Real-time processing of X-SAR images during the SRTM mission

The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) took place on February 2000 with the successful contribution of NASA, NIMA, JPL, DLR and ASI (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana). For this mission ALENIA SPAZIO developed an on-ground processing-chain allowing the real-time processing of echoes received by the X-SAR instrument operating on board the shuttle. This paper describes the SRTM mission for what concerns ASI and ALENIA SPAZIO participation, the role of the processing-chain during and after the mission, and in particular the fundamental role played by the Signum-Coded SAR Processor (SCSP) in terms of raw data processing. This processing has been real-time performed thanks to an innovative processing algorithm, developed by the University of Naples, implemented by means of an extensive usage of the FPGAs technology. Finally, the paper describes the results of the mission in terms of performances and image-products.