MicaSense Altum-PT Multispectral and Thermal Sensor

Product Description

The MicaSense Altum-PT is an advanced, high-resolution aerial imaging sensor designed for precision agriculture, crop research, environmental monitoring, and professional remote sensing applications. Combining five narrowband multispectral sensors, a high-resolution panchromatic imager, and a radiometric thermal camera in a single compact payload, the Altum-PT captures synchronized imagery to deliver detailed insights into crop health, plant variability, temperature patterns, and field conditions.

Featuring a 12.4 MP panchromatic sensor, five multispectral bands, and a 320 × 256 thermal imager, the Altum-PT provides highly detailed imagery for advanced agricultural analysis. Its panchromatic sensor enables pan-sharpening of multispectral images, enhancing spatial resolution to approximately 1.2 cm per pixel when flying at 60 m (197 ft), depending on processing and flight conditions.

The Altum-PT captures pixel-aligned multispectral, thermal, and panchromatic data simultaneously, helping reduce image alignment challenges during post-processing. Its global-shutter imaging system supports consistent image capture during aerial operations, making it suitable for high-precision mapping, plant-level analysis, and repeatable field monitoring.

Key Features

• Integrated Multisensor Imaging: Combines five multispectral bands, a high-resolution panchromatic imager, and a radiometric thermal sensor in one payload.

• High-Resolution Panchromatic Imaging: The 12.4 MP panchromatic sensor supports pan-sharpened multispectral outputs with enhanced spatial detail.

• Five Multispectral Bands: Captures blue, green, red, red edge, and near-infrared data for vegetation analysis and spectral index calculations.

• Radiometric Thermal Imaging: Records thermal infrared data to help identify temperature variations associated with crop water stress and irrigation performance.

• Synchronized Data Capture: Produces pixel-aligned multispectral, thermal, and panchromatic imagery to support efficient analysis.

• Global-Shutter Sensors: Helps minimize motion-related image distortion during aerial data collection.

• Advanced Radiometric Calibration: Works with the included Downwelling Light Sensor (DLS 2) and Calibrated Reflectance Panel (CRP 2) to support consistent and reliable measurements.

• Professional Data Storage: Uses removable CFexpress storage and supports capture rates of up to two captures per second, depending on configuration and operating conditions.

• Flexible Integration: Provides Ethernet, serial, GPIO/PWM triggering, and Wi-Fi connectivity options for compatible aircraft and integration systems.

Applications

The MicaSense Altum-PT is suitable for a wide range of professional aerial imaging applications, including:

• Precision agriculture and crop health monitoring

• Irrigation management and water stress assessment

• Early detection and analysis of crop diseases and nutrient deficiencies

• Plant breeding and agricultural research

• Crop emergence monitoring and plant counting

• Fruit yield estimation and crop variability analysis

• Thermal mapping and field temperature analysis

• Precision farming and variable-rate treatment planning

• Environmental monitoring and land management

• Vegetation classification and conservation research

• Multispectral mapping and advanced remote sensing workflows

Technical Specifications

Multispectral Imaging

• Spectral bands: Blue, Green, Red, Red Edge, and Near-Infrared (NIR)

• Blue: 475 nm center wavelength, 32 nm bandwidth

• Green: 560 nm center wavelength, 27 nm bandwidth

• Red: 668 nm center wavelength, 14 nm bandwidth

• Red Edge: 717 nm center wavelength, 12 nm bandwidth

• Near-Infrared: 842 nm center wavelength, 57 nm bandwidth

• Resolution: 2064 × 1544 pixels per band (approximately 3.2 MP per band)

• Global-shutter imaging

Panchromatic Imaging

• Resolution: 4112 × 3008 pixels (approximately 12.4 MP)

• Supports pan-sharpening of multispectral imagery

• Ground sampling distance: approximately 2.49 cm per pixel at 120 m (394 ft) altitude for the panchromatic output

Thermal Imaging

• Resolution: 320 × 256 pixels

• Sensor type: Long-wave infrared (LWIR)

• Spectral range: Approximately 7.5–13.5 μm

• Thermal sensitivity: Less than 60 mK

• Thermal accuracy: ±5 K

• Radiometrically calibrated thermal data

Ground Sampling Distance

• Multispectral: Approximately 5.28 cm per pixel at 120 m (394 ft)

• Panchromatic: Approximately 2.49 cm per pixel at 120 m (394 ft)

• Thermal: Approximately 33.5 cm per pixel at 120 m (394 ft)

Physical Specifications

• Dimensions: 110 × 80 × 69 mm (4.33 × 3.15 × 2.72 in)

• Weight: Approximately 460 g (16.2 oz) for the camera with DLS 2

• External power input: 7.0–25.2 V DC

• Storage: Removable CFexpress card

• Maximum capture rate: Up to 2 captures per second

Connectivity and Integration

• Gigabit Ethernet (10/100/1000 Mbps)

• Serial interface

• Configurable GPIO and PWM triggering

• USB 2.0 port for the supported Wi-Fi adapter

• Compatible with suitable UAV platforms and custom integration systems

Included Components

The standard MicaSense Altum-PT sensor kit includes the following components, subject to the specific package configuration:

• MicaSense Altum-PT sensor

• DLS 2 Downwelling Light Sensor with embedded GPS

• CRP 2 Calibrated Reflectance Panel

• Wi-Fi adapter

• CFexpress memory card

• CFexpress card reader

• Integration and communication cables

• Mounting hardware

• Protective lens cover

• Hard carrying case

• Quick-start documentation

Benefits for Precision Agriculture

The MicaSense Altum-PT helps agricultural professionals collect detailed, repeatable aerial data for evaluating crop performance and identifying differences across fields. Multispectral imagery supports vegetation-index calculations and crop-vigor assessments, while thermal imagery helps reveal spatial temperature patterns that may indicate irrigation issues or water stress. High-resolution panchromatic data adds spatial detail to multispectral outputs, supporting more precise analysis of individual plants and small-scale field variations.

By combining multiple imaging technologies in one sensor, the Altum-PT helps streamline data collection and provides a comprehensive dataset for agricultural research, crop management, and advanced remote sensing workflows.

Product Summary

The MicaSense Altum-PT is a professional multispectral, panchromatic, and thermal imaging solution for UAV-based remote sensing. Its synchronized imaging capabilities, high-resolution panchromatic sensor, five discrete multispectral bands, radiometric thermal camera, and flexible integration interfaces make it a powerful tool for precision agriculture, crop research, environmental monitoring, and high-detail aerial mapping.