| Paper: | FR-A1.19 |
| Session: | Instruments and Calibration (Posters) |
| Time: | Friday, March 30, 09:00 - 10:20 |
| Presentation: |
Poster
|
| Topic: |
Advanced radiometer techniques: |
| Title: |
A next generation of microwave radiometers for future altimetry missions: the ICARO case |
| Authors: |
Massimo Labriola; Airbus DS | | |
| | Graham Sykes; Airbus DS | | |
| | Richard Hopkins; Airbus DS | | |
| | Bruno Picard; CLS | | |
| | Rolv Midthassel; European Space Agency | | |
| Abstract: |
While radar altimeters (RA) are providing higher resolving capability in the order of hundreds of meters using SAR or interferometric techniques, the performance of the accompanying microwave radiometers (MWR) is not progressing as fast, being constrained by the current set of observation frequencies. Thus, in this context there is a strong impetus to conceive a new radiometer instrument able to provide a better estimate of the amount of humidity contained in the path of the radar pulses, in particular at coastal interfaces or in regions of inland water where strong gradients of atmospheric water vapour exist. This measurement of humidity content is then used to refine the accuracy of the radar altitude.
To support the RA performance closer to shore, the addition of high frequency millimeter-wave channels to the traditional lower frequencies (18.7, 23.8, 36.5 GHz) of existing microwave radiometers is proposed. The higher frequency channels have a smaller footprint on the ground permitting a higher spatial resolution correction. The measurements of upwelling Earth radiance by a microwave radiometer provide the means to correct the wet tropospheric correction (WTC) - a major source of uncertainty in the overall altimetry error budget - and also provide supplementary information over sea ice and ice sheets in synergy to RA observations.
The challenge of the instrument for coastal altimetry radiometer observations (ICARO) study is the design of innovative, smart and scalable microwave radiometer solutions capable of accomplishing the tight performance requirements expected by future operational altimetry missions (for instance Copernicus second generation).
The article first presents the MWR instrument architectures and preliminary system budgets as well as the calibration approach. The paper then discusses the trade-off studies and the expected performances at baseline concept review (BCR) stage. |
