On-board digital RFI and polarimetry processor for future spaceborne radiometer systems

Man-made Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) is an increasingly threatening problem for passive microwave radiometry from space. The problem is presently very evident in L-band data from SMOS, but it is realized that it is already now a problem at other traditional radiometer bands at C, X, and Ku bands. Studies of data from existing radiometer systems have revealed this, and clearly indicates increasing RFI intensity over time. Thus, future missions have to take this into consideration, and dedicated hardware and algorithms to safely detect and mitigate RFI must be included. The design of such an RFI processor is discussed, and resource demands on the spacecraft are indicated.