Development of geo-information technique and experimental studies on cross-calibration of Kanopus-V spacecraft series’ RSE sensors

Abstract

Cross-calibration of the Earth’s remote sensing payload is an addition to the traditionally used flight calibration. It consists of homogeneous terrain regions` image acquiring with a calibrated and reference apparatus and comparing the measured values of the spectral radiance. When selecting references for cross-calibration, the main requirements are the proximity of the spatial resolution and spectral channels of the satellite payload, as well as the observation conditions. Remote sensing spacecrafts Sentinel-2A / 2B and Landsat 8 were selected asreferences. An algorithm was developed to search for intersections of Earth remote sensing satellites ground tracks, which enables finding the parts of the Earth’s surface observed from satellites involved in calibration at a time difference not exceeding 30 minutes. Prediction of satellite paths is carried out using the analytical propagation model SGP4, and two-line element sets of orbital parameters (TLE) taken from open sources. Using the obtained intersection points of propagated ground tracks, the Kanopus-V grouping survey was planned and the corresponding materials by foreign systems were obtained. Basing on them, spectral radiance values obtained by calibrating satellites were compared showing the result of less than 10 % discrepancy.