Sea level rise

Satellite(s) Sentinel -3, Sentinel-6 (launched recently, currently in testing phase, so imagery is not available yet) (For historical data: TOPEX/Poseidon).	Monitoring element Surface water reflected echo of microwave pulse.

Satellite(s)

Sentinel -3, Sentinel-6 (launched recently, currently in testing phase, so imagery is not available yet) (For historical data: TOPEX/Poseidon).

Monitoring element

Surface water reflected echo of microwave pulse.

Description technique

The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich ocean-monitoring satellite was launched in November 2020. Its first mission is high-precision ocean altimetry, providing information about sea surface topography including sea level and significant wave height.

Its secondary mission is radio occultation, an essential input for climate monitoring and weather forecasting.

There will be another satellite (Sentinel-6B; launch in 2025)- and between them, they will provide the most accurate source of observations of sea surface height, mean sea level and ocean circulation, until at least 2030.

Accuracy / Resolution

spatial resolution 10 - 20 m.

Case study

Not available yet.

Benefits

High resolution improved altimeter measurements to be available;
Also availability of low resolution mode that is backwards compatible to provide series of mean sea level measurements and ocean sea state started in 1992 by the TOPEX/Poseidon mission and follow-on Jason-1, Jason-2 and Jason-3 satellite missions.

Limitations

Sentinel-6 is not yet available, as currently in testing phase;
SAR may be noisy, however the dual frequency nadir-pointing radar altimeter uses a new interleaved mode that also is expected to reduce noise;
Because of the relatively large ground track spacing of 315 km at the equator, Jason-CS alone will not be able to satisfy the sampling requirements for mesoscale oceanography. Thus, the Sentinel-6 mission is coordinated with other altimeter missions, chiefly the Sentinel-3 mission, to provide together a complementary spatiotemporal sampling of the oceans and serve as a high-precision reference to sea-level-change studies.

Applicability for Northland

Yes. Very likely.

Insights gained from Sentinel-3 based applications and in-situ testing for Northland will help to confirm relevance.

Publication references

Donlon, Craig J., Robert Cullen, Luisella Giulicchi, Pierrik Vuilleumier, C. Richard Francis, Mieke Kuschnerus, William Simpson, et al. “The Copernicus Sentinel-6 Mission: Enhanced Continuity of Satellite Sea Level Measurements from Space.” Remote Sensing of Environment 258 (June 1, 2021): 112395.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0034425721001139

Other comments or information

Sentinel-6 provides enhanced continuity to the very stabletime series of mean sea level measurements and ocean sea state started in 1992 by the TOPEX/Poseidon mission and follow-on Jason-1, Jason-2 and Jason-3 satellite missions." - Two satellites, second one will be launched in 2025.

Other references

Adebisi N, Balogun A-L, Min TH, Tella A. 2021. Advances in estimating Sea Level Rise: A review of tide gauge, satellite altimetry and spatial data science approaches. Ocean & Coastal Management. 208.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0964569121001174

Ablain, M., Meyssignac, B., Zawadzki, L., Jugier, R., Ribes, A., Spada, G., Benveniste, J., Cazenave, A., and Picot, N. 2019. Uncertainty in satellite estimates of global mean sea-level changes, trend and acceleration, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 11, 1189–1202

https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-1189-2019