Preliminary results of the global ocean tide derived from HY-2A radar altimeter data

The HY-2A satellite,which is equipped with a radar altimeter and was launched on August 16,2011,is the first Chinese marine dynamic environmental monitoring satellite.Extracting ocean tides is one of the important applications of the radar altimeter data.The radar altimeter data of the HY-2A satellite from November 1,2011 to August 16,2014 are used herein to extract global ocean tides.The constants representing the tidal constituents are extracted by HY-2A RA data with harmonic analysis based on the least squares method.Considering tide aliasing issues,the analysis of the alias periods and alias synodic periods of different tidal constituents shows that only the tidal constituents M_(2),N_(2),and K_(2)are retrieved precisely by the HY-2A RA data.The derived tidal constants of the tidal constituents M_(2),N_(2)and K_(2)are compared to those of tidal gauge data and the TPXO tide model results.The comparison between the derived results and the tidal gauge data shows that the RMSEs of the tidal amplitude and phase lag are 9.6 cm and 13.34°,2.4 cm and 10.47°,and 8.1 cm and 14.19°for tidal constituents M_(2),N_(2),and K_(2),respectively.The comparisons of the semidiurnal tides with the TPXO model results show that tidal constituents have good consistency with the TPXO model results.These findings confirm the good performance of HY-2A RA for retrieving semidiurnal tides in the global ocean.

Validation of Chinese HY-2 satellite radar altimeter significant wave height

Chinese Haiyang-2（HY-2） satellite is the first Chinese marine dynamic environment satellite. The dual-frequency （Ku and C band） radar altimeter onboard HY-2 has been working effective to provide operational significant wave height （SWH） for more than three years （October 1, 2011 to present）.We validated along-track Ku-band SWH data of HY-2 satellite against National Data Buoy Center （NDBC） in-situ measurements over a time period of three years from October 1, 2011 to September 30, 2014, the root mean square error （RMSE） and mean bias of HY-2 SWH is 0.38 m and （-0.13±0.35） m, respectively. We also did cross validation against Jason-2 altimeter SWH data, the RMSE and the mean bias is 0.36m and （-0.22±0.28） m, respectively. In order to compare the statistical results between HY-2 and Jason-2 satellite SWH data, we validated the Jason-2 satellite radar altimeter along-track Ku-band SWH data against NDBC measurements using the same method. The results demonstrate the validation method in this study is scientific and the RMSE and mean bias of Jason-2 SWH data is 0.26 m and （0.00±0.26） m, respectively. We also validated both HY-2 and Jason-2 SWH data every month, the mean bias of Jason-2 SWH data almost equaled to zero all the time, while the mean bias of HY-2 SWH data was no less than -0.31m before April 2013 and dropped to zero after that time. These results indicate that the statistical results for HY-2 altimeter SWH are reliable and HY-2 altimeter along-track SWH data were steady and of high quality in the last three years. The results also indicate that HY-2 SWH data have greatly been improved and have the same accuracy with Jason-2 SWH data after April, 2013. SWH data provided by HY-2 satellite radar altimeter are useful and acceptable for ocean operational applications.

Measurement analyses and evaluations of sea-level heights using the HY-2A satellite’s radar altimeter

The HY-2A satellite is China’s first independent oceanic dynamic environmental satellite,and has been operating continuously for more than six years.The satellite’s radar altimeter,which is one of the main loads on the satellite,has the ability to realize all-weather and all-day observations of global sea-surface heights,as well as significant wave heights and sea-surface wind speeds.These observed data have been widely used in marine disaster prevention and reduction,along with resource development,maritime security and other fields.In order to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the multi-year overall observational performances of the HY-2A satellite’s radar altimeter,all of the observational data of the IGDR product from October 26,2012 to August 27,2017 were selected in this study for a comprehensive evaluation.The height measurement capability of the HY-2A satellite’s radar altimeter was evaluated using self-crossover and Jason-2 crossover methods.The height discrepancies at the self-crossover point of the HY-2A satellite’s ascending and descending orbits were also calculated.It was found that for the HY-2A satellite’s radar altimeter in global waters under the restriction conditions of ascending and descending orbits,the height anomaly differences were within a range of less than 30 cm.The absolute mean error was determined to be 5.81 cm,and the height anomaly standard deviation was 7.76 cm.Under the conditions of the observational areas being limited within a scope of 60°from the Equator,it was determined that the sea-level height anomaly differences were less than 10 cm at the junction of the ascending and descending orbits,the absolute mean error was 3.95 cm.In addition,the sea-level height anomaly standard deviation was observed to be 4.76cm.Using a mutual cross method with the Jason-2 satellite,it was found that under the conditions of the observational area being within the scope of 66°from the equator,the height anomaly differences at the junction were less than 30cm,and the absolute mean error of HY-2A and Jason-2 sea level height anomaly was 5.86 cm,with a standard deviation of 7.52 cm.It was observed that,if within the sea area the sea level height anomaly difference was limited to within 10cm,then the absolute mean error and standard deviation could reach 4.19cm and 4.98cm,respectively.It was confirmed that the HY-2A satellite’s radar altimeter had successfully reached the height measurement level of similar international altimeters.Therefore,it had the ability to meet the needs of marine scientific research and ocean circulation inversions.

Assessment of reprocessed sea surface height measurements derived from HY-2A radar altimeter and its application to the observation of 2015–2016 El Nino

Haiyang-2A（HY-2A） is China＇s first ocean dynamic environment satellite and the radar altimeter is one of its main payloads. One of the main purposes of the radar altimeter is to measure the sea surface height（SSH）. The SSH determined from the altimeter range measurements includes some range and geophysical corrections. These corrections largely affect the accuracy of the SSH measurements. The range and the geophysical corrections are reprocessed and the altimeter waveforms in HY-2A sensor interim geophysical data set records（S-IGDR） are retracked from June 1, 2014 to June 14, 2014, and the accuracy of the reprocessed SSH measurements is evaluated.The methods of the range and geophysical corrections used to reprocess HY-2A altimeter data are validated by using these methods to reprocess the Jason-2 range and geophysical corrections and comparing the results with the range and geophysical corrections in Jason-2 geophysical dataset records（GDR） product. A crossover analysis is used to evaluate the accuracy of the reprocessed HY-2A SSH measurements. The standard deviation（STD） of the crossover SSH differences for HY-2A is around 4.53 cm while the STD of the SSH differences between HY-2A and Jason-2 is around 5.22 cm. The performance of the reprocessed HY-2A SSH measurements is significantly improved with respect to the SSH measurements derived from HY-2A interim geophysical dataset records（IGDR）product. The 2015–2016 El Ni？o has been the strongest El Ni？o event since 1997–1998. The range and the geophysical corrections in HY-2A IGDR are reprocessed and sea level anomalies are used to monitor the2015–2016 El Ni？o. The results show that the HY-2A altimeter can well observe the 2015–2016 El Ni？o.

CryoSat-2雷达高度计海冰波形优选特征分类

监测海冰的类型变化或厚度变化是较为有效的海冰监测方式,本文通过CryoSat-2雷达高度计对北极海冰类型开展研究。利用雷达高度计对北极海冰进行分类,一方面是难以挑选出最优特征参数,另一方面单一的雷达高度计数据难以实现海冰的相对精细化分类。针对以上问题,本文构建了一种利用卡方检验、互相关信息及Wrapper包装法组合的特征优选方法,利用该方法挑选出的特征子集(SSD+Sigma0+LTPP+PP+SK+LEW)结合随机森林分类法将北极地区的雷达高度计数据分为海水、一年薄冰、一年厚冰及多年冰。本文方法在训练集分类正确率为93.32%,验证集正确率为92.42%,Kappa系数为0.90,均优于其他特征组合,可以基本实现对北极地区海冰的有效分类,同时分类结果也有助于海冰厚度的反演。

Preliminary marine gravity field from HY-2A/GM altimeter data

HY-2 A(Haiyang-2 A),launched in 2011,is the first ocean dynamic environment satellite of China and is equipped with a radar altimeter as one of the primary payloads.HY-2 A shifted the drift orbit in March 2016 and has been accumulating geodetic mission(GM)data for more than three years with 168-day cycle.In this paper,we present the preliminary gravity field inverted by the HY-2 A/GM data from March 2016 to December 2017 near Taiwan(21°–26°N,119°–123°E).The gravity anomaly is computed by Inverse Vening Meinesz(IVM)formula with a onedimensional FFT method during remove-restore procedure with the EGM2008 gravity model as the reference field.For comparison,CryoSat-2 altimeter data are used to inverse the gravity field near Taiwan Island by the same method.Comparing with the gravity field derived from CryoSat-2,a good agreement between the two data sets is found.The global ocean gravity models and National Geophysical Data Center(NGDC)shipboard gravity data also are used to assess the performance of HY-2 A/GM data.The evaluations show that HY-2 A and CryoSat-2 are at the same level in terms of gravity field recovery and the HY-2 A/GM altimeter-derived gravity field has an accuracy of 2.922 mGal.Therefore,we can believe that HY-2 A will be a new reliable data source for marine gravity field inversion and has the potentiality to improve the accuracy and resolution of the global marine gravity field.

基于CryoSat-2雷达高度计数据的南极内陆冰盖高程变化与物质平衡

南极冰盖对海平面影响巨大,高程变化测量是南极物质平衡监测的重要手段。采用欧空局CryoSat-2雷达高度计数据,通过提取卫星升降轨的地面交叉点,监测了南极内陆冰盖的高程变化(物质平衡)。结果表明,后向散射能量对Ku波段的CryoSat-2雷达高度计的高程数据具有一定的影响,经后向散射能量校正后,时间序列上的高程变化变得平缓,高程变化与已有的降雪数据相比,更加符合实际情况。2010年11月至2017年11月南极内陆冰盖高程变化趋势为(-1.1±0.2) cm·a^(-1)。西南极的Kamb冰流高程变化率为(38.7±1.1) cm·a^(-1), Moeller冰流高程变化率为(-10.3±1.2) cm·a^(-1),部分Thwaites冰川区域高程变化率为(-13.4±1.8) cm·a^(-1),东南极的Wilkes Land出现高下降区,最高达-20 cm·a^(-1)。Dronning Maud Land虽然出现变化异常的点,但整体并没有显著的高程变化。南极内陆冰盖质量变化为(-10.6±6.2) Gt·a^(-1),整体上南极内陆冰盖质量变化平缓,部分区域变化较大, Kamb冰流达到(17.9±0.5) Gt·a^(-1), Moeller冰流达到(-3.4±0.4) Gt·a^(-1),部分Thwaites冰川区达到(-3.7±0.5) Gt·a^(-1)。

Coastal bathymetry inversion using SAR-based altimetric gravity data:A case study over the South Sandwich Island

The global bathymetry models are usually of low accuracy over the coastline of polar areas due to the harsh climatic environment and the complex topography.Satellite altimetric gravity data can be a supplement and plays a key role in bathymetry modeling over these regions.The Synthetic Aperture Radar(SAR)altimeters in the missions like CryoSat-2 and Sentinel-3A/3B can relieve waveform contamination that existed in conventional altimeters and provide data with improved accuracy and spatial resolution.In this study,we investigate the potential application of SAR altimetric gravity data in enhancing coastal bathymetry,where the effects on local bathymetry modeling introduced from SAR altimetry data are quantified and evaluated.Furthermore,we study the effects on bathymetry modeling by using different scale factor calculation approaches,where a partition-wise scheme is implemented.The numerical experiment over the South Sandwich Islands near Antarctica suggests that using SARbased altimetric gravity data improves local coastal bathymetry modeling,compared with the model calculated without SAR altimetry data by a magnitude of 3:55 m within 10 km of offshore areas.Moreover,by using the partition-wise scheme for scale factor calculation,the quality of the coastal bathymetry model is improved by 7.34 m compared with the result derived from the traditional method.These results indicate the superiority of using SAR altimetry data in coastal bathymetry inversion.

HY-2雷达高度计和微波散射计

海洋动力环境卫星(HY-2)是一种获取海洋动力环境信息的专用对地遥感卫星,计划中的我国第一颗海洋动力环境卫星(HY-2A)以微波遥感器为主,包括一台雷达高度计、一台微波散射计和一台多通道微波辐射计。介绍HY-2雷达高度计和微波散射计的系统设计和主要技术指标。

HY-2卫星雷达高度计时标偏差估算

卫星雷达高度计是海洋遥感监测的重要传感器之一,测高系统和定轨系统是高度计重要的组成部分。若两系统使用不同的系统时钟,则获得的轨道高度和卫星测距值之间可能会存在一个时标偏差,该时标偏差会降低卫星雷达高度计的海面高度测量精度。针对HY-2卫星雷达高度计的时标偏差问题,本文分析了时标偏差对测高精度的影响,介绍了一种使用自交叉点数据估算时标偏差值的方法,并基于HY-2卫星雷达高度计第21个周期数据开展了时标偏差修正实验。时标偏差修正后HY-2自交叉点的海面高度差值(也称"不符值")分布收敛程度有了明显的提高,其RMS均方根值从24.7cm减小到了7.0cm,HY-2与Jason-2互交叉点的不符值的RMS也从16.6cm减小到了7.3cm。这表明本文介绍的时标偏差修正方法可有效地提高HY-2卫星雷达高度计的测高精度。

HY-2卫星雷达高度计风速反演验证

本文给出了海洋二号(HY-2)卫星雷达高度计风速反演的双参数算法模型,并利用Jason-1产品和HY-2卫星微波散射计产品定性验证了双参数算法模型的正确性,同时利用星星交叉比对方法、美国国家浮标数据中心(National Data Buoy Center,NDBC)浮标数据验证方法、美国国家环境预报中心(National Centers for Environmental Prediction,NCEP)再分析数据验证方法三种不同方法对该模型进行定量化验证,结果表明HY-2卫星雷达高度计风速反演的双参数算法模型的反演精度达到2.0 m/s的精度,满足海洋业务应用和科学研究的精度要求,可为用户提供满足观测要求的海面风产品。

天宫二号InIRA数据系统延迟改正估算方法

高精度和高空间分辨率的宽刈幅3维成像微波高度计(InIRA)在探测海洋和陆地水文变化等方面具有广阔的应用前景。然而,在湖泊水位监测应用中,由于InIRA传感器的系统延迟偏差,导致水位反演出现米级偏差。为此,针对InIRA的数据特性,本文提出了一种以Cryosat-2数据为基准的InIRA系统延迟改正估算方法,该方法在一定区域内可获取较为可靠的系统延迟改正量。利用该方法,在研究区内获取了4.6287 m的系统延迟改正,将该系统延迟改正加入后反演青海湖水位的精度为0.3327 m,表明了系统延迟改正的可靠性,也体现了InIRA数据在湖泊水位反演方面的潜力。

星载干涉成像高度计在轨干涉处理方法研究

干涉成像高度计是一种新体制雷达高度计,可以获得宽刈幅、高分辨率和高精度的海面高程信息。但其在轨工作原始数据量巨大,无法全部下传,而且传统用于合成孔径雷达(Synthetic Aperture Radar,SAR)数据压缩的块自适应量化算法(Block Adaptive Quantization,BAQ)会显著增加干涉成像高度计的测高误差,且数据压缩比较低。因此,在保证海面高程测量精度的前提下,大幅压缩原始数据量的在轨处理算法研究具有重要意义。基于干涉成像高度计海洋观测区域的工作时序和干涉处理方法,提出了两项改进算法:①提出一种基于目标位置估计的图像配准和去平地效应方法,相比基于轨道参数的配准和去平地效应方法,大幅降低了运算量,同时可以去除由于小角度入射导致的快速变化的平地条纹;②针对干涉成像高度计在小入射角时地距分辨率变化剧烈的情况,提出了一种插值平均的多视方法,能够降低均匀窗口多视引入的测高误差。利用天宫二号三维成像微波高度计获得的海面数据验证该方法的可行性和对测高精度的影响,实验结果表明:当在轨分辨率为300 m×300 m时,该方法数据压缩比为46.99;当地面产品分辨率为5 km×5 km时,在轨处理算法引入的相位误差标准差小于0.0049°,测高误差标准差小于0.26 cm,相对于BAQ算法,该方法具有数据压缩比高、测高误差小的优势,更适合于未来新一代宽刈幅干涉成像高度计在轨数据处理。

The HY-2 satellite and its preliminary assessment

The HY-2 satellite was successfully launched on 16 August 2011.It carried four microwave instruments into space for operationally observing dynamic ocean environment parameters on a global scale.The HY-2 satellite altimeter provides sea surface height(SSH),significant wave height(SWH),sea surface wind(SSW)speed,and polar ice sheet elevation,while the HY-2 satellite scatterometer provides SSW fields.At the same time,other oceanic and atmospheric parameters such as sea surface temperature(SST)and wind speed,water vapor and liquid water content can also be obtained by its onboard scanning microwave radiometer.In this paper,we show the data processing methods of the HY-2 satellite’s payloads.The preliminary results show that wind vector,SSH,SWH,and SST conform to the designed technical specifications.

天宫二号干涉成像雷达高度计的基线倾角反演

天宫二号干涉成像雷达高度计是国际上第一个采用小入射角和短基线干涉测量技术实现宽刈幅海面高度测量的高度计。利用其在拓展试验中获取的星下点干涉回波进行干涉相位处理,进而根据几何关系对干涉基线的倾角进行了反演,并将反演结果与平台测量的横滚角进行了对比以验证利用干涉相位进行干涉基线倾角测量的技术。天宫二号平台姿态是相对于地心来进行控制的,而从干涉回波反演出的基线倾角是相对于地表的。由于地球是一个椭球体,因此反演得到的基线倾角与平台测量的横滚角两者之间存在一个与轨道有关的系统偏差,经校正后得到了符合预期的结果:两者测量的横滚角变化趋势以及标准差均相符合。

天宫二号三维成像微波高度计大气斜距时延校正

2016-09-15随天宫二号空间实验室发射升空的三维成像微波高度计(简称天宫二号成像高度计)是国际上第一个采用小入射角、短干涉基线实现宽刈幅海面高度测量的高度计。由于天宫二号没有为成像高度计配备用于大气校正的微波辐射计,因此需要采用模型方法对大气时延进行精确估计。传统高度计采用星下点观测,通常只考虑大气折射率的改变引起传播速度变化的时延。天宫二号成像高度计采用偏离星下点1°-8°的小角度观测,因此在进行大气传输时延校正时不仅要考虑雷达信号传播速度的改变,还应考虑由于传播方向改变带来的路径弯曲效应。本文针对天宫二号成像高度计的观测几何特性,提出基于数值天气模型校正大气斜距时延的算法:采用欧洲中期天气预报中心的天气数据和大气分层模型,通过气象参数计算大气折射率;根据高度计参数和各层大气折射率,依赖折射定律和信号传播的几何关系在路径上逐层积分,计算大气斜距时延的估值。通过对天宫二号成像高度计的陆地角反射器定标实测数据进行处理,经大气斜距时延校正后,角反射器的剩余距离误差的标准差约为6.2 cm,达到厘米量级的斜距测量精度,验证了在不同入射角情况下,所提出的大气斜距时延校正算法的有效性和可靠性。