The TanDEM-X mission: A new measurement of the earth's topography and much more

This paper summarizes the achievements of the TanDEM-X mission with respect to its main mission goal as well as to its secondary mission objectives. While the primary mission goal has been the generation of a new global digital elevation model (DEM) of the Earth's surface with unprecedented accuracy, a variety of secondary objectives have been defined which constitute an important asset of this challenging mission. Based on the bi-static interferometric capabilities of TanDEM-X with up to four phase centers, a number of innovative technological experiments have been carried out and new applications demonstrated paving the way for future multi-static SAR missions with advanced techniques and technologies.