The TanDEM-X mission: global performance of the digital elevation model and beyond

Abstract

The primary objective of the TanDEM-X mission is the generation of a global, consistent, and high-resolution digital elevation model (DEM) with unprecedented global accuracy. The goal is achieved by exploiting the interferometric capabilities of the two twin SAR satellites TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X, which fly in a close orbit formation, acting as X-band single-pass interferometer. Between December 2010 and early 2015 all land surfaces have been acquired at least twice, difficult terrain up to seven or eight times. The acquisition strategy, data processing, and DEM calibration and mosaicking have been systematically monitored and optimized throughout the entire mission duration, in order to fulfill the mission specification. This paper reports the final performance of the TanDEM-X global DEM, which was finalized in September 2016. Moreover, the potentials of the unique bistatic dataset, provided by TanDEM-X, for land classification purposes are discussed. The results confirm the outstanding accuracy of the delivered product, to be exploited by a wide range of scientific and commercial applications.