The European Space Agency's Earth Explorer Mission CryoSat: Measuring variability in the cryosphere

Abstract

CryoSat is currently being prepared for a 2005 launch as the first European Space Agency Earth Explorer Opportunity mission. It is a dedicated cryospheric mission equipped with a Ku-band SIRAL (SAR/ Interferometric Radar ALtimeter), whose primary objectives are to measure the variability and trends in the mass of the Arctic sea-ice cover and large terrestrial ice sheets. In this paper, an overview is provided of the mission and of the measurement characteristics of the new SIRAL instrument. Examples of data acquired on recent preparatory campaigns are presented, illustrating the operating characteristics of the key SIRAL modes. Preparatory plans for calibration and validation of CryoSat data are described.