Project Polar Epsilon Will Enhance Canada's Surveillance and Security Capability

News Release

Ottawa -- The Department of National Defence (DND) today announced the creation of Project Polar Epsilon, a $59.9 million Joint Space-Based wide area surveillance and support capability that will provide all-weather, day/night observation of Canada's Arctic region and its ocean approaches. Polar Epsilon is a capital project within Canada's Defence program that will use information from Canada's new RADARSAT 2 satellite scheduled for launch in 2006. This project will assist the Canadian Forces as it responds to threats to Canada and North America, assist in humanitarian operations and contribute to international security. "Project Polar Epsilon will enhance the role that the military will play in meeting national objectives in the Northern Region as detailed in the Defence Policy Statement," said Defence Minister Bill Graham. "The project will advance Canada's surveillance capability and increase Canada's ability to safeguard Canadian borders ." "Polar Epsilon will provide the Canadian Forces with a capability to conduct surveillance in the Canadian Arctic and in our ocean approaches out to 1,000 nautical miles," said Chief of the Defence Staff General Rick Hillier. "Information from Polar Epsilon will provide Commanders with an up-to-date mission planning tool as well as near real time imagery of their areas of responsibility during the conduct of their operations." The Polar Epsilon project will develop capabilities to include ship detection; environmental sensing and ocean intelligence; and satellite data reception and processing. The project will build ground reception sites on Canada's Atlantic and Pacific coasts that will link information from the new RADARSAT 2 and other sources to produce high-quality imagery for military as well as other applications. The information will be converted by these facilities into finished images that will be used by National Defence, deployed operational commanders, and interested government departments and agencies. Project Polar Epsilon will be completed by May 2009. -30-

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2016-12-15

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Project Polar Epsilon Will Enhance Canada's Surveillance and Security Capability

News Release

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