True color very-high-resolution imaging with runner microsat platform

The RUNNER micro-sat platform, designed & developed by Image-Sat International, in collaboration with Terran Orbital, has been successfully launched into low earth orbit by a falcon 9 launcher in June 2023. To the best of our knowledge, the RUNNER's payload is a first of its kind electro-optical imager on micro satellite capable of capturing very-high-resolution (<1m) true color imagery and video products from space. By utilizing 3CCD Focal Plane Array (FPA) architecture, the RUNNER can capture Multi-Spectral (MS) images, where each spectral band is sampled independently and with identical Ground Sapling Distance (GSD), thus generating superior image quality in terms of spectral content, Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR), and spatial resolution. Compared to other modern space-borne, 2D MS imagers, the 3CCD MS imager in RUNNER is not reliant on de-mosaicking algorithms for MS imagery reconstruction, nor does it require image stacking and post process time-delay-integration to achieve proper SNR. RUNNER's unique payload attributes translate not only to image quality improvement, but also to increased imaging efficiency and overall imaging capacity of the satellite. We believe the successful demonstration of 3CCD architecture for very high-resolution imaging from space paves the way for the development of imagers with n-CCD architecture to support the ever-growing demand for very high-resolution accurate MS information of Earth's surface. Here we describe RUNNER's payload design and main characteristics and provide examples for advanced imagery products generated by the satellite.