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MWR (Envisat)

About

MWR instrument

The main objective of the microwave radiometer (MWR) on board Envisat was the measurement of the integrated atmospheric water vapour column and cloud liquid water content, as correction terms for the radar altimeter signal. In addition, MWR measurement data are useful for the determination of surface emissivity and soil moisture over land, for surface energy budget investigations to support atmospheric studies, and for ice characterisation.

The MWR instrument was a derivative of the radiometers used on the ERS-1 and ERS-2 satellites.


 

Data Description

All Envisat products, in accordance with ESA Earth Observation Data Policy, are freely available to registered users via FTP. MWR data is not stored within a unique product, but the data is used to contribute to the RA-2 products. Read more about the available products and the registration process which is required to access them:

Data Tools

The BRAT tool can be used to visualise and process MWR data.

BRAT

Broadview Radar Altimetry Toolbox (BRAT) is an extensive tutorial on what is altimetry, techniques used and examples of usage of data; plus software to read, process and visualise altimetry data.

MWR Cal/Val

The goal of MWR calibration and validation activities was to verify the accuracy and quality of data the instrument acquired.

MWR Quality Control Reports

Quality Control is monitoring routinely the status of the spacecraft (payload and platform) and to check if the derived products meet the quality requirements along mission life-time. Daily and monthly reports are available for MWR quality monitoring.

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