Performance of Envisat/ Asar Interferometric Products

ENVISAT/ ASAR interferometry is a useful tool for the retrieval of geoand bio-physical parameters. In this paper the aim is show the quality of interferometric ENVISAT/ ASAR products. This objective will be approached in two ways. First, the timing accuracy of various ENVISAT/ ASAR products is evaluated. The geometric calibration and validation includes the determination of slant-range and azimuth timing offsets for various orbit types, beams, and modes. Second, based on a high coherence interferogram the phase quality and the timing accuracy of ENVISAT/ ASAR data is explored. From this data a first ENVISAT/ ASAR DEM is generated and evaluated. This DEM proves the high quality that may be obtained from ENVISAT/ ASAR data in case of sufficiently high coherence. As a test site serves the area around Las Vegas (36.2° N, 115.2° W) which is quite a dry region and remains stable even over the 70 day interval in-between the SAR acquisitions.