CoAuthors

Adrien C.H. Martin (National Oceanography Centre, UK); Bertrand Chapron (Ifremer, France); Jose Marquez (Starlab, Spain); Byron Richards (Airbus Defence & Space, UK); Marco Caparrini (Starlab, Spain); Geoff Burbidge (Airbus Defence & Space, UK); David Cotton (Satellite Oceanographic Consultants Ltd, UK)

Synoptic maps of total ocean surface currents from space are needed to improve parameterisations of oceanic sub-mesoscale dynamics and represent their impact on global ocean circulation, air-sea exchanges and the marine ecosys-tem. Wavemill is a hybrid interferometric SAR instrument that seeks to deliver high-resolution high-accuracy maps of ocean surface current vectors. It measures the total ocean surface current, including ageostrophic components, in one single-pass. Other secondary products include ocean wind vectors, swell, and some estimate of ocean surface topography. Proposed as an ESA Earth Explorer, the mission's prime objective is to deliver ocean surface current vector maps over two 100 km swaths with a resolution of 1 km or finer.