Europe's Earth Observation, Satellite Navigation and Communications

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Europe's Earth Observation, Satellite Navigation and Communications Europe’s Earth Observation, Satellite Navigation and Communications Missions and Services for the benefit of the Arctic Inventory of current and future capabilities, their synergies and societal benefits Boniface, K., Gioia, C. Pozzoli, L., Diehl, T., Dobricic, S., Fortuny Guasch, J., Greidanus, H., Kliment, T., Kucera, J., Janssens- Maenhout, G., Soille, P., Strobl, P., and Wilson, J. 2021 EUR 30629 EN This publication is a Technical report by the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the European Commission’s science and knowledge service. It aims to provide evidence-based scientific support to the European policymaking process. The scientific output expressed does not imply a policy position of the European Commission. Neither the European Commission nor any person acting on behalf of the Commission is responsible for the use that might be made of this publication. For information on the methodology and quality underlying the data used in this publication for which the source is neither Eurostat nor other Commission services, users should contact the referenced source. The designations employed and the presentation of material on the maps do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the European Union concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Contact information Name: Karen Boniface Address: European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Directorate E: Space, Security and Migration Email: [email protected] Tel.: +39-0332-785295 EU Science Hub https://ec.europa.eu/jrc JRC121206 EUR 30629 EN PDF ISBN 978-92-76-32079-1 ISSN 1831-9424 doi:10.2760/270136 Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2021 © European Union, 2021 The reuse policy of the European Commission is implemented by the Commission Decision 2011/833/EU of 12 December 2011 on the reuse of Commission documents (OJ L 330, 14.12.2011, p. 39). Except otherwise noted, the reuse of this document is authorised under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). This means that reuse is allowed provided appropriate credit is given and any changes are indicated. For any use or reproduction of photos or other material that is not owned by the EU, permission must be sought directly from the copyright holders. All content © European Union, 2021, except: Cover page, Jean-Christophe André. Source: www.pexels.com How to cite this report: Boniface, K., Gioia, C. Pozzoli, L., Diehl, T., Dobricic, S., Fortuny Guasch, J., Greidanus, H., Kliment, T., Kucera, J., Janssens-Maenhout, G., Soille, P., Strobl, P., and Wilson, J., Europe’s Earth Observation, Satellite Navigation, and Satellite Communications Missions and Services for the benefit of the Arctic - Inventory of current and future capabilities, their synergies and their societal benefits, EUR 30629 EN, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2021, ISBN 978-92-76-32079-1, doi:10.2760/270136, JRC121206. Contents 1 Introduction ...............................................................................................................................................................................9 Purpose of the study .......................................................................................................................................................... 10 Study structure ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10 2 Policy context ........................................................................................................................................................................ 12 2.1 Arctic Policy: current and future perspectives ............................................................................................... 12 2.1.1 EU Arctic Policy ............................................................................................................................................ 12 2.1.2 International legal framework in the Arctic ........................................................................................ 12 2.1.3 The future of EU Arctic role and strategy ........................................................................................... 14 2.2 EU Space Policy ........................................................................................................................................................ 15 2.2.1 Budget repartition and main goals ........................................................................................................ 16 2.2.2 Galileo and EGNOS (EGNSS) ............................................................................................................... 17 2.2.3 Copernicus ...................................................................................................................................................... 17 2.2.4 EU GovSatCom ............................................................................................................................................ 19 2.2.5 Space and Situational Awareness (SSA) .......................................................................................... 19 3 Users’ needs ......................................................................................................................................................................... 20 3.1 Science users ............................................................................................................................................................. 20 3.2 Operational users ...................................................................................................................................................... 24 3.2.1 Resources ....................................................................................................................................................... 24 3.2.2 Navigation and operations ....................................................................................................................... 24 3.2.3 Communications ........................................................................................................................................... 25 3.2.4 Disaster and emergency management ............................................................................................... 26 3.2.5 Security ............................................................................................................................................................ 26 3.3 Indigenous and local community users ............................................................................................................ 27 4 Inventory of current and future capabilities in EO ................................................................................................. 29 4.1 Copernicus ................................................................................................................................................................... 29 4.1.1 Copernicus structure .................................................................................................................................. 29 4.1.2 Copernicus Sentinel missions ................................................................................................................ 29 4.1.3 Copernicus contributing missions ......................................................................................................... 35 4.1.4 Overview of user-required functions versus Sentinels ................................................................. 36 4.1.5 Copernicus Services ................................................................................................................................... 38 4.2 Other EO satellite missions................................................................................................................................... 49 4.2.1 ESA Earth Explorer missions .................................................................................................................. 49 4.2.2 Other European satellite missions ........................................................................................................ 50 4.2.3 EUMETSAT satellite missions and facilities ..................................................................................... 51 i 4.2.4 International Missions ................................................................................................................................ 52 4.3 Other EO Capabilities .............................................................................................................................................. 54 4.3.1 Services and Platforms .............................................................................................................................. 54 4.3.2 Relevant R&D Actions ............................................................................................................................... 57 4.4 Future missions .......................................................................................................................................................... 59 4.4.1 Copernicus High Priority Candidate and Expansion Missions .................................................. 59 4.4.2 Commercial missions ................................................................................................................................
Recommended publications
  • Back to the the Future? 07> Probing the Kuiper Belt
    SpaceFlight A British Interplanetary Society publication Volume 62 No.7 July 2020 £5.25 SPACE PLANES: back to the the future? 07> Probing the Kuiper Belt 634089 The man behind the ISS 770038 Remembering Dr Fred Singer 9 CONTENTS Features 16 Multiple stations pledge We look at a critical assessment of the way science is conducted at the International Space Station and finds it wanting. 18 The man behind the ISS 16 The Editor reflects on the life of recently Letter from the Editor deceased Jim Beggs, the NASA Administrator for whom the building of the ISS was his We are particularly pleased this supreme achievement. month to have two features which cover the spectrum of 22 Why don’t we just wing it? astronautical activities. Nick Spall Nick Spall FBIS examines the balance between gives us his critical assessment of winged lifting vehicles and semi-ballistic both winged and blunt-body re-entry vehicles for human space capsules, arguing that the former have been flight and Alan Stern reports on his grossly overlooked. research at the very edge of the 26 Parallels with Apollo 18 connected solar system – the Kuiper Belt. David Baker looks beyond the initial return to the We think of the internet and Moon by astronauts and examines the plan for a how it helps us communicate and sustained presence on the lunar surface. stay in touch, especially in these times of difficulty. But the fact that 28 Probing further in the Kuiper Belt in less than a lifetime we have Alan Stern provides another update on the gone from a tiny bleeping ball in pioneering work of New Horizons.
    [Show full text]
  • SP-717 Cryosat 2013
    ANALYSIS OF THE IN-FLIGHT INJECTION OF THE LISA PATHFINDER TEST-MASS INTO A GEODESIC Daniele Bortoluzzi (1,2) on behalf of the LISA Pathfinder Collaboration(*), Davide Vignotto (1), Andrea Zambotti (1), Ingo Köker(3), Hans Rozemeijer(4), Jose Mendes(4), Paolo Sarra(5), Andrea Moroni(5), Paolo Lorenzi(5) (1) University of Trento, Department of Industrial Engineering, via Sommarive, 9 - 38123 Trento, Email: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] (2) Trento Institute for Fundamental Physics and Application / INFN, Italy. (3) AIRBUS DS GmbH, Willy-Messerschmitt-Strasse 1 Ottobrunn, 85521, Germany, Email: [email protected] (4) European Space Operations Centre, European Space Agency, 64293 Darmstadt, Germany, Email: [email protected], [email protected] (5) OHB Italia S.p.A., via Gallarate, 150 – 20151 Milano, Italy, Email: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] (*) Full list and affiliations attached in the end of the document ABSTRACT surroundings housing. The sensing body, from the locked condition, has then to LISA Pathfinder is a mission that demonstrates some key be released into free-fall to start the in-flight operations; technologies for the measurement of gravitational waves. as a consequence, the release into free-fall of the proof The mission goal is to set two test masses (TMs) into mass is a critical aspect for these missions, since it is a purely geodesic trajectories. The grabbing positioning necessary step to start the science phase. Different and release mechanism (GPRM) grabs and releases each technologies are nowadays available to perform a release TM from any position inside its housing.
    [Show full text]
  • Roll Calibration for Cryosat-2: a Comprehensive Approach
    remote sensing Technical Note Roll Calibration for CryoSat-2: A Comprehensive Approach Albert Garcia-Mondéjar 1,* , Michele Scagliola 2 , Noel Gourmelen 3,4 , Jerome Bouffard 5 and Mònica Roca 1 1 isardSAT S.L., Barcelona Advanced Industry Park, 08042 Barcelona, Spain; [email protected] 2 Aresys SRL, 20132 Milano, Italy; [email protected] 3 School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Drummond Street, Edinburgh EH8 9XP, UK; [email protected] 4 IPGS UMR 7516, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, 67000 Strasbourg, France 5 ESA ESRIN, 00044 Frascati, Italy; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] Abstract: CryoSat-2 is the first satellite mission carrying a high pulse repetition frequency radar altimeter with interferometric capability on board. Across track interferometry allows the angle to the point of closest approach to be determined by combining echoes received by two antennas and knowledge of their orientation. Accurate information of the platform mispointing angles, in particular of the roll, is crucial to determine the angle of arrival in the across-track direction with sufficient accuracy. As a consequence, different methods were designed in the CryoSat-2 calibration plan in order to estimate interferometer performance along with the mission and to assess the roll’s contribution to the accuracy of the angle of arrival. In this paper, we present the comprehensive approach used in the CryoSat-2 Mission to calibrate the roll mispointing angle, combining analysis from external calibration of both man-made targets, i.e., transponder and natural targets. The roll calibration approach for CryoSat-2 is proven to guarantee that the interferometric measurements are exceeding the expected performance.
    [Show full text]
  • Download The
    Research. Innovation. Sustainability PLANS FOR A NEW WAVE OF EUROPEAN SENTINEL SATELLITES The most ambitious and comprehensive plans ever for the European space sector, were approved at the end of 2019, with a total budget of ¤14.5 billion for the European Space Agency for the next three years – a 20% increase over the previous three-year budget. The decision allows a direct uplift to Europe’s Earth observation capability, expanding Copernicus – the European Union’s flagship Earth observation programme – with a suite of new, high-priority satellite missions. In this explainer we delve into the improvements and what they mean for sustainability and climate science. What is the Copernicus Programme? Copernicus is the European Union’s Earth observation programme, coordinated by the European Commission in partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA), EU Member States and other EU Agencies. Established in 2014, it builds on ESA’s Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) programme. Copernicus encompasses a system of satellites, airborne data, and ground stations supplying global monitoring data and operational services on a free-of-charge basis across six themes: atmosphere, marine, land, climate, emergency response and security. The Sentinel System – new and improved At the centre of the programme sits the Copernicus Space Component, which includes a family of satellites known collectively as Sentinels. These spacecraft provide routine atmospheric, oceanic, cryosphere and land global monitoring data, which are made freely available for Copernicus Services and major research and commercial applications such as precision farming, environmental hazards monitoring, weather forecasting and climate resilience. The soon-to-be-expanded Sentinel system will incorporate six high-priority missions.
    [Show full text]
  • European Space Surveillance and Tracking
    2ndEuropean EU SST Webinar: Space Operations in Space Surveillance and Tracking 16Surveillance November 2020 –and14h CETTracking The EU SST activities received funding from the European Union programmes, notably from the Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreements No 760459, No 785257, No 713630, No 713762 and No 634943, and the Copernicus and Galileo programme under grant agreements No 299/G/GRO/COPE/19/11109, No 237/GRO/COPE/16/8935 and No 203/G/GRO/COPE/15/7987. This Portal reflects only the SST Cooperation’s actions and the European Commission and the Research Executive Agency are not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains. 2nd EU SST Webinar Operations in Space Surveillance and Tracking Speakers Pascal María Antonia Cristina Florian João FAUCHER (CNES) RAMOS (CDTI) PÉREZ (CDTI) DELMAS (CNES) ALVES (EU SatCen) Pier Luigi Lt. Moreno Juan Christophe Rodolphe RIGHETTI PERONI (IT MoD) ESCALANTE MORAND (EEAS) MUÑOZ (EUMETSAT) (EC – DG ECHO) (EC-DG DEFIS) 2nd EU SST Webinar: Operations in Space Surveillance and Tracking 16 November 2020 3 Agenda (1/2) 14h00-14h10: Welcome to the 2nd EU SST Webinar [Moderator: Mr Oliver Rajan (EU SatCen)] 14h10-14h50: SST Support Framework: Safeguarding European space infrastructure • Overview, governance model, security relevance and future perspectives [SST Cooperation Chair: Dr Pascal Faucher (CNES)] EU SST Architecture & Service Provision Model • Sensors network • Database and Catalogue precursor • Services [Chair of the SST Technical Committee:
    [Show full text]
  • PORTUGUESE SPACE CATALOGUE PORTUGUESE SPACE CATALOGUE Fundação Para a Ciência E a Tecnologia (FCT) Is the National Funding Agency for Science and Research in Portugal
    PORTUGUESE SPACE CATALOGUE PORTUGUESE SPACE CATALOGUE Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) is the national funding agency for science and research in Portugal. FCT promotes internationally competitive and high impact science, technology and innovation across all areas of knowledge, including exact, natural and health sciences, engineering, social sciences and humanities. The FCT Space Office addresses all space related issues. It is strongly committed to strengthening the participation of Portuguese researchers and entrepreneurs in space-related activities and in bringing the benefits of developing space sciences, technologies and its applications to Portuguese citizens. Please reach us through [email protected] and on our website www.fct.pt. Towards the end of 2000, Portugal became a member state of the European Space Agency, thus paving the way to full participation in ESA technology and applications programmes. The success achieved by Portuguese companies and research institutes in the European Union programmes, namely in FP7, Copernicus (formerly known as GMES) and Galileo is proof that Portuguese companies and academia are both competitive and reliable partners. Indeed, Portugal contributes to most European Space programmes, covering key domains of space applications, ranging from satellite telecommunications, global navigation systems, Earth observation, space technology, space sciences and robotic exploration. The Portuguese Space Community is an active member of international networks, developing complex space technologies and participating in space science and exploration missions. This community is made up of innovative, knowledge- intensive companies, specialised research institutes and modern public institutions, all strongly engaged in advancing space science, technologies and their application in non-space sectors. Indeed, one of the success factors of the Portuguese Space Community is precisely the close links between companies and academia.
    [Show full text]
  • Highlights in Space 2010
    International Astronautical Federation Committee on Space Research International Institute of Space Law 94 bis, Avenue de Suffren c/o CNES 94 bis, Avenue de Suffren UNITED NATIONS 75015 Paris, France 2 place Maurice Quentin 75015 Paris, France Tel: +33 1 45 67 42 60 Fax: +33 1 42 73 21 20 Tel. + 33 1 44 76 75 10 E-mail: : [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Fax. + 33 1 44 76 74 37 URL: www.iislweb.com OFFICE FOR OUTER SPACE AFFAIRS URL: www.iafastro.com E-mail: [email protected] URL : http://cosparhq.cnes.fr Highlights in Space 2010 Prepared in cooperation with the International Astronautical Federation, the Committee on Space Research and the International Institute of Space Law The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs is responsible for promoting international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space and assisting developing countries in using space science and technology. United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs P. O. Box 500, 1400 Vienna, Austria Tel: (+43-1) 26060-4950 Fax: (+43-1) 26060-5830 E-mail: [email protected] URL: www.unoosa.org United Nations publication Printed in Austria USD 15 Sales No. E.11.I.3 ISBN 978-92-1-101236-1 ST/SPACE/57 *1180239* V.11-80239—January 2011—775 UNITED NATIONS OFFICE FOR OUTER SPACE AFFAIRS UNITED NATIONS OFFICE AT VIENNA Highlights in Space 2010 Prepared in cooperation with the International Astronautical Federation, the Committee on Space Research and the International Institute of Space Law Progress in space science, technology and applications, international cooperation and space law UNITED NATIONS New York, 2011 UniTEd NationS PUblication Sales no.
    [Show full text]
  • Telecommunikation Satellites: the Actual Situation and Potential Future Developments
    Telecommunikation Satellites: The Actual Situation and Potential Future Developments Dr. Manfred Wittig Head of Multimedia Systems Section D-APP/TSM ESTEC NL 2200 AG Noordwijk [email protected] March 2003 Commercial Satellite Contracts 25 20 15 Europe US 10 5 0 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 European Average 5 Satellites/Year US Average 18 Satellites/Year Estimation of cumulative value chain for the Global commercial market 1998-2007 in BEuro 35 27 100% 135 90% 80% 225 Spacecraft Manufacturing 70% Launch 60% Operations Ground Segment 50% Services 40% 365 30% 20% 10% 0% 1 Consolidated Turnover of European Industry Commercial Telecom Satellite Orders 2000 30 2001 25 2002 3 (7) Firm Commercial Telecom Satellite Orders in 2002 Manufacturer Customer Satellite Astrium Hispasat SA Amazonas (Spain) Boeing Thuraya Satellite Thuraya 3 Telecommunications Co (U.A.E.) Orbital Science PT Telekommunikasi Telkom-2 Indonesia Hangar Queens or White Tails Orders in 2002 for Bargain Prices of already contracted Satellites Manufacturer Customer Satellite Alcatel Space New Indian Operator Agrani (India) Alcatel Space Eutelsat W5 (France) (1998 completed) Astrium Hellas-Sat Hellas Sat Consortium Ltd. (Greece-Cyprus) Commercial Telecom Satellite Orders in 2003 Manufacturer Customer Satellite Astrium Telesat Anik F1R 4.2.2003 (Canada) Planned Commercial Telecom Satellite Orders in 2003 SES GLOBAL Three RFQ’s: SES Americom ASTRA 1L ASTRA 1K cancelled four orders with Alcatel Space in 2001 INTELSAT Launched five satellites in the last 13 month average fleet age: 11 Years of remaining life PanAmSat No orders expected Concentration on cash flow generation Eutelsat HB 7A HB 8 expected at the end of 2003 Telesat Ordered Anik F1R from Astrium Planned Commercial Telecom Satellite Orders in 2003 Arabsat & are expected to replace Spacebus 300 Shin Satellite (solar-array steering problems) Korea Telecom Negotiation with Alcatel Space for Koreasat Binariang Sat.
    [Show full text]
  • Loral Space & Communications Inc
    Table of Contents UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 Form 10-K ; ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2010 OR TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 Commission file number 1-14180 LORAL SPACE & COMMUNICATIONS INC. (Exact name of registrant specified in the charter) Jurisdiction of incorporation: Delaware IRS identification number: 87-0748324 600 Third Avenue New York, New York 10016 (Address of principal executive offices) Telephone: (212) 697-1105 (Registrant’s telephone number, including area code) Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: Title of each class Name of each exchange on which registered Common stock, $.01 par value NASDAQ Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: Indicate by check mark if the registrant is well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes No ; Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes No ; Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ;No Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).
    [Show full text]
  • Sentinel-3 Product Notice
    Copernicus S3 Product Notice – Altimetry Mission S3 Sensor SRAL / MWR Product LAND L2 NRT, STC and NTC Product Notice ID S3A.PN-STM-L2L.10 Issue/Rev Date 16/07/2020 Version 1.1 This Product Notice was prepared by the S3 Mission Performance Centre Preparation and ESA experts Approval ESA Mission Management Summary This is a Product Notice (PN) for the Copernicus Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B Surface Topography Mission (STM) Level-2 Land products at Near Real Time (NRT), Short Time Critical (STC) and Non Time Critical (NTC) timeliness. The Notice describes the STM current status, product quality and limitations, and product availability status. © ESA page 1 / 16 Processing Baseline S3A S3B Processing Baseline • Processing Baseline: 2.68 • Processing Baseline: 1.42 • • SR_1 IPF version: 06.18 SR_1 IPF version: 06.18 • MW_1 IPF version: 06.11 IPFs version • MW_1 IPF version: 06.11 • • SM_2 IPF version: 06.19 SM_2 IPF version: 06.19 Current Operational Processing Baseline IPF IPF Version In OPE since S3A SR1 06.18 Land Centres: NRT mode : 2020-07-09 STC mode : 2020-07-09 NTC mode : 2020-07-09 S3A MW1 06.11 Land Centres: NRT mode : 2020-01-21 STC mode : 2020-01-21 NTC mode : 2020-01-21 S3A SM2 06.19 Land Centres: NRT mode : 2020-07-09 STC mode : 2020-07-09 NTC mode : 2020-07-09 S3B SR1 06.18 Land Centres: NRT mode : 2020-07-09 STC mode : 2020-07-09 NTC mode : 2020-07-09 S3B MW1 06.11 Land Centres: NRT mode : 2020-01-21 STC mode : 2020-01-21 NTC mode : 2020-01-21 S3B SM2 06.19 Land Centres: NRT mode : 2020-07-09 STC mode : 2020-07-09 NTC mode : 2020-07-09 © ESA page 2 / 16 Status of the Processing Baseline S3A The Processing Baseline (PB) for Copernicus Sentinel-3A STM products associated to this PN is reported above.
    [Show full text]
  • About the Consistency Between Envisat and Cryosat-2 Radar Freeboard Retrieval Over Antarctic Sea Ice
    The Cryosphere, 10, 1415–1425, 2016 www.the-cryosphere.net/10/1415/2016/ doi:10.5194/tc-10-1415-2016 © Author(s) 2016. CC Attribution 3.0 License. About the consistency between Envisat and CryoSat-2 radar freeboard retrieval over Antarctic sea ice Sandra Schwegmann1, Eero Rinne2, Robert Ricker1, Stefan Hendricks1, and Veit Helm1 1Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Am Handelshafen 12, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany 2Finnish Meteorological Institute, Marine Research, Erik Palménin aukio 1, 00560 Helsinki, Finland Correspondence to: Sandra Schwegmann ([email protected]) Received: 26 June 2015 – Published in The Cryosphere Discuss.: 16 September 2015 Revised: 6 June 2016 – Accepted: 8 June 2016 – Published: 8 July 2016 Abstract. Knowledge about Antarctic sea-ice volume and its 1 Introduction changes over the past decades has been sparse due to the lack of systematic sea-ice thickness measurements in this Over the last 3 decades, sea-ice extent (SIE) in the Arctic remote area. Recently, first attempts have been made to de- has decreased and submarine ice draft measurements indi- velop a sea-ice thickness product over the Southern Ocean cate that also sea-ice volume is declining (Rothrock et al., from space-borne radar altimetry and results look promising. 1999, 2008; Lindsay and Schweiger, 2015). In the Antarctic, Today, more than 20 years of radar altimeter data are poten- in contrast, SIE is increasing, but little is known about the tially available for such products. However, the characteris- changes in sea-ice volume. This is due to the lack of system- tics of individual radar types differ for the available altimeter atic sea-ice thickness measurements in the Southern Hemi- missions.
    [Show full text]
  • Exploring the Benefits of Using Cryosat-2'S Cross-Track
    JULY 2013 D I B A R B O U R E E T A L . 1511 Exploring the Benefits of Using CryoSat-2’s Cross-Track Interferometry to Improve the Resolution of Multisatellite Mesoscale Fields G. DIBARBOURE CLS, Ramonville St-Agne, France P. Y. LE TRAON IFREMER, Plouzane, France N. GALIN Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling, Department of Earth Sciences, University College London, London, United Kingdom (Manuscript received 7 August 2012, in final form 12 January 2013) ABSTRACT Sea surface height (SSH) measurements provided by pulse-limited radar altimeters are one-dimensional profiles along the satellite’s nadir track, with no information whatsoever in the cross-track direction. The anisotropy of resulting SSH profiles is the most limiting factor of mesoscale SSH maps that merge the 1D profiles. This paper explores the potential of the cross-track slope derived from the Cryosphere Satellite-2 (CryoSat- 2)’s synthetic aperture radar interferometry (SARin) mode to increase the resolution of mesoscale fields in the cross-track direction. Through idealized 1D simulations, this study shows that it is possible to exploit the dual SARin measurement (cross-track slope and SSH profile) in order to constrain mesoscale mapping in the cross-track direction. An error-free SSH slope allows a single SARin instrument to recover almost as much SSH variance as two coordinated altimeters. Noise-corrupted slopes can also be exploited to improve the mapping, and a break- through is observed for SARin errors ranging from 1 to 5 mrad for 150-km-radius features in strong currents, and 0.1–0.5 mrad for global mesoscale.
    [Show full text]