COSMO-SkyMed: Calibration & validation resources and activities

COSMO-SkyMed is the largest Italian investment in Space Systems for Earth Observation, commissioned and funded by Italian Space Agency (ASI) and Italian Ministry of Defense (MoD). It consists of a constellation of Low Earth Orbit mid-sized satellites, each carrying a multi-mode high resolution Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) instrument operating at X-band and a full featured Global Ground Segment to properly exploit space capabilities. In the framework of COSMO SkyMed mission, the CALVAL represents the system element that performs the calibration activities and the assessment of the image quality. In this paper main characteristics, driving requirements, technical choices and CALVAL first results are described.