On-orbit performance of the Compact Infrared Camera(CIRC) with uncooled infrared detector

We have developed the Compact Infrared Camera (CIRC) with an uncooled infrared array detector (microbolometer) for space application. Microbolometers have an advantage of not requiring cooling system such as a mechanical cooler, and is suitable for resource-limited sensor system. Another characteristic of the CIRC is its use of athermal optics. The athermal optics system compensates for defocus owing to temperature changes. We also employ a shutter-less system which is a method to correct non-uniformity of the detector without a mechanical shutter. The CIRC achieves a small size (approximately 200 mm), light mass (approximately 3 kg), and low electrical power consumption (<20 W) by employing athermal optics and a shutterless system. The CIRC is launched in May 2014 as a technology-demonstration payload of Advanced Land Observation Satellite-2 (ALOS-2). Since the initial functional verification phase (July 4-14, 2014), the CIRC was demonstrated a function according to its intended design. We also confirmed the temperature accuracy of the CIRC observation data is within +/- 4K in the calibration validation phase after the initial functional verification phase. The CIRC also detected wildfires in various areas and observed the volcano activities in the operational phase. In this paper, we present the on-orbit performance of the CIRC onboard ALOS-2.