Objectives

An International Review Workshop on Satellite Altimetry Cal/Val Activities and Applications is to be held in Chania, Crete, Greece, 23-26 April 2018. It is a Scientific Meeting sponsored by the European Space Agency, EUMETSAT and the IAG/IUGG Commission 2.

The aim of this Review Workshop is to present the latest research results in the field of satellite altimetry calibration and altimetry applications for monitoring ocean changes and for improving Earth observation in an objective, continuous, homogeneous and reliable manner, free of errors and biases, and tied from one altimetry mission to the next. The intention is to support long-term monitoring of climate changes by understanding better environmental changes on world's oceans, terrestrial surface waters, but also on Arctic and Antarctic polar regions. The final outcome is to establish and promote a scientific roadmap with procedures, protocols, guidelines, and best practices in an open and transparent way to be followed by any international group working on satellite altimetry to attain SI traceability of their measurements, results and data products.

Specifically, this International Review Workshop is to gather scientists all over the world to:

1. Critically review the current methodology applied at the Permanent Facilities for satellite altimetry calibration and validation using ground-based measurements;
2. Define requirements, establish standards and provide recommendations and best practices for altimerty calibration such that all measurements and results made for monitoring the Earth, the environment, the sea level, etc., are well-characterized and linked to other areas of science and technology through a world’s measurement system established and maintained under the International System of Units and Metrology Standards;
3. Document procedures for Fiducial Reference Measurements (FRM) in satellite altimetry so that results are traceable to SI-units, reliable in the long term, comparable worldwide, to support an objective and unquestionable monitoring of the Sea Level and Climate Change;
4. Establish procedures and protocols for characterizing the uncertainty budget of all FRM instruments and derived results over the entire end-to-end duration of a satellite mission;
5. Define and document procedures, protocols and best practices to evaluate differences in instrument performances under a range of conditions to maintain satellite altimetry observations, to support the Earth Observation for the future;
6. Evaluate topics in altimetry observing systems in GGOS, SAR altimetry, waveform re-tracking, corrections, future altimetry missions and applications.
7. Examine altimetry and the Changing Environment, including topics in sea level and sea level extremes, cryosphere and hydrology, coastal areas, ice and land, ocean currents, waves and winds.
8. Analyze modelling with altimetry data, including bathymetry, marine geoid, mean sea level, marine gravity, mean dynamic topography and height systems.
9. Summarize all scientific achievements for satellite altimetry Cal/Val and its applications in the context of Fiducial Reference Measurements.