Look Angle Correction for SMAP L-Band Radiometer Using Geolocation Measurements

Geolocation of the radiometer footprint in scanning instruments such as SMAP (Soil Moisture Active Passive) has been successfully demonstrated using the change in antenna temperature as the radiometer scans across land/water boundaries (coastlines). This measurement provides the distance of the footprint from the nominal coastline, but it does not provide information about the error in look angle and azimuth of the antenna boresight vector needed to correct the geolocation error. A method for doing this is reported using fore and aft crossings of the boundary. The approach is demonstrated using the SMAP radiometer simulator and then applied to SMAP data over the west coast of Madagascar. The error estimates of 0.3° for the look angle and 0.15° for azimuth are consistent with independent estimates.