A dataset provided by the European Space Agency

Name MEX-M-MARSIS-3-RDR-SS-EXT6
Mission MARS-EXPRESS
URL https://archives.esac.esa.int/psa/ftp//pub/mirror/MARS-EXPRESS/MARSIS/MEX-M-MARSIS-3-RDR-SS-EXT6-V1.0
DOI https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-vqrqscp
Abstract This dataset contains subsurface sounding data from the MARS EXPRESS MARS MARSIS EXPERIMENT DATA RECORD EXTENSION 6 V1.0 Data Set that have been uncompressed, corrected for Automated Gain Control, aligned to a reference altitude and, except for data acquired using the SS2 mode, range processed after correcting for the distortion of the transmitted signal caused by the ionosphere.
Description Data Set Overview = MARSIS Level 2 data products consist of Level 1b data that have been uncompressed, corrected for Automated Gain Control, aligned to a reference altitude and, except for data acquired using the SS2 mode, range-processed after correcting for the distortion of the transmitted signal caused by the ionosphere. Echoes collected in the acquisition (ACQ) phase, having a much smaller bandwidth, do not have a vertical resolution sufficient for scientific analysis, and thus are not used in generating Reduced Data Records. Geometric information needed to locate observations in space and time is also provided in the Data Set. Parameters MARSIS data are the result of the processing of groups of echoes called frames. A frame is produced by the coherent summation of many tens of echoes. Each frame is recorded as a time series of complex signal samples. Scientific data in a frame are complemented by a set of engineering data, produced by the instrument and recording parameter values used in pulse transmission, echo reception and on-board processing, and by geometric information needed to locate observations in space and time. Processing Level 2 processing of subsurface sounding data consists of several steps, needed to convert the instrument telemetry into a collection of radar echoes that can be used for geological analysis and interpretation of the Martian subsurface. These are: Data de-compression: 8-bit spectrum samples are converted back to 4-byte real numbers. AGC compensation: the gain scaling factor, applied during Automated Gain Compensation, is applied to the data. Receiving time compensation: echoes are shifted in time to refer them to a common altitude above the Martian ellipsoid. Range compression: the received signal is convolved with the transmitted signal to increase range resolution and signal-to-noise ratio. Ionosphere distortion correction: an algorithm to c...
Instrument MARSIS
Temporal Coverage 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z/2018-12-31T00:00:00Z
Version V1.0
Mission Description Mission Overview Mars Express was the first flexible mission of the revised long-term ESA Science Programme Horizons 2000 and was launched to the planet Mars from Baikonur (Kazakhstan) on June 2nd 2003. A Soyuz-Fregat launcher injected the Mars Express total mass of about 1200 kg into Mars transfer orbit. Details about the mission launch sequence and profile can be obtained from the Mission Plan (MEX-MMT-RP-0221) and from the Consolidated Report on Mission Analysis (CREMA)(MEX-ESC-RP- 5500). The mission consisted of (i) a 3-axis stabilized orbiter with a fixed high-gain antenna and body-mounted instruments, and (ii) a lander named BEAGLE-2, and was dedicated to the orbital and in-situ study of the interior, subsurface, surface and atmosphere of the planet. After ejection of a small lander on 18 December 2003 and Mars orbit insertion (MOI) on 25 December 2003, the orbiter experiments began the acquisition of scientific data from Mars and its environment in a polar elliptical orbit. The nominal mission lifetime for the orbiter was 687 days following Mars orbit insertion, starting after a 5 months cruise. The nominal science phase was extended (tbc) for another Martian year in order to complement earlier observations and allow data relay communications for various potential Mars landers up to 2008, provided that the spacecraft resources permit it. The Mars Express spacecraft represented the core of the mission, being scientifically justified on its own by investigations such as high- resolution imaging and mineralogical mapping of the surface, radar sounding of the subsurface structure down to the permafrost, precise determination of the atmospheric circulation and composition, and study of the interaction of the atmosphere with the interplanetary medium. The broad scientific objectives of the orbiter payload are briefly listed thereafter and are given more extensively in the experiment publications con...
Creator Contact ROBERTO OROSEI
Date Published 2019-12-31T00:00:00Z
Publisher And Registrant European Space Agency
Credit Guidelines European Space Agency, 2019-12-31T00:00:00Z, MEX-M-MARSIS-3-RDR-SS-EXT6, V1.0. https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-vqrqscp