A new plug’n play operating system bundles freely available Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) processing software for easy installation to help users start processing data.
SARbian has been developed by the SAR-EDU Remote Sensing Education Initiative team at the Friedrich-Schiller University Jena and from the EO College online platform. The free software suite is a Linux live system based on Debian and includes free and open Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) processing software.
SAR is a spaceborne side looking radar system which utilizes the flight path of the platform to simulate an extremely large antenna or aperture electronically, and that generates high-resolution remote sensing imagery. The data can be used in topography, oceanography, geology and forestry, among others.
One the main advantages of the software suite is that end users do not have to manually install individual programs for processing and handling SAR data. By setting up all relevant programs at once, SARbian speeds up the installation process. It also helps avoid compatibility issues among programs, which might arise when installing them individually. As a result, the user can focus on processing data rather than on installing software.
SARbian is free to use in research, education or operational work. The operating system is available as an .iso file and virtual machine (.OVA). In addition, experienced Linux users can build their own SARbian .iso file by adapting the build scripts. In order for the software to run in a stable way, a system with 8GB RAM and quad-core processor is recommended.
