BepiColombo/MERTIS data processing pipeline at DLR

Abstract

The MErcury Radiometer and Thermal infrared Imaging Spectrometer (MERTIS) [1][2] is part of the payload of on the joint ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission, built at DLR in Berlin. The mission is scheduled for arrival at Mercury in 2024-25. To achieve MERTIS’s scientific goals the instrument maps the whole surface of Mercury with a spatial resolution of 500m for the spectrometer channel and 2km for the radiometer channel. MERTIS covers the wavelength ranges of 7–14 and 7–40 μm with its two channels. Among it scientific goals, MERTIS will infer rock-forming minerals, map surface composition, and study surface temperature variations on Mercury with an uncooled microbolometer detector. To exploit the full potential of the unique MERTIS dataset, a data processing pipeline is being built and tested by the Planetary Spectroscopy Laboratory group, where also an extensive calibration campaign has been performed. The data processing pipeline is build as sandboxed virtualized processes via the Docker Container technology [3]. This approach allows to split logical module and processes in separate environments and track the environment itself under version control system. This ensure total portability of the code in any environment and better performance over traditional virtualization system [4]. The basic blocks of the pipeline are: 1. the conversion of the raw telemetry data to NASA PDS4 Raw format, 2. subsequent reconstruction of observation, 3. calibration and 4. generation of high-level product like global emissivity maps.