Publication details.

Paper

Year:	2017
Author(s):	E. E. Heslop, A. Sánchez-Román, A. Pascual, D. Rodríguez, K. A. Reeve, Y. Faugère, M. Raynal
Title:	Sentinel-3A views ocean variability more accurately at finer resolution
Journal:	GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
ISSN:	0094-8276
JCR Impact Factor:	4.339
Volume:	44
Issue No.:	24
Pages:	12367-12374
D.O.I.:	10.1002/2017GL076244
Web:	https:// doi.org/10.1002/2017GL076244
Abstract:	This is the first multiplatform evaluation involving data from the new Sentinel-3A altimeter. An experiment was undertaken in the Algerian Basin, employing an ocean glider and a ship mission, along the same track and synchronous with an overpass of the Sentinel-3A mission. This provided three independent views of the ocean velocity field, along a section that encompassed three different oceanographic regimes. The results demonstrate the capacity of Sentinel-3A to retrieve fine-scale oceanographic features (~20 km). The intercomparison with in situ platforms showed a significant improvement, order 30% in resolution and 42% in velocity accuracy using a synthetic aperture radar mode with respect to lower-resolution mode of conventional altimetry. In addition, the three-platform view provided valuable insight into the variability of evolving oceanographic features, in an area of the Mediterranean that remains chronically under sampled.