Call for Papers

We invite you to participate in the CALCON Technical Meeting by submitting an abstract for an oral or poster presentation.

CALCON promotes the interchange of technical data and lessons learned from programs within the remote sensing community, with emphasis toward calibration.

Technical sessions will be organized to cover a wide range of topics that address interests of the larger sensor calibration community, dependent on the number and quality of submissions received. Each session will focus on a broad theme represented in a selected group of submitted abstracts.

The topics listed below are grouped to illustrate several possible themes for potential technical sessions. However, we welcome abstracts on any topic relating to radiometric sensor calibration.

Session Topics & Themes

Advancements in Radiometric Calibration

Techniques, equipment, methods, and processes to advance radiometric calibration productivity and value

  • Techniques and technologies to meet advanced program calibration performance requirements
  • Methods and techniques for efficient processing of large volumes of remote sensing data
  • Real-time calibration data analysis and performance assessment
  • Guidelines for translating program science requirements into radiometric calibration requirements
  • Efficient experiment data collection design to reduce radiometric calibration schedule and cost
  • Best practices to establish and maintain traceability to accepted National standards throughout program life

Calibration Methods for Climate Change Measurement and Modeling

Calibration methods and techniques to help ensure the designed sensor meets the stringent climate change measurement and modeling requirements for precision and accuracy to achieve climate-quality measurement results

  • Inter-calibration of past and present operational sensor datasets
  • Plans to achieve climate-quality calibration for present and future operational sensors
  • Uncertainty budgeting for climate-quality calibration of environmental remote sensors
  • Environmental remote sensing techniques for climate change measurement and modeling
  • Active and passive sensing of atmospheric constituents
  • Techniques, including multiple measurement synthesis, to achieve long-term, comprehensive data records
  • Data validation process

Calibration Methods Using Celestial Objects

Presentation of radiometric measurements and calibration methods using the Sun, Moon, stars, and other celestial objects in the ultra-violet, visible, and infrared wavelengths

  • Characterization and calibration of celestial sources for on-orbit sensor calibration
  • Post-launch calibration and long-term trending using celestial observations
  • Calibration accuracy using celestial objects
  • Real-life experience and lessons learned using celestial objects for radiometric sensor calibration

Calibration of Microwave Radiometers and Other Microwave Instruments

Calibration and characterization issues associated with making radiometric measurements within the microwave band, including the comparison or fusion of microwave data with data obtained within the optical bands

  • Antenna emission and warm-load gradients due to solar intrusions
  • Inter-sensor comparisons
  • Traceability of microwave calibration to a NIST standard at the sensor data level
  • Long-term stability characteristics

Data Science and Assurance: Their Rising Relevance to Calibration

New data science tools that help mitigate mission vulnerabilities pertaining to algorithm development, sensor design and performance, collection, ingestion, synthesis, transmission, and analysis

  • The benefits of maintaining long-term data-science records for improved data products and results
  • Vulnerability, including calibration, sensor performance, data management, cyber, algorithm bias, supply chain, and bad actors and their motives
  • Network to share calibration best practices, including advances and lessons learned in relation to data science and assurance
  • Novel techniques, with or without ML, for synthesizing and correlating data from multiple payloads
  • Generating learning data for calibration algorithm development
  • Calibration areas well suited to artificial intelligence (AI)/machine learning (ML) applications

National Standards Technology Advancement

Opportunities for communication and collaboration between National standards laboratories and the calibration community to improve calibration technologies and methodologies

  • Calibration traceability to standards—NIST and international
  • Relationship between primary, secondary, and transfer standards and applications to remote sensing
  • Maintenance of a valid calibration throughout instrument life
  • Activities within the community aimed at increasing the quality of our satellite-based measurements

Operational Sensor Inter-Calibration and Validation

Performance comparison between sensors of differing scientific objectives, capabilities, and mission parameters to assess measurement bias and uncertainty

  • Post-launch calibration using onboard and/or vicarious techniques
  • Retrievals through data assimilation with various data used for validation
  • Results of particular approaches, validation campaigns, and experiments
  • Validation techniques, platforms, and instruments
  • Application of calibration results to scientific measurements
  • Requirements and potential approaches for the calibration of global satellite observing sensors

Pre-Launch Testing and Post-Launch Performance

Assessment of pre- and post-launch calibration and performance characterization for operational remote sensing systems

  • Pre-launch and on-orbit measurement techniques
  • Instrument transition from the laboratory to space environments
  • Application of ground calibration results to on-orbit measurements
  • Operational sensor calibration lessons learned

Radiometric Calibration Equipment, Capabilities, and Facilities

Hardware and resources to support National and international requirements for radiometric calibration of remote sensing instruments, including long-term trending and performance enhancements of existing facilities

  • Design, characterization, and validation of test and calibration equipment, facilities, test chambers, and scene simulators (Earth, solar, and other objects)
  • Scene generation and projection for hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing
  • Specialized measurement equipment (spectral, polarization, and other)
  • Long- and short-term accuracy and precision of data sources used for validation, including models
  • Novel techniques, algorithm technologies, and processes to support and enhance the way we approach radiometric calibration

Radiometric Sensor Calibration Uncertainty and Error Analysis

Sensor calibration and characterization relies on models, measurements, and analysis to provide the needed data to derive results while estimating errors and uncertainties show how well the results are understood

  • Modeled vs. measured results
  • Uncertainty and error assessment techniques
  • Measurement equipment characterization methods; both development and operational equipment
  • End-to-end system level uncertainty assessment

Remote Sensing and Calibration of Astronomical Data

Assessing the precision and accuracy of radiometric measurements of astrophysical sources

  • Inter-comparison of ground-test and in-orbit data
  • Methods and techniques for identifying and controlling measurement bias (systematic uncertainties)
  • Reliability of astrophysical standards
  • Inter-calibration of astronomical observing platforms
  • Establishing reliable secondary/transfer standards
  • Sensor calibration and characterization for astronomy

Remote Sensing Calibration Challenges for Environmental Studies

Understanding remote sensing instrument radiometric calibration and characterization for environmental studies

  • Implications of remote sensing strategy (wide-area coverage, indirect sampling, time trending) for radiometric calibration
  • Relating remote sensing radiometry accuracy and precision to remote sensing instrument calibration and characterization
  • Comparison of radiometrically-calibrated measurements to direct sampling and in situ measurements
  • Validation and maintenance of calibration accuracy across measurement data gaps
  • Assimilation of radiometric calibration knowledge, information, and data products into environmental (e.g., weather) models

Sensor Calibration and Testing for Hosted Small Satellite Payloads

Examining small satellite payload calibration testing processes and methods, including accuracy and precision, to discover ways to reduce cost and schedule while still meeting mission requirements

  • Discussions about how new calibration and testing techniques and equipment can be applied to meet mission requirements while maintaining small satellite cost and schedule constraints
  • Novel techniques and sources used to perform radiometric calibration of miniaturized payloads
  • Trade-offs between performing testing at the sub-system, ground, and/or on-orbit levels
  • Calibration planning for upcoming small satellite missions
  • Opportunities to cross calibrate multiple copies of the same sensor when they view the same scene
  • Methods for more efficient, cost-effective small systems analysis, without degrading quality

Sensor Calibration for Ground-Based and Airborne Radiometric Measurements

Technical subjects pertaining to calibration and characterization of remote sensing instruments for ground-based and airborne remote sensing programs

  • Rocket and jet engine plume signature measurements
  • Calibration methods for atmospheric contaminant monitoring and characterization
  • Calibration requirements for ground-based and airborne radiometric measurements
  • Real-world measurement results and calibration lessons learned
  • Unique challenges and opportunities for ground and airborne measurements

Space Station Instruments

Unique challenges and advantages associated with International Space Station (ISS) payload design, calibration, and operation

  • Completing science objectives within the time allocated on the ISS
  • Special materials and contamination considerations
  • Unique ground test and calibration requirements
  • Space station-specific concept of operations

Targets, Clutter, and Discrimination

Data processing algorithms used to derive information from measurements that are on the edge of a payload’s capability, such as locating and identifying targets of interest for payloads measuring from a low (astronomical) or high (Earth-observing) background, and improve the accuracy of resulting data

  • Algorithms used to track closely spaced objects
  • Resolution of closely spaced objects
  • Understanding noise within a measurement
  • Classification techniques to identify and track targets
  • Identifying targets in various conditions (clear, partly cloudy, full cloudy, etc.)