| Abstract: | Sea surface slope computed from along-track Jason-1 and TOPEX/POSEIDON (T/P) altimeter data at ocean mesoscale wavelengths are compared to determine the equivalent 1 Hz instrument height noise of the Poseidon-2 and TOPEX altimeters. This geophysical evaluation shows that the Ku-band 1-Hz range noise for both instruments is better than 1.7 cm at 2 m significant wave heights (H1/3), exceeding error budget requirements for both missions. Furthermore, we show that the quality of these instruments allows optimal filtering of the 1-Hz along-track sea surface height data for sea surface slopes that can be used to calculate cross track geostrophic velocity anomalies at the baroclinic Rossby radius of deformation to better than 5 cm/sec precision along 87.5% of the satellite ground track between 2 and 60 degrees absolute latitude over the deep abyssal ocean (depths greater than 1000 m). This level of precision will facilitate scientific studies of surface geostrophic velocity variability using data from the Jason-1 and T/P Tandem Mission. |
