French Order Two Data Recorders From Odetics

Odetics Inc., an Anaheim high-technology manufacturer, said it has received orders for two satellite data recorders worth $5.7 million from CNES, the French national space agency.

The recorders, similar to those used by the National Space and Aeronautics Administration for its satellites and space shuttles, will be deployed on an Earth observation satellite scheduled for launch by the French in late 1990. Odetics earlier supplied the French with the recorders used in its first two Earth observation satellites.

The Odetics recorders convert images of the Earth to digitized bits of information which are then transmitted to the ground station in Toulouse, France, where they are converted to photographs for dissemination to users. The satellites collect data for the evaluation of vegetation, soil moisture content, water reserves, urban development and sea-land interactions.