TanDEM-X commissioning phase status

After the recent launch of the TanDEM-X satellite, the twin of TerraSAR-X, its demanding commissioning phase has started. On the one hand, it has to ensure the same monostatic operation performance as TerraSAR-X. On the other hand, the bistatic aspects have to be verified, which are essential for the acquisition of the global digital elevation model (DEM). This has to be done in a limited time period in order to keep the required nominal operation duration. This paper shows the summary of the commissioning phase activities and its running status.