Speaker
Dr
Emmanuel Dekemper
(Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy)
Description
ALTIUS relies on the sucessful heritage of pioneering, though sucessful UV-VIS-NIR limb missions (OSIRIS, SCIAMACHY, SAGE-III, or GOMOS among others). They have demonstrated the possibility of retrieving atmospheric trace species concentration profiles from limb-scattered solar light, or from directly transmitted light from celestial bodies. To achieve this, most of them have sampled the light field (the bright limb, or the Sun) layer by layer, experiencing a strong sensitivity to pointing knowledge error,a nd a critical need for accurate pointing calibration. Thanks to recent advances in spectral imaging techniques (mainly with AOTFs and Fabry-Prot interferometers), ALTIUS was designed as a true hyperspectral imager recording monochromatic images of the scene with and unprecedent vertical and horizontal sampling (< 1km), and a moderate spectral resolution (1-10nm). Combined with the good attitude control of the micro-satellite platform, the instrument concept allows for easier pointing calibration, and much simpler control during occultations (by inertial pointing instead of dynamic tracking).
During this talk, we will present the main features of the ALTIUS mission. We will show how to exploit at best the capabilities of a true hyperspectral imager in limb geometry, not only in pure measurement conditions, but also during in-flight calibration or special observation campaigns. An overview of the current payload and platform design will be given, while some typical measurement scenarios will be explored.
Primary author
Dr
Emmanuel Dekemper
(Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy)
Co-author
Dr
Didier Fussen
(IASB)
