TOPEX/Poseidon
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
The TOPEX/Poseidon satellite altimeter is a science project to measure the ocean surface topography. It has (near) global coverage from 66°N to 66°S (almost all of the ice-free oceans) from late 1992 to the present. The current accuracy of TOPEX/POSEIDON data allows global average sea level to be estimated to a precision of several millimetres every 10 days.
It is a joint project between the CNES (France) and NASA (United States) space agencies.
The program is named after the greek god Poseidon.
It contains two altimeters onboard sharing the same antenna, only one altimeter can be operated at any time, with TOPEX given preference (on average 9 in 10 cycles)
- TOPEX (TOPological EXperiment) :The NASA built Nadir pointing Radar Altimeter using C band and Ku band for measuring height above sea surface.
- Posideon: The CNES built solid state Nadir pointing Radar Altimeter using Ku band.
The successor of TOPEX/Poseidon is Jason 1.
Data from TOPEX/Poseidon indicate that sea level has risen at about 3 mm/yr since 1992 - see sea level rise for more.
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External links
- Official site at CNES (http://www.cnes.fr/html/_455_461_1461_.php)
- Official site at NASA (http://topex-www.jpl.nasa.gov/)
