The HydroGNSS Scout and DoT-1 Small Satellite GNSS-Reflectometry Missions

• Main Authors: Unwin, Martin, Pierdicca, Nazzareno, Rautiainen, Kimmo, Cardellach, Estel, Foti, Giuseppe, Blunt, Paul, Rawlinson, J., Tossaint, Michel, Burger, T.
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2021
• Subjects: Ice; permafrost
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10261/270356

Congreso expuesto en el ESA Phi-Week 2021 celebrada virtualmente del 11 al 15 de octubre. The ESA Scout-2 mission, HydroGNSS, will provide measurements of key hydrological climate variables, including soil moisture, freeze–thaw state over permafrost, inundation and wetlands, and above-ground biomass, using a technique called Global Navigation Satellite System reflectometry (GNSS-R). Scout missions are a new element in ESA's Earth Observation Programme that embraces the concept of NewSpace. GNSS-R takes measurements of the Earth's surface by collecting scattered L-Band GNSS signals from space, allowing sensing over ocean, ice and land. HydroGNSS employs novel techniques to separate the ECVs and improve resolution over the ground, including adding dual polarisation, dual frequency GPS and Galileo measurements, and a higher resolution channel to capture coherent reflections. Relevant techniques are being first demonstrated on an 18 kg technology microsatellite, DoT-1, built by SSTL, and launched in Summer 2019. During its manufacture, a small downward pointing antenna was added to permit GNSS-Reflectometry as a secondary experiment.