Publications

Wilson, T; Angal, A; Xiong, XX (2020). Orbital Path and Spacecraft Attitude Correction for the MODIS Lunar Spatial Characterization. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON GEOSCIENCE AND REMOTE SENSING, 58(2), 1063-1073.

Abstract
For the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra and Aqua platforms, regularly scheduled lunar observations using spacecraft roll maneuvers have been used extensively for sensor characterization. While the primary purpose of these observations is for radiometric calibration of the reflective solar bands, they have also been leveraged for a number of other sensor performance assessments, such as the band-to-band spatial registration (BBR) and detector-to-detector spatial registration (DDR). The spatial registration calculations are complicated by the fact that the Moon does not move in a straight path across the sensor field of view (FOV). This path is determined by the relative orbital motion between the spacecraft and the Moon and the instrument attitude error that results from the roll maneuver. In this article, we develop a correction for the MODIS lunar spatial characterization measurements by calculating the predicted path of the Moon across the sensor FOV using spacecraft and lunar ephemeris data to model the relative orbital motion between the spacecraft and the Moon along with spacecraft attitude error data acquired during the roll maneuver. The difference between the measured and predicted positions of the Moon in the MODIS FOV can be used to calculate the BBR and DDR results. Since the predicted path across the FOV will be the same for each band, the BBR results will be minimally affected. However, we will show that the along-scan spread in the DDR can be significantly reduced, which results in a much greater consistency throughout the full mission for both Aqua and Terra MODIS.

DOI:
10.1109/TGRS.2019.2943254

ISSN:
0196-2892