Knowledge of the precise orientation of the baseline and the two receiving antennas on board CryoSat is essential for the success of the mission. CryoSat measures this baseline orientation using the position of the stars in the sky. Three star trackers are mounted on the support structure for the antennas. Each contains a camera, which takes up to five pictures per second. The images are analysed by a built-in computer and compared to a catalogue of star positions.

Baseline parameters are available in the Ice and Ocean products. The L1B products contain values for the interferometric baseline vector and real beam direction vector. Both L1B and L2 products contain values for the antenna bench angles (Roll, Pitch and Yaw), which are used to calculate the mispointing angle in the L2 products. This is the angle between the antenna pointing (direction of beam) and the nadir direction, and nominally this should be zero.