Relative Height Error Estimation Method for TanDEM-X DEM Products

Inhalt:
TanDEM-X (TerraSAR-X add-on for Digital Elevation Measurement), an innovative SAR interferometer consisting of two formation-flying satellites, opens a new era in spaceborne radar remote sensing. The main objective of the mission is to generate an accurate digital elevation model (DEM) of the Earth, homogeneous in quality and unprecedented in accuracy. This paper presents a description of the technique to quantify the DEM performance in terms of the linear point-to-point relative height error, solely based on the data of the TanDEM-X products. First results obtained from TanDEM-X intermediate DEMs of different land cover types are shown.