The European Space Agency has released the first data from the Cryosat-2, a satellite designed to measure ice thickness. The data will be correlated with data from other satellites to produce a comprehensive picture of ice melt as the Earth warms.

Although data was first gathered on 13 April 2010, only days after the 8 April launch, an extensive programme of testing and verification was required to ensure the accuracy of onboard instruments. Previous satellites have had the ability to measure ice spread and distribution, but not its thickness.

"Immediately, we can see we achieve this main mission goal - complete coverage of the ice sheet," said Dr. Duncan Wingham, Cryosat's lead investigator. "It's quite a fine piece of equipment." The instruments aboard are routinely delivering five to six times more detail than what their original specifications required, he added.

"We can do the sea level part of the mission quite well," said Wingham, referencing Cryosat's secondary mission of measuring sea ice, "and we're not even trying very hard."

Cryosat-1, an identical twin to the current satellite, was destroyed during launch when the second stage of its carrier rocket malfunctioned.

Source: Flight Daily News