HYPXIM — A hyperspectral satellite defined for science, security and defence users

Based on sound mission technical requirements provided by a group of national experts in hyperspectral imagery [1], CNES has been conducting pre-phase A study with the support of Astrium and Thales Alenia Space, in non-concurrent engineering. The first promising results helped to propose HYPEX to ESA Earth Explorer 8 call for missions [4]. This paper summarizes the results up to now. Two mission scenarios were defined : the first scenario, named HYPXIM-Challenging, aims at finding out the highest possible performance level achievable using a microsatellite platform, whereas the goals of the second scenario, called HYPXIM-Performance, are to reach a higher spatial resolution and to provide a TIR hyperspectral capability.