NHK to broadcast ultra-high sensitivity camera footage

Friday 16 Sep 2011
Japanese public broadcaster, NHK, is set to break new ground on Sunday with its live broadcast of a special programme shot with an ultra-high sensitivity camera. This will be the first time in TV history that such footage will be broadcast.

The Cosmic Shore features an ethereal world where the blue sky changes into the jet black of space. Interactions between the earth and space occur, bringing about spectacular phenomena such as aurorae and shooting stars. However, until now, a lack of camera sensitivity prevented broadcast of this spectacular show on earth.

On Sunday, NHK will broadcast the spectacular live footage in Japan, by taking an ultra-high sensitivity camera to the International Space Station (ISS), for the first time in TV history, with the cooperation of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

This ultra-high sensitivity camera, developed by NHK through extensive research and trials, enables minimal light to be recorded in a clear HD colour image.

For the programme, Satoshi Furukawa, a Japanese astronaut on the ISS, will be both cameraman and reporter.