F-SAR Airborne Measurement Campaign in Iceland for VERITAS

Abstract:
Non-vegetated volcanic surfaces are rare on Earth, but are important test beds for preparing an interplanetary mission to Venus, Earth's neighbour, which has a very similar structure and volcanic activity. Both NASA and ESA are planning new SAR missions to Venus in the early 2030s. In August 2023, the German Aerospace Center and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory conducted a joint measurement campaign in Iceland in preparation for the VERITAS (Venus Emissivity, Radio science, InSAR, Topography, And Spectroscopy) mission to Venus. While the VERITAS ground team collected ground truth at test sites near the volcano Askja in central Iceland and on the Reykjanes peninsula, the F-SAR sensor on board a DLR research aircraft acquired multi-frequency radar data in seven measurement flights between 31 July and 9 August. Initial processing of some of the data was carried out immediately after the flights to ensure data quality and to satisfy curiosity. The data is currently being fully processed at DLR in Germany and will then be made available for scientific analysis by the VERITAS partners.