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Document - Newsletter
Earth Online Newsletter - 08 March 2024
This issue of the Earth Online Newsletter covers a selection of the latest news and events from ESA.
News - Data Release news
FDR4ALT - ESA unveils new cutting-edge ERS/Envisat Altimeter and Microwave Radiometer Datasets
The European Space Agency (ESA) has developed a comprehensive suite of innovative Earth system data records as part of the Fundamental Data Records for Altimetry project - FDR4ALT.
Data - EO Sign In Authentication (Open)
Sea Ice Thematic Data Product [ALT_TDP_SI]
This is the Sea Ice Thematic Data Product (TDP) V1 resulting from the ESA FDR4ALT project and containing the sea ice related geophysical parameters, along with associated uncertainties: snow depth, radar and sea-ice freeboard, sea ice thickness and concentration. The collection covers data for the ERS-1, ERS-2 and Envisat missions, and bases on Level 1 data coming from previous reprocessing (ERS REAPER and the Envisat V3.0) but taking into account the improvements made at Level 0/Level 1 in the frame of FDR4ALT (ALT FDR). The Sea Ice TDP provides data from the northern or southern hemisphere in two files corresponding to the Arctic and Antarctic regions respectively for the winter periods only, i.e., October to June for the Arctic, and May to November for the Antarctic. For many aspects, the Sea Ice TDP is very innovative: First time series of sea-ice thickness estimates for ERS Homogeneous calibration, allowing the first Arctic radar freeboard time series from ERS-1 (1991) to CryoSat-2 (2021) Uncertainties estimated along-track with a bottom-up approach based on dominant sources ERS pulse blurring error corrected using literature procedure [Peacock, 2004] The FDR4ALT products are available in NetCDF format. Free standard tools for reading NetCDF data can be used. Information for expert altimetry users is also available in a dedicated NetCDF group within the products. Please consult the FDR4ALT Product User Guide before using the data. The FDR4ALT datasets represent the new reference data for the ERS/Envisat altimetry missions, superseding any previous mission data. Users are strongly encouraged to make use of these datasets for optimal results.
Data - EO Sign In Authentication (Open)
Land Ice Thematic Data Product [ALT_TDP_LI]
This is the Land Ice Thematic Data Product (TDP) V1 resulting from the ESA FDR4ALT project and containing estimates of ice sheet surface elevation and associated uncertainties. The collection covers data for three different missions: ERS-1, ERS-2 and Envisat, and based on Level 1 data coming from previous reprocessing (ERS REAPER and the Envisat V3.0) but taking into account the improvements made at Level 0/Level 1 in the frame of FDR4ALT (ALT FDR). The Land Ice TDP focuses specifically on the ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica, providing these data in different files. For many aspects, the Land Ice Level 2 and Level 2+ processing is very innovative: Improved relocation approach correcting for topographic effects within the beam footprint to identify the Point of Closest Approach Homogeneous timeseries of surface elevation measurements at regular along-track reference nodes. The FDR4ALT products are available in NetCDF format. Free standard tools for reading NetCDF data can be used. Information for expert altimetry users is also available in a dedicated NetCDF group within the products. Please consult the FDR4ALT Product User Guide before using the data. The FDR4ALT datasets represent the new reference data for the ERS/Envisat altimetry missions, superseding any previous mission data. Users are strongly encouraged to make use of these datasets for optimal results.
Data - EO Sign In Authentication (Open)
Inland Waters Thematic Data Product [ALT_TDP_IW]
This is the Inland Waters Thematic Data Product (TDP) V1 resulting from the ESA FDR4ALT project and containing improved Water Surface Height (WSH) data record from the ERS-1, ERS-2 and Envisat missions estimated using the ICE1 retracking range for its better performance on the hydro targets. The FDR4ALT products are available in NetCDF format. Free standard tools for reading NetCDF data can be used. Information for expert altimetry users is also available in a dedicated NetCDF group within the products. Please consult the FDR4ALT Product User Guide before using the data. The FDR4ALT datasets represent the new reference data for the ERS/Envisat altimetry missions, superseding any previous mission data. Users are strongly encouraged to make use of these datasets for optimal results.
Data - Fast Registration with approval (Restrained)
ALOS PRISM L1C
This collection provides access to the ALOS-1 PRISM (Panchromatic Remote-sensing Instrument for Stereo Mapping) OB1 L1C data acquired by ESA stations (Kiruna, Maspalomas, Matera, Tromsoe) in the ADEN zone, in addition to worldwide data requested by European scientists. The ADEN zone was the area belonging to the European Data node and covered both the European and African continents, a large part of Greenland and the Middle East. The full mission archive is included in this collection, though with gaps in spatial coverage outside of the ADEN zone. With respect to the L1B collection, only scenes acquired in sensor mode with a Cloud Coverage score lower than 70% and a sea percentage lower than 80% are published: Orbits: from 2768 to 27604 Path (corresponds to JAXA track number): from 1 to 665 Row (corresponds to JAXA scene centre frame number): from 310 to 6790. The L1C processing strongly improve accuracy compared to L1B1 from several tenths of metres in L1B1 (~40 m of northing geolocation error for Forward views and ~10-20 m for easting errors) to some metres in L1C scenes (< 10 m both in north and easting errors). The collection contains only the PSM_OB1_1C EO-SIP product type, using data from PRISM operating in OB1 mode with three views (Nadir, Forward, and Backward) at 35 km wide. Most of the products contain all three views, but the Nadir view is always available and is used for the frame number identification. All views are packaged together; each view, in CEOS format, is stored in a directory named according to the JAXA view ID naming convention.
News - Thematic area articles
Cloud-free collections key for land monitoring
Satellite imagery is a crucially important tool for monitoring the land, but cloud cover can often block parts of Earth’s surface from view, limiting subsequent analyses.
News - Data Release news
ALOS PRISM L1C European Coverage Cloud Free data collection now available for users
As part of Earthnet’s Third Party Missions Programme framework, ESA is pleased to announce that the ALOS PRISM L1C European Coverage Cloud Free data collection is now available for research purposes.
Data - Fast Registration with approval (Restrained)
ALOS PRISM L1C European Coverage Cloud Free
This collection is composed of a subset of ALOS-1 PRISM (Panchromatic Remote-sensing Instrument for Stereo Mapping) OB1 L1C products from the ALOS PRISM L1C collection (DOI: 10.57780/AL1-ff3877f) which have been chosen so as to provide a cloud-free coverage over Europe. 70% of the scenes contained within the collection have a cloud cover percentage of 0%, while the remaining 30% of the scenes have a cloud cover percentage of no more than 20%. The collection is composed of PSM_OB1_1C EO-SIP products, with the PRISM sensor operating in OB1 mode with three views (Nadir, Forward and Backward) at 35 km width.
Event - Conference
Living Planet Symposium 2022
Learn about the 2022 edition of ESA's Living Planet Symposium.
News - Events and Proceedings
Data preservation takes centre stage at Living Planet Symposium
Against the backdrop of the famed Rhine River, world-class scientists and Earth observation data-users are gathered this week in the historical city of Bonn, at the Living Planet Symposium (LPS).
News - Spotlight on EO community
Introducing Mirko Albani
In this short introduction, ESA's Heritage Missions Programme Manager describes what he likes most about ESA's long term archive of satellite mission data and his role in the programme.
News - Success Stories
How Envisat helped to shape global understanding of Earth’s systems
Twenty years have passed since a ground-breaking European spacecraft designed to deliver unprecedented insight into the planet’s changing environment was lofted into orbit.
Activity - Projects
Dragon 2 Cooperation Programme
The Dragon 2 Programme focussed on the exploitation of ESA, ESA's Third Party Missions and Chinese Earth observation data for science and applications development in land, ocean and atmospheric applications.
News - Data Release news
New reprocessing of datasets celebrates 30 years of ERS
The ERS programme celebrated its 30th anniversary on 17 July. Today, we are still exploiting ERS data and experts continue to work on improving the altimeter, radiometer and SAR data the programme acquired.
News - Success Stories
ERS Heritage Data allow for 30 years of science
At their time of launch thirty years ago, the two ERS satellites were the most sophisticated Earth observation spacecraft ever developed and launched by Europe.
News - Infographics
ERS - ESA’s first Earth observation satellites
To mark the 30th anniversary of ERS, we've released a new infographic summarising the mission.
Tools - Apps
Heritage Missions app for iOS
Download the Heritage Missions application to discover what the missions were about, how it worked and what the elements of the space and ground segment that make these missions unique.
Tools - Apps
Heritage Missions app for Android
Download the Heritage Missions application to discover what the missions were about, how it worked and what the elements of the space and ground segment that make these missions unique.
News - Data Release news
ALOS PRISM collection now open
A Japanese Earth-imaging satellite from JAXA, the Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS-1) was part of ESA's Third Party Missions Programme, in which ESA has an agreement with JAXA to distribute its data products.
