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Calibration
For nearly three decades, synthetic aperture RADAR (SAR) satellites have been monitored and measured using the Amazon Rainforest, active RADAR calibrators (transponders) and passive RADAR calibrators (corner reflectors). Over the course of a mission, these measurements have led to the successful diagnosis of problems onboard a satellite.
The Alaska Satellite Facility (ASF) has had corner reflectors deployed at their test site in Delta Junction, Alaska since 1992. Here we examine the results from the orbits that imaged the ASF’s test site for the Japanese Earth Resource Satellite (JERS), the European Remote Sensing satellite-1 (ERS-1), ERS-2, and RADARSAT-1 satellites. By tracking several different missions, each satellite may be used as a cross reference for another, in this way we may isolate the cause of any errors that may be identified. It is hoped that in this exercise we may: identify possible long term trends with the satellites themselves, to determine the temporal stability of the corner reflectors, and to create a statistical database for future reference.
The Alaska Satellite Facility (ASF) has had corner reflectors deployed at their test site in Delta Junction, Alaska since 1992. Here we examine the results from the orbits that imaged the ASF’s test site for the Japanese Earth Resource Satellite (JERS), the European Remote Sensing satellite-1 (ERS-1), ERS-2, and RADARSAT-1 satellites. By tracking several different missions, each satellite may be used as a cross reference for another, in this way we may isolate the cause of any errors that may be identified. It is hoped that in this exercise we may: identify possible long term trends with the satellites themselves, to determine the temporal stability of the corner reflectors, and to create a statistical database for future reference.
