1. SAOCOM Mission Update
Laura Frulla
CONAE 1

2. Mission Update Mission Critical Design Review (M-CDR) in Nov. 2013
Passed OK
Flight Segment Qualification Review Step 1: July 2015
SAR Instrument Qualification Review: July 2015
Flight Segment Qualification Review Step 2: July 2016
Ground Segment Qualification Review: July 2016
Launch Readiness Review PFM: November 2016
Launch schedule:
SAOCOM 1A: November 2016
SAOCOM 1B: October 2017 2

3. SAOCOM General Features(1/2)
instruments
Polarimetric L band SAR (1,275 GHz)
(SAOCOM 1A/SAOCOM 1B)
orbit
sun synchronous nearly circular frozen polar
inclination
97.89°
altitude
620 km
local time of asc. node
06:12 am
time for one orbit
97.2 minutes
revisit
16 days (1 satellite)/8 days (constellation)
mission lifetime
5 years
commissioning
6-9 months 3

4. SAOCOM General Features(2/2)
looking direction
right (nominal)/left (capability)
right looking
continuous acquisitions of 10 minutes when the satellite is in visibility of ETC
15 minutes per orbit as an average on a daily basis
20 minutes of non continuous acquisitions in an orbit
left looking
up to 5 minutes, according to resources and preserving spacecraft safety, returning afterwards to the nominal side looking
acquisition modes
real time/stored
coverage
world wide 4

5. observation capability day/night/all weather σ° (measurement range)
SAR Features
observation capability
day/night/all weather
σ° (measurement range)
-35 to 5 dB
absolute radiometric accuracy
less than or equal to 0.5 dB (QP)
less than or equal to 1.0 dB (SP, DP)
polarimetric accuracy
less than or equal to 0.3 dB
geolocation accuracy
depends on precise orbit determination
on line (56 h)
90 m
on line (108 h)
70 m
off line (18 days)
25 m 5

6. SAR Antenna Panel EM stage 2
SAR Instrument EM
SAR Antenna Panel EM stage 2
SAR CE EM1 – Dummy load
SAR CE EM1

7. Antenna Deployment

8. SAOCOM 1B Launch/Orbital FormationCM CS SR
SARE Constellation-x4 (CONAE) ~ 2 years IR
Inter-satellite link
GPS Differential Unit
Star tracker/laser units (constelation position)
Software Defined Radio (ground data collection)
TR module (Faraday rotation estimation)
ESA SAOCOM Companion (receive only) ~ 5 years

9. SAOCOM-CS/TANGO Science and Observation Geometry: Formation flying
Tomographic phase (880 days)
AT baseline < 6km
XT baseline varies ~1–6 km
Science mission driver
Duration ~2.5 years
SAOCOM CS (ESA)
SAOCOM (CONAE)
Illuminated scene
“Bird-eye view”
Bistatic 1, Bistatic 2 (720 days)
AT baseline < 250 km
Small XT baseline (phase 1)
Large XT baseline (phase 2)
Duration ~2 years
Specular phase (160 days)
Experimental
Short duration
lifetime~ 5 years

10. SAOCOM Nominal Modes Features
acquisition
mode
polarization
swath width
spatial resolution
minimum incidence angle range
StripMap
SP: HH or HV or VH or VV
> 40 km
< 10 m
21 - 50
DP: HH/HV or VV/VH
QP: HH/HV/VH/VV
> 20 km
20 - 35
TOPSAR Narrow
> 150 km
< 30 m
25 - 45
> 100 km
< 50 m
TOPSAR Wide
> 350 km
QP(1): HH/HV/VH/VV
> 220 km
< 100 m
CL-POL: RH/RV or LH/LV
(1) TOPSAR Wide QP assigned for Strategic Applications 10

11. StripMap and TOPSAR modes 9 possible polarization combinations
L1 Product Definition
25 swaths
StripMap and TOPSAR modes
9 possible polarization combinations
SP: HH or HV or VH or VV
DP: HH-HV or VH-VV
QP: HH-HV-VH-VV
CP*: LH-LV or RH-RV
*Technological mode

12. Product Tree
Ref: SAO-MIS-HB A

13. TOPSAR Quad pol modes StripMap
10 quad-pol beams in elevation allow maximum coverage of 220 KM
3 different spatial resolutions [m]
100 (az) x 10 (rg) WIDE
50 (az) x 10 (rg) NARROW
6 (az) x 10 (rg) STRIPMAP
TOPSAR Wide
220 km
The TOPSAR mode is exploited :
LOW scalloping
Wide coverage
High resolution
Scanning timeline optimization possibility
TOPSAR Narrow A
110 km
StripMap
TOPSAR Narrow B
110 km
S1 QP
S2 QP
35°
ScanSAR
TOPSAR
S10 QP
TOPSAR mode chosen to maximize coverage versus geometric & radiometric resolution

14. Products Processing Levels
RAW data products (data stream),
Level 0 products (Annotated RAW data-AR)
Level 1 products
Level 1A: Single Look Complex-SLC,
Level 1B: Detected Image-DI,
Level 1C: Ground Ellipsoid Corrected-GEC (default),
Level 1D: Geocoded Terrain Corrected-GTC.
Higher level products
In relation to the products processing levels for SAOCOM, they will be the same that you surely well know, let say:
- RAW data,
- Level 0, composed by the Annotated RAW data,
Level 1, with the common different levels of corrections: 1A for Single Look Complex, 1B for Detected Image, 1C for Ground Ellipsoid Corrected image which is the default processing for the Strategic Applications, 1D for Geocoded Terrain Corrected images and Higher level products
1) Level 0 – Annotated Raw Data (AR)
This product is obtained from the binary data stream: Raw Data (RAW) and it consists of
time ordered echo data, synchronized, with format, obtained after decryption, packed,
including all the auxiliary and secondary data, identified in date and time by UTC
coordinates (Coordinated Universal Time). This product is required to produce the other
basic and intermediate products, and also to get information about navigation, TT&C,
etc.
2) Level 1A – Single Look Complex (SLC)
Level 1A Products are generated from Level 0 Products by applying SAR focusing
processing, and include both internal calibration (I/Q channels bias and I/Q channel gain
unbalance), and external calibration (correction of antenna pattern in azimuth and
elevation and spreading loss compensation).
Level 1A Products are phase preserving and are projected in slant range (no geometric
corrections are performed). They are provided with the auxiliary data mentioned in the
Level 0 Product definition. Level 1A Products are not amplitude images, as they’re
composed by real and imaginary components (complex data type),
3) Level 1B – Detected Image (DI)
Level 1B Products are generated from Level 0 Products by applying SAR focusing
processing. They are amplitude images ground projected onto a given reference
ellipsoid. The generated amplitude images are geo-referenced (i.e. each pixel of an
image is associated with coordinates given in a geographic reference system, e.g.: WGS
84).
4) Level 1C – Ground Ellipsoid Corrected (GEC)
processing. The generated amplitude images are geo-coded, that is, the image is
rectified according to a particular map projection, i.e. Gauss Krügerr. In this way, the
image grid is aligned with the chosen map projection grid. There is no correction applied
for terrain distortion and there is no use of Ground Control Points (GCP).
5) Level 1D Products are generated from Level 1C. using GCPs and Digital Elevation
Models.
This products are geocoded amplitude images, that is, the images are rectified
according to a particular map projection. In this way, the image grid is aligned with the
chosen map projection grid; the residual error of the correction depends on the accuracy
of the GCPs and on the DEMs. In this case, the image distortion effects due to
topography are reduced. 14

15. SAOCOM Science Team and Applications Component SAS SIS SOSPI
L. Frulla
Deputies
G.R. Ortega- J. Milovich
Announcements of Opportunity Projects
PIs of the different projects
Science Team
M. Thibeault
External Calibration
M. Thibeault/Deputy: T. Zajc
Soil Moisture
D. Dadamia
Support System for Decision Making in Agriculture
H. Lozza
Risk Hydrological Emergency Management
M. Uriburu
Field Campaign
A. Soldano
Wheat Head Blight Disease Forecast System
M. Acuña
SAS
Interferometry
M. Azcueta
Deputy: N. Grunfeld
SIS
Science Processors
A. Lorenzo
As for the SAOCOM Applications Component it is composed by the applications developed in the frame of the projects presented in the SAOCOM announcements of opportinuty and the Strategic Applications.
SECFD: SAR Engineering Calibration Facilities, Development Buenos Aires
Oil Spill and Object Detection
M. Jáuregui/Deputy: M. Camuyrano
SOS
DEM
A. Soldano/Deputy: N. Grunfeld
Snow Cover Estimations
N. Grunfeld
Biomass and Forest Carbon Capture
A. Lorenzo 15

16. SAR CALVAL – Sites Status
Institutional agreements (2 of 3 main sites defined)
Main Sites
El Sosneado (Malargue): Agreed for CR and PARC and partially installed
CASLEO (San Juan): Agreed for CR, PARC agreement ongoing
El Alambrado (Malargue): under study, first contacts made
Support Sites
DS3 (Malargue): back up option, first contacts made
CETT (Cordoba): commissioning site and PARC testing site, partially installed
Tierra del Fuego (Tolhuin)