Using a Tandem Flight Configuration between Sentinel-6 and Jason-3 to Compare SAR and Conventional Altimeters in Sea Surface Signatures of Internal Solitary Waves

Satellite altimetry has been providing a continuous record of ocean measurements with numerous applications across the entire range sciences. A reference orbit used since 1992 TOPEX/Poseidon, which was repeated in Jason missions, and newly launched Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich (in November 2020) to continually monitor trends sea level rise other properties surface. These multidecadal missions have evolved alongside major technological advances, whose are unified into single data owing intercalibration validation efforts. However, new provides synthetic aperture radar (SAR) processing, improves along-track resolution conventional altimeters from few kilometres (e.g., for Jason-3) about 300 m. This means leap sampling towards higher frequencies spectrum, inevitably reconciling assumption uniform Brown surface between footprints larger kilometre-scale those finer-scale SAR altimetry. To explore this issue, study uses vantage point Sentinel-6/Jason-3 tandem phase compare simultaneous signatures large-scale Internal Solitary Waves (ISWs) waves can modulate arrayed sections increased decreased roughness horizontal scales up 10 km, inflict sharp transitions backscatter altimeters. It is found that provide more detailed structures ISWs standard level-2 products, when compared Jason-3 (similarly previous results reported altimeter Sentinel-3). striking feature comparing Jason-3, opposite phases ISWs. intriguing discussed light intrinsically different acquisition geometries as well possible implications thereof.