Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT)
The MASS instrument package was installed on NASA Johnson Space Center’s Gulfstream V (GV) aircraft as part of the calibration & validation phases of the Surface Water and Ocean Toppography (SWOT) satellite launch. Two sets of flights were flown in the GV in April and June of 2023 and were based from Monterey, California. Strategic flight patterns were flown at a satellite overcrossing site located approximately 350km west of Monterey to assess satellite performance in its early orbital stages by comparing overlapping data products. Another set of flights based from Monterey were carried out over the same test site in late March and early April of 2019 in the GV as part of a proof of concept pilot experiment.
Location
Coincident calibration flights were conducted approximately 350km west of Monterey, California.
Time
Pilot calibration and validation flights were conducted in March and April of 2019. Actual SWOT calibration and validation flights were conducted in April and June of 2023.
Media
Cal/Val Flights (April & June 2023)
Pilot Cal/Val Flights (March/April 2019)
Video showing the MASS integration with the NASA JSC Gulfstream V for the SWOT Calibration and Validation Pilot Program.