[Satellite Today – 2-11-08] Thales Alenia Space has delivered SIRAL-2, the synthetic aperture interferometric radar altimeter for the CryoSat-2 mission, to prime contractor EADS Astrium, Thales announced Feb. 11.
    CryoSat-2 will measure ice thickness around the globe to determine whether the polar ice caps are shrinking and help increase the understanding of the relationship between ice and global climate.
    SIRAL-2 is the main scientific instrument of the satellite, a European Space Agency program expected to be lofted into orbit in March 2009.