Assessment of TanDEM-X interferometry over the marginal region of Antarctic ice sheet

TanDEM mission enables the generation of high resolution digital elevation model over fast changing surfaces such as the Antarctic ice sheets. This study assesses the surface elevation over the marginal region of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica. The absolute height of SAR interferometry was derived by utilizing CryoSat-2 radar altimeter over the same region with minimizing temporal differences between the datasets. Then, the derived heights are compared with the airborne laser and radar altimetry data from the Operation IceBridge. The results show that surface and coherence are two main factors causing height offsets between the datasets, however, each effect must be separated for more accurate analysis.