
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| Milestone Site Owner Approval
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Yes +
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| Milestone proposal submitted
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true +
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| Proposed Milestone IEEE Section
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Vancouver +
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| Proposed Milestone Location
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13800 Commerce Parkway Richmond, BC V6V 2J3
latitude, longitude: 49.1753696, -123.0704193
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| Proposed Milestone Name
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First Digitally Processed Image from a Spaceborne Synthetic Aperture Radar, 1978 +
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| Proposed Milestone Plaque Citation
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In November 1978, a team from MacDonald, D … In November 1978, a team from MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. (MDA)
became the first to use a digital processor to reconstruct an image from
Seasat-A, the first civilian spaceborne SAR. MDA engineers subsequently
developed three of the four most important SAR processing algorithms
and the digital processors used by many Canadian, Japanese,
European and American spaceborne SAR missions. pean and American spaceborne SAR missions.
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| Proposed Milestone Year
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1978 +
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| Modification dateThis property is a special property in this wiki.
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28 March 2013 13:17:27 +
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