ALOS (Advanced Land Observation Satellite) is used for cartography, regional observation, disaster monitoring, and resource surveying.

ALOS has three remote-sensing instruments:

- the Panchromatic Remote-sensing Instrument for Stereo Mapping (PRISM) for digital elevation mapping with 2.5 meter resolution,
- the Advanced Visible and Near Infrared Radiometer type 2 (AVNIR-2) for precise land coverage observation with 10 meter resolution, and
- the Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (PALSAR) for day-and-night and all-weather land observation.

ALOS transmitts its data via the DRTS (Kodama) satellite.

The ALOS was launched by an H-2A-2022 launch vehicle from the Tanegashima Space Center. ALOS as been given the nickname Daichi.

Five minutes after spacecraft separation, ALOS began to unfurl its 72-foot solar array that will provide electrical power to the craft throughout its mission. Six cameras are on-board to visually verify the correct deployment of the solar panel and various instrument antennas.

ALOS lost all power on 22. April 2011, thus ending the mission.