Requirements for an L-band SAR-Mission for global Monitoring of Tectonic Activities

Abstract

DLR is currently studying a space mission based on a formation of two L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar satellites to monitor a) the global biomass for CO2 cycle studies; b) small displacements of the earth surface. The focus of this presentation is the so called deformation mode for displacement measurements. The study is currently in the requirements definition phase where the following parameters are discussed with the scientific user community, most importantly: - signal characteristics & accuracy requirements, - areas of interest, - revisit time requirements for different application fields such as volcanic or seismic activity, landslides or anthropogenic subsidence and - product level definition. The goal of the study is to design a mission optimized for the derived requirements. This includes - mission & coverage concepts, - instrument design and - 3D motion reconstruction methods. In our presentation we show the current ideas and the requirements collected for deformation measurements.