© ESA, Airbus
The Copernicus Polar Ice and Snow Topography Altimeter (CRISTAL) mission, to be launched in 2027, will advance the understanding of the hydrological cycle and polar regions by measuring and monitoring sea-ice thickness, overlying snow depth and ice-sheet elevations. The mission will feature a payload that incorporates an Interferometric Radar altimeter for Ice and Snow (IRIS) and a Microwave Radiometer (MWR), providing Ku and Ka band dual-frequency operation that will enable more accurate measurements than earlier ice-monitoring altimeters.
isardSAT has been involved in the mission by developing CRISTAL IRIS L1 Ground Processor Prototype within the CRISTAL SIRS, System and Instrument Retrieval Simulator, as well as participating in the L2 Ground Processor Prototype for Sea Ice and Icebergs, and Land Ice and Inland Waters.
This project comprises the development of the CRISTAL Operational Level-0 and Level-1 Data Processors (CRISTAL-DPs), encompassing the IRIS and the platform instruments, to be integrated and operated as part of the Copernicus Missions, Data and Operations Management Framework. It also considers the evolution phase possibly up to the end of the CRISTAL-A satellite commissioning phase, and an optional maintenance after that.
isardSAT is in charge of the development, maintenance and evolution of the CRISTAL L1 Science and Calibration Data Processors, and will provide support in the definition of scenarios for test data, as well as the generation of the test data sets.