Sample records for airborne polarimetric synthetic

  1. Initial assessment of an airborne Ku-band polarimetric SAR.

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Raynal, Ann Marie; Doerry, Armin Walter

    2013-02-01

    Polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) has been used for a variety of dual-use research applications since the 1940s. By measuring the direction of the electric field vector from radar echoes, polarimetry may enhance an analysts understanding of scattering effects for both earth monitoring and tactical surveillance missions. Polarimetry may provide insight into surface types, materials, or orientations for natural and man-made targets. Polarimetric measurements may also be used to enhance the contrast between scattering surfaces such as man-made objects and their surroundings. This report represents an initial assessment of the utility of, and applications for, polarimetric SAR at Ku-band formore » airborne or unmanned aerial systems.« less

  2. Design and Performance of a Multiwavelength Airborne Polarimetric Lidar for Vegetation Remote Sensing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tan, Songxin; Narayanan, Ram M.

    2004-04-01

    The University of Nebraska has developed a multiwavelength airborne polarimetric lidar (MAPL) system to support its Airborne Remote Sensing Program for vegetation remote sensing. The MAPL design and instrumentation are described in detail. Characteristics of the MAPL system include lidar waveform capture and polarimetric measurement capabilities, which provide enhanced opportunities for vegetation remote sensing compared with current sensors. Field tests were conducted to calibrate the range measurement. Polarimetric calibration of the system is also discussed. Backscattered polarimetric returns, as well as the cross-polarization ratios, were obtained from a small forested area to validate the system's ability for vegetation canopy detection. The system has been packaged to fly abroad a Piper Saratoga aircraft for airborne vegetation remote sensing applications.

  3. Airborne polarimetric Doppler weather radar: trade-offs between various engineering specifications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vivekanandan, Jothiram; Loew, Eric

    2018-01-01

    NCAR EOL is investigating potential configurations for the next-generation airborne phased array radar (APAR) that is capable of retrieving dynamic and microphysical characteristics of clouds and precipitation. The APAR will operate at C band. The APAR will use the electronic scanning (e-scan) feature to acquire the optimal number of independent samples for recording research-quality measurements. Since the airborne radar has only a limited time for collecting measurements over a specified region (moving aircraft platform ˜ 100 m s-1), beam multiplexing will significantly enhance its ability to collect high-resolution, research-quality measurements. Beam multiplexing reduces errors in radar measurements while providing rapid updates of scan volumes. Beamwidth depends on the size of the antenna aperture. Beamwidth and directivity of elliptical, circular, and rectangular antenna apertures are compared and radar sensitivity is evaluated for various polarimetric configurations and transmit-receive (T/R) elements. In the case of polarimetric measurements, alternate transmit with alternate receive (single-channel receiver) and simultaneous reception (dual-channel receiver) is compared. From an overall architecture perspective, element-level digitization of T/R module versus digital sub-array is considered with regard to flexibility in adaptive beamforming, polarimetric performance, calibration, and data quality. Methodologies for calibration of the radar and removing bias in polarimetric measurements are outlined. The above-mentioned engineering options are evaluated for realizing an optimal APAR system suitable for measuring the high temporal and spatial resolutions of Doppler and polarimetric measurements of precipitation and clouds.

  4. Oil detection in a coastal marsh with polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ramsey, Elijah W.; Rangoonwala, Amina; Suzuoki, Yukihiro; Jones, Cathleen E.

    2011-01-01

    The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's airborne Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) was deployed in June 2010 in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. UAVSAR is a fully polarimetric L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) sensor for obtaining data at high spatial resolutions. Starting a month prior to the UAVSAR collections, visual observations confirmed oil impacts along shorelines within northeastern Barataria Bay waters in eastern coastal Louisiana. UAVSAR data along several flight lines over Barataria Bay were collected on 23 June 2010, including the repeat flight line for which data were collected in June 2009. Our analysis of calibrated single-look complex data for these flight lines shows that structural damage of shoreline marsh accompanied by oil occurrence manifested as anomalous features not evident in pre-spill data. Freeman-Durden (FD) and Cloude-Pottier (CP) decompositions of the polarimetric data and Wishart classifications seeded with the FD and CP classes also highlighted these nearshore features as a change in dominant scattering mechanism. All decompositions and classifications also identify a class of interior marshes that reproduce the spatially extensive changes in backscatter indicated by the pre- and post-spill comparison of multi-polarization radar backscatter data. FD and CP decompositions reveal that those changes indicate a transform of dominant scatter from primarily surface or volumetric to double or even bounce. Given supportive evidence that oil-polluted waters penetrated into the interior marshes, it is reasonable that these backscatter changes correspond with oil exposure; however, multiple factors prevent unambiguous determination of whether UAVSAR detected oil in interior marshes.

  5. Calibration of a polarimetric imaging SAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sarabandi, K.; Pierce, L. E.; Ulaby, F. T.

    1991-01-01

    Calibration of polarimetric imaging Synthetic Aperture Radars (SAR's) using point calibration targets is discussed. The four-port network calibration technique is used to describe the radar error model. The polarimetric ambiguity function of the SAR is then found using a single point target, namely a trihedral corner reflector. Based on this, an estimate for the backscattering coefficient of the terrain is found by a deconvolution process. A radar image taken by the JPL Airborne SAR (AIRSAR) is used for verification of the deconvolution calibration method. The calibrated responses of point targets in the image are compared both with theory and the POLCAL technique. Also, response of a distributed target are compared using the deconvolution and POLCAL techniques.

  6. Airborne system for multispectral, multiangle polarimetric imaging.

    PubMed

    Bowles, Jeffrey H; Korwan, Daniel R; Montes, Marcos J; Gray, Deric J; Gillis, David B; Lamela, Gia M; Miller, W David

    2015-11-01

    In this paper, we describe the design, fabrication, calibration, and deployment of an airborne multispectral polarimetric imager. The motivation for the development of this instrument was to explore its ability to provide information about water constituents, such as particle size and type. The instrument is based on four 16 MP cameras and uses wire grid polarizers (aligned at 0°, 45°, 90°, and 135°) to provide the separation of the polarization states. A five-position filter wheel provides for four narrow-band spectral filters (435, 550, 625, and 750 nm) and one blocked position for dark-level measurements. When flown, the instrument is mounted on a programmable stage that provides control of the view angles. View angles that range to ±65° from the nadir have been used. Data processing provides a measure of the polarimetric signature as a function of both the view zenith and view azimuth angles. As a validation of our initial results, we compare our measurements, over water, with the output of a Monte Carlo code, both of which show neutral points off the principle plane. The locations of the calculated and measured neutral points are compared. The random error level in the measured degree of linear polarization (8% at 435) is shown to be better than 0.25%.

  7. Software For Calibration Of Polarimetric SAR Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Van Zyl, Jakob; Zebker, Howard; Freeman, Anthony; Holt, John; Dubois, Pascale; Chapman, Bruce

    1994-01-01

    POLCAL (Polarimetric Radar Calibration) software tool intended to assist in calibration of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) systems. In particular, calibrates Stokes-matrix-format data produced as standard product by NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) airborne imaging synthetic aperture radar (AIRSAR). Version 4.0 of POLCAL is upgrade of version 2.0. New options include automatic absolute calibration of 89/90 data, distributed-target analysis, calibration of nearby scenes with corner reflectors, altitude or roll-angle corrections, and calibration of errors introduced by known topography. Reduces crosstalk and corrects phase calibration without use of ground calibration equipment. Written in FORTRAN 77.

  8. Integrating polarimetric synthetic aperture radar and imaging spectrometry for wildland fuel mapping in southern California

    Treesearch

    P.E. Dennison; D.A. Roberts; J. Regelbrugge; S.L. Ustin

    2000-01-01

    Polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and imaging spectrometry exemplify advanced technologies for mapping wildland fuels in chaparral ecosystems. In this study, we explore the potential of integrating polarimetric SAR and imaging spectrometry for mapping wildland fuels. P-band SAR and ratios containing P-band polarizations are sensitive to variations in stand...

  9. Agricultural crop harvest progress monitoring by fully polarimetric synthetic aperture radar imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Hao; Zhao, Chunjiang; Yang, Guijun; Li, Zengyuan; Chen, Erxue; Yuan, Lin; Yang, Xiaodong; Xu, Xingang

    2015-01-01

    Dynamic mapping and monitoring of crop harvest on a large spatial scale will provide critical information for the formulation of optimal harvesting strategies. This study evaluates the feasibility of C-band polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) for monitoring the harvesting progress of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) fields. Five multitemporal, quad-pol Radarsat-2 images and one optical ZY-1 02C image were acquired over a farmland area in China during the 2013 growing season. Typical polarimetric signatures were obtained relying on polarimetric decomposition methods. Temporal evolutions of these signatures of harvested fields were compared with the ones of unharvested fields in the context of the entire growing cycle. Significant sensitivity was observed between the specific polarimetric parameters and the harvest status of oilseed rape fields. Based on this sensitivity, a new method that integrates two polarimetric features was devised to detect the harvest status of oilseed rape fields using a single image. The validation results are encouraging even for the harvested fields covered with high residues. This research demonstrates the capability of PolSAR remote sensing in crop harvest monitoring, which is a step toward more complex applications of PolSAR data in precision agriculture.

  10. The Next Generation Airborne Polarimetric Doppler Radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vivekanandan, J.; Lee, Wen-Chau; Loew, Eric; Salazar, Jorge; Chandrasekar, V.

    2013-04-01

    NCAR's Electra Doppler radar (ELDORA) with a dual-beam slotted waveguide array using dual-transmitter, dual-beam, rapid scan and step-chirped waveform significantly improved the spatial scale to 300m (Hildebrand et al. 1996). However, ELDORA X-band radar's penetration into precipitation is limited by attenuation and is not designed to collect polarimetric measurements to remotely estimate microphysics. ELDORA has been placed on dormancy because its airborne platform (P3 587) was retired in January 2013. The US research community has strongly voiced the need to continue measurement capability similar to the ELDORA. A critical weather research area is quantitative precipitation estimation/forecasting (QPE/QPF). In recent years, hurricane intensity change involving eye-eyewall interactions has drawn research attention (Montgomery et al., 2006; Bell and Montgomery, 2006). In the case of convective precipitation, two issues, namely, (1) when and where convection will be initiated, and (2) determining the organization and structure of ensuing convection, are key for QPF. Therefore collocated measurements of 3-D winds and precipitation microphysics are required for achieving significant skills in QPF and QPE. Multiple radars in dual-Doppler configuration with polarization capability estimate dynamical and microphysical characteristics of clouds and precipitation are mostly available over land. However, storms over complex terrain, the ocean and in forest regions are not observable by ground-based radars (Bluestein and Wakimoto, 2003). NCAR/EOL is investigating potential configurations for the next generation airborne radar that is capable of retrieving dynamic and microphysical characteristics of clouds and precipitation. ELDORA's slotted waveguide array radar is not compatible for dual-polarization measurements. Therefore, the new design has to address both dual-polarization capability and platform requirements to replace the ELDORA system. NCAR maintains a C-130

  11. Polarimetric Remote Sensing of Geophysical Medium Structures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Yueh, S. H.; Kwok, R.; Nguyen, D. T.

    1993-01-01

    Polarimetric remote sensing of structures in geophysical media is studied in this paper based on their symmetry properties. Orientations of spheroidal scatterers described by spherical, uniform, planophile, plagiothile, erectophile, and extremophile distributions are considered to derive their polarimetric backscattering characteristics. These distributions can be identified from the observed scattering coefficients by comparison with theoretical symmetry calculations. A new parameter is defined to study scattering structures in geophysical media. Experimental observations from polarimetric data acquired by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory airborne synthetic aperture radar over forests, sea ice, and sea surface are presented to illustrate the use of symmetry properties. For forests, the coniferous forest in Mount Shasta area and mixed forests neir Presque Isle show evidence of the centrical symmetry at C band. In sea ice from the Beaufort Sea, multiyear sea ice has a cross-polarized ratio e close to e(sub 0), calculated from symmetry, due to the randomness in the scattering structure. For first-year sea ice, e is much smaller than e(sub 0) as a result of preferential alignment of the columnar structure of the ice. From polarimetric data of a sea surface in the Bering sea, it is observed that e and e(sub 0) are increasing with incident angle and e is greater than e(sub 0) at L band because of the directional feature of sea surface waves. Use of symmetry properties of geophysical media for polarimetric radar calibration is also suggested.

  12. Contribution of multitemporal polarimetric synthetic aperture radar data for monitoring winter wheat and rapeseed crops

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Betbeder, Julie; Fieuzal, Remy; Philippets, Yannick; Ferro-Famil, Laurent; Baup, Frederic

    2016-04-01

    This paper aims to evaluate the contribution of multitemporal polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data for winter wheat and rapeseed crops parameters [height, leaf area index, and dry biomass (DB)] estimation, during their whole vegetation cycles in comparison to backscattering coefficients and optical data. Angular sensitivities and dynamics of polarimetric indicators were also analyzed following the growth stages of these two common crop types using, in total, 14 radar images (Radarsat-2), 16 optical images (Formosat-2, Spot-4/5), and numerous ground data. The results of this study show the importance of correcting the angular effect on SAR signals especially for copolarized signals and polarimetric indicators associated to single-bounce scattering mechanisms. The analysis of the temporal dynamic of polarimetric indicators has shown their high potential to detect crop growth changes. Moreover, this study shows the high interest of using SAR parameters (backscattering coefficients and polarimetric indicators) for crop parameters estimation during the whole vegetation cycle instead of optical vegetation index. They particularly revealed their high potential for rapeseed height and DB monitoring [i.e., Shannon entropy polarimetry (r2=0.70) and radar vegetation index (r2=0.80), respectively].

  13. MAX-91: Polarimetric SAR results on Montespertoli site

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Baronti, S.; Luciani, S.; Moretti, S.; Paloscia, S.; Schiavon, G.; Sigismondi, S.

    1993-01-01

    The polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) is a powerful sensor for high resolution ocean and land mapping and particularly for monitoring hydrological parameters in large watersheds. There is currently much research in progress to assess the SAR operational capability as well as to estimate the accuracy achievable in the measurements of geophysical parameters with the presently available airborne and spaceborne sensors. An important goal of this research is to improve our understanding of the basic mechanisms that control the interaction of electro-magnetic waves with soil and vegetation. This can be done both by developing electromagnetic models and by analyzing statistical relations between backscattering and ground truth data. A systematic investigation, which aims at a better understanding of the information obtainable from the multi-frequency polarimetric SAR to be used in agro-hydrology, is in progress by our groups within the framework of SIR-C/X-SAR Project and has achieved a most significant milestone with the NASA/JPL Aircraft Campaign named MAC-91. Indeed this experiment allowed us to collect a large and meaningful data set including multi-temporal multi-frequency polarimetric SAR measurements and ground truth. This paper presents some significant results obtained over an agricultural flat area within the Montespertoli site, where intensive ground measurements were carried out. The results are critically discussed with special regard to the information associated with polarimetric data.

  14. Symmetry in polarimetric remote sensing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Yueh, S. H.; Kwok, R.

    1993-01-01

    Relationships among polarimetric backscattering coefficients are derived from the viewpoint of symmetry groups. For both reciprocal and non-reciprocal media, symmetry encountered in remote sensing due to reflection, rotation, azimuthal, and centrical symmetry groups is considered. The derived properties are general and valid to all scattering mechanisms, including volume and surface scatterings and their interactions, in a given symmetrical configuration. The scattering coefficients calculated from theoretical models for layer random media and rough surfaces are shown to obey the symmetry relations. Use of symmetry properties in remote sensing of structural and environmental responses of scattering media is also discussed. Orientations of spheroidal scatterers described by spherical, uniform, planophile, plagiothile, erectophile, and extremophile distributions are considered to derive their polarimetric backscattering characteristics. These distributions can be identified from the observed scattering coefficients by comparison with theoretical symmetry calculations. A new parameter is then defined to study scattering structures in geophysical media. Observations from polarimetric data acquired by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory airborne synthetic aperture radar over forests, sea ice, and sea surface are presented. Experimental evidences of the symmetry relationships are shown and their use in polarimetric remote sensing is illustrated. For forests, the coniferous forest in Mt. Shasta area (California) and mixed forest near Presque Isle (Maine) exhibit characteristics of the centrical symmetry at C-band. For sea ice in the Beaufort Sea, multi-year sea ice has a cross-polarized ratio e close to e(sub 0), calculated from symmetry, due to the randomness in the scattering structure. First-year sea ice has e much smaller than e(sub 0) due to the preferential alignment of the columnar structure of the ice. From polarimetric data of a sea surface in the Bering Sea, it is

  15. Validation of Distributed Soil Moisture: Airborne Polarimetric SAR vs. Ground-based Sensor Networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jagdhuber, T.; Kohling, M.; Hajnsek, I.; Montzka, C.; Papathanassiou, K. P.

    2012-04-01

    The knowledge of spatially distributed soil moisture is highly desirable for an enhanced hydrological modeling in terms of flood prevention and for yield optimization in combination with precision farming. Especially in mid-latitudes, the growing agricultural vegetation results in an increasing soil coverage along the crop cycle. For a remote sensing approach, this vegetation influence has to be separated from the soil contribution within the resolution cell to extract the actual soil moisture. Therefore a hybrid decomposition was developed for estimation of soil moisture under vegetation cover using fully polarimetric SAR data. The novel polarimetric decomposition combines a model-based decomposition, separating the volume component from the ground components, with an eigen-based decomposition of the two ground components into a surface and a dihedral scattering contribution. Hence, this hybrid decomposition, which is based on [1,2], establishes an innovative way to retrieve soil moisture under vegetation. The developed inversion algorithm for soil moisture under vegetation cover is applied on fully polarimetric data of the TERENO campaign, conducted in May and June 2011 for the Rur catchment within the Eifel/Lower Rhine Valley Observatory. The fully polarimetric SAR data were acquired in high spatial resolution (range: 1.92m, azimuth: 0.6m) by DLR's novel F-SAR sensor at L-band. The inverted soil moisture product from the airborne SAR data is validated with corresponding distributed ground measurements for a quality assessment of the developed algorithm. The in situ measurements were obtained on the one hand by mobile FDR probes from agricultural fields near the towns of Merzenhausen and Selhausen incorporating different crop types and on the other hand by distributed wireless sensor networks (SoilNet clusters) from a grassland test site (near the town of Rollesbroich) and from a forest stand (within the Wüstebach sub-catchment). Each SoilNet cluster

  16. An Analytical Calibration Approach for the Polarimetric Airborne C Band Radiometer

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pham, Hanh; Kim, Edward J.

    2004-01-01

    Passive microwave remote sensing is sensitive to the quantity and distribution of water in soil and vegetation. During summer 2000, the Microwave Geophysics Group at the University of Michigan conducted the 7th Radiobrightness Energy Balance Experiment (REBEX-7) over a corn canopy in Michigan. Long time series of brightness temperatures, soil moisture and micrometeorology on the plot scale were taken. This paper addresses the calibration of the NASA GSFC polarimetric airborne C band microwave radiometer (ACMR) that participated in REBEX-7. Passive polarimeters are typically calibrated using an end-to-end approach based upon a standard artificial target or a well-known geophysical target. Analyzing the major internal functional subsystems offers a different perspective. The primary goal of this approach is to provide a transfer function that not only describes the system in its entirety but also accounts for the contributions of each subsystem toward the final modified Stokes parameters. This approach also serves as a realistic instrument simulator, a useful tool for future designs. The ACMR architecture can be partitioned into several functional subsystems. Each subsystem was extensively measured and the estimated parameters were imported into the overall system model. We will present the results of polarimetric antenna measurements, the instrument model as well as four Stokes observations from REBEX-7 using a first order inversion.

  17. Polarimetric infrared imaging simulation of a synthetic sea surface with Mie scattering.

    PubMed

    He, Si; Wang, Xia; Xia, Runqiu; Jin, Weiqi; Liang, Jian'an

    2018-03-01

    A novel method to simulate the polarimetric infrared imaging of a synthetic sea surface with atmospheric Mie scattering effects is presented. The infrared emission, multiple reflections, and infrared polarization of the sea surface and the Mie scattering of aerosols are all included for the first time. At first, a new approach to retrieving the radiative characteristics of a wind-roughened sea surface is introduced. A two-scale method of sea surface realization and the inverse ray tracing of light transfer calculation are combined and executed simultaneously, decreasing the consumption of time and memory dramatically. Then the scattering process that the infrared light emits from the sea surface and propagates in the aerosol particles is simulated with a polarized light Monte Carlo model. Transformations of the polarization state of the light are calculated with the Mie theory. Finally, the polarimetric infrared images of the sea surface of different environmental conditions and detection parameters are generated based on the scattered light detected by the infrared imaging polarimeter. The results of simulation examples show that our polarimetric infrared imaging simulation can be applied to predict the infrared polarization characteristics of the sea surface, model the oceanic scene, and guide the detection in the oceanic environment.

  18. The Ecosystems SAR (EcoSAR) an Airborne P-band Polarimetric InSAR for the Measurement of Vegetation Structure, Biomass and Permafrost

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rincon, Rafael F.; Fatoyinbo, Temilola; Ranson, K. Jon; Osmanoglu, Batuhan; Sun, Guoqing; Deshpande, Manohar D.; Perrine, Martin L.; Du Toit, Cornelis F.; Bonds, Quenton; Beck, Jaclyn; hide

    2014-01-01

    EcoSAR is a new synthetic aperture radar (SAR) instrument being developed at the NASA/ Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) for the polarimetric and interferometric measurements of ecosystem structure and biomass. The instrument uses a phased-array beamforming architecture and supports full polarimetric measurements and single pass interferometry. This Instrument development is part of NASA's Earth Science Technology Office Instrument Incubator Program (ESTO IIP).

  19. Results of the 1989 experiment with a polarimetric multifrequency SAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Groot, J. S.; Vandenbroek, A. C.

    1992-03-01

    In August 1989, a single day measurement campaign was conducted with two airborne imaging radars, the Dutch X band Side Looking Airborne Radar (SLAR) and the P/L/C band polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). Test sites were the Flevopolder and the Veluwe (agricultural and forested areas, respectively) in the Netherlands. Ground activities included the deployment of several calibration devices like different sized trihedrals, dihedrals, and PARC's (active calibrators). An extensive experiment description is presented. Relevant details of the two radar systems and the calibration devices used are given. The calibration of the SLAR and SAR data is described. The calibrated data is used to investigate its potential for the classification of agricultural crop types. Several quantities are extracted from the data, which are used to do this. Examples are the copolarization phase difference distribution, the degree of polarization, and copolarized signatures. It appears to be quite possible to discriminate bare soil fields from vegetated fields using polarimetric quantities like the HH/VV (Horizontal Horizontal/Vertical Vertical) phase difference distribution and the degree of polarization. However, discrimination between fields with different crop types is much more difficult probably due to interference of features not related to the crop type, such as soil moisture, soil roughness, lodging, etc.

  20. Quantitative Estimation of Above Ground Crop Biomass using Ground-based, Airborne and Spaceborne Low Frequency Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Koyama, C.; Watanabe, M.; Shimada, M.

    2016-12-01

    Estimation of crop biomass is one of the important challenges in environmental remote sensing related to agricultural as well as hydrological and meteorological applications. Usually passive optical data (photographs, spectral data) operating in the visible and near-infrared bands is used for such purposes. The virtue of optical remote sensing for yield estimation, however, is rather limited as the visible light can only provide information about the chemical characteristics of the canopy surface. Low frequency microwave signals with wavelength longer 20 cm have the potential to penetrate through the canopy and provide information about the whole vertical structure of vegetation from the top of the canopy down to the very soil surface. This phenomenon has been well known and exploited to detect targets under vegetation in the military radar application known as FOPEN (foliage penetration). With the availability of polarimetric interferometric SAR data the use PolInSAR techniques to retrieve vertical vegetation structures has become an attractive tool. However, PolInSAR is still highly experimental and suitable data is not yet widely available. In this study we focus on the use of operational dual-polarization L-band (1.27 GHz) SAR which is since the launch of Japan's Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS, 2006-2011) available worldwide. Since 2014 ALOS-2 continues to deliver such kind of partial polarimetric data for the entire land surface. In addition to these spaceborne data sets we use airborne L-band SAR data acquired by the Japanese Pi-SAR-L2 as well as ultra-wideband (UWB) ground based SAR data operating in the frequency range from 1-4 GHz. By exploiting the complex dual-polarization [C2] Covariance matrix information, the scattering contributions from the canopy can be well separated from the ground reflections allowing for the establishment of semi-empirical relationships between measured radar reflectivity and the amount of fresh-weight above

  1. Processing of polarimetric SAR data for soil moisture estimation over Mahantango watershed area

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rao, K. S.; Teng, W. L.; Wang, J. R.

    1992-01-01

    Microwave remote sensing technique has a high potential for measuring soil moisture due to the large contrast in dielectric constant of dry and wet soils. Recent work by Pults et al. demonstrated the use of X/C-band data for quantitative surface soil moisture extraction from Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) system. Similar technique was adopted using polarimetric SAR data acquired with the JPL-AIRSAR system over the Mahantango watershed area in central Pennsylvania during July 1990. The data sets reported include C-, L-, and P-bands of 10, 13, 15, and 17 July 1990.

  2. Properties of radar backscatter of forests measured with a multifrequency polarimetric SAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Amar, F.; Karam, M. A.; Fung, A. K.; De Grandi, G.; Lavalle, C.; Sieber, A.

    1992-01-01

    Fully polarimetric airborne synthetic aperture radar (AIRSAR) data, collected in Germany during the MAC Europe campaign, are calibrated using software packages developed at the Joint Research Center (JRC) in Italy for both L- and C-bands. During the period of the overflight dates, extensive ground truth was collected in order to describe the physical and statistical parameters of the canopy, the understory, and the soil. These parameters are compiled and converted into electromagnetic parameters suitable for input to the new polarimetric three-layer canopy model developed at the Wave Scattering Research Center (WSRC) at the University of Texas at Arlington. Comparisons between the theoretical predictions from the model and the calibrated data are carried out. Initial results reveal that the trend of the average phase difference can be predicted by the model, and that the backscattering ratio *shh/ svv is sensitive to the distribution of the primary branches.

  3. Estimation of Bridge Height over Water from Polarimetric SAR Image Data Using Mapping and Projection Algorithm and De-Orientation Theory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Haipeng; Xu, Feng; Jin, Ya-Qiu; Ouchi, Kazuo

    An inversion method of bridge height over water by polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is developed. A geometric ray description to illustrate scattering mechanism of a bridge over water surface is identified by polarimetric image analysis. Using the mapping and projecting algorithm, a polarimetric SAR image of a bridge model is first simulated and shows that scattering from a bridge over water can be identified by three strip lines corresponding to single-, double-, and triple-order scattering, respectively. A set of polarimetric parameters based on the de-orientation theory is applied to analysis of three types scattering, and the thinning-clustering algorithm and Hough transform are then employed to locate the image positions of these strip lines. These lines are used to invert the bridge height. Fully polarimetric image data of airborne Pi-SAR at X-band are applied to inversion of the height and width of the Naruto Bridge in Japan. Based on the same principle, this approach is also applicable to spaceborne ALOSPALSAR single-polarization data of the Eastern Ocean Bridge in China. The results show good feasibility to realize the bridge height inversion.

  4. Extracting DEM from airborne X-band data based on PolInSAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hou, X. X.; Huang, G. M.; Zhao, Z.

    2015-06-01

    Polarimetric Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolInSAR) is a new trend of SAR remote sensing technology which combined polarized multichannel information and Interferometric information. It is of great significance for extracting DEM in some regions with low precision of DEM such as vegetation coverage area and building concentrated area. In this paper we describe our experiments with high-resolution X-band full Polarimetric SAR data acquired by a dual-baseline interferometric airborne SAR system over an area of Danling in southern China. Pauli algorithm is used to generate the double polarimetric interferometry data, Singular Value Decomposition (SVD), Numerical Radius (NR) and Phase diversity (PD) methods are used to generate the full polarimetric interferometry data. Then we can make use of the polarimetric interferometric information to extract DEM with processing of pre filtering , image registration, image resampling, coherence optimization, multilook processing, flat-earth removal, interferogram filtering, phase unwrapping, parameter calibration, height derivation and geo-coding. The processing system named SARPlore has been exploited based on VC++ led by Chinese Academy of Surveying and Mapping. Finally compared optimization results with the single polarimetric interferometry, it has been observed that optimization ways can reduce the interferometric noise and the phase unwrapping residuals, and improve the precision of DEM. The result of full polarimetric interferometry is better than double polarimetric interferometry. Meanwhile, in different terrain, the result of full polarimetric interferometry will have a different degree of increase.

  5. Flood Extent Mapping Using Dual-Polarimetric SENTINEL-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar Imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jo, M.-J.; Osmanoglu, B.; Zhang, B.; Wdowinski, S.

    2018-04-01

    Rapid generation of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) based flood extent maps provide valuable data in disaster response efforts thanks to the cloud penetrating ability of microwaves. We present a method using dual-polarimetric SAR imagery acquired on Sentinel-1a/b satellites. A false-colour map is generated using pre- and post- disaster imagery, allowing operators to distinguish between existing standing water pre-flooding, and recently flooded areas. The method works best in areas of standing water and provides mixed results in urban areas. A flood depth map is also estimated by using an external DEM. We will present the methodology, it's estimated accuracy as well as investigations into improving the response in urban areas.

  6. Coupled retrieval of aerosol properties and land surface reflection using the Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Feng; van Harten, Gerard; Diner, David J.; Kalashnikova, Olga V.; Seidel, Felix C.; Bruegge, Carol J.; Dubovik, Oleg

    2017-07-01

    The Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) has been flying aboard the NASA ER-2 high-altitude aircraft since October 2010. In step-and-stare operation mode, AirMSPI acquires radiance and polarization data in bands centered at 355, 380, 445, 470*, 555, 660*, 865*, and 935 nm (* denotes polarimetric bands). The imaged area covers about 10 km by 11 km and is typically observed from nine viewing angles between ±66° off nadir. For a simultaneous retrieval of aerosol properties and surface reflection using AirMSPI, an efficient and flexible retrieval algorithm has been developed. It imposes multiple types of physical constraints on spectral and spatial variations of aerosol properties as well as spectral and temporal variations of surface reflection. Retrieval uncertainty is formulated by accounting for both instrumental errors and physical constraints. A hybrid Markov-chain/adding-doubling radiative transfer (RT) model is developed to combine the computational strengths of these two methods in modeling polarized RT in vertically inhomogeneous and homogeneous media, respectively. Our retrieval approach is tested using 27 AirMSPI data sets with low to moderately high aerosol loadings, acquired during four NASA field campaigns plus one AirMSPI preengineering test flight. The retrieval results including aerosol optical depth, single-scattering albedo, aerosol size and refractive index are compared with Aerosol Robotic Network reference data. We identify the best angular combinations for 2, 3, 5, and 7 angle observations from the retrieval quality assessment of various angular combinations. We also explore the benefits of polarimetric and multiangular measurements and target revisits in constraining aerosol property and surface reflection retrieval.

  7. The Next Generation of Airborne Polarimetric Doppler Weather Radar: NCAR/EOL Airborne Phased Array Radar (APAR) Development

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Moore, James; Lee, Wen-Chau; Loew, Eric; Vivekanandan, Jothiram; Grubišić, Vanda; Tsai, Peisang; Dixon, Mike; Emmett, Jonathan; Lord, Mark; Lussier, Louis; Hwang, Kyuil; Ranson, James

    2017-04-01

    The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Earth observing Laboratory (EOL) is entering the third year of preliminary system design studies, engineering prototype testing and project management plan preparation for the development of a novel Airborne Phased Array Radar (APAR). This system being designed by NCAR/EOL will be installed and operated on the NSF/NCAR C-130 aircraft. The APAR system will consist of four removable C-band Active Electronically Scanned Arrays (AESA) strategically placed on the fuselage of the aircraft. Each AESA measures approximately 1.5 x 1.9 m and is composed of 3000 active radiating elements arranged in an array of line replaceable units (LRU) to simplify maintenance. APAR will provide unprecedented observations, and in conjunction with the advanced radar data assimilation schema, will be able to address the key science questions to improve understanding and predictability of significant and high-impact weather APAR, operating at C-band, allows the measurement of 3-D kinematics of the more intense portions of storms (e.g. thunderstorm dynamics and tornadic development, tropical cyclone rainband structure and evolution) with less attenuation compared with current airborne Doppler radar systems. Polarimetric measurements are not available from current airborne tail Doppler radars. However, APAR, with dual-Doppler and dual polarization diversity at a lesser attenuating C-band wavelength, will further advance the understanding of the microphysical processes within a variety of precipitation systems. The radar is sensitive enough to provide high resolution measurements of winter storm dynamics and microphysics. The planned APAR development that would bring the system to operational readiness for research community use aboard the C-130 is expected to take 8 years once major funding support is realized. The authors will review the overall APAR design and provide new details of the system based on our Technical Requirements Document

  8. Segmentation Of Polarimetric SAR Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rignot, Eric J. M.; Chellappa, Rama

    1994-01-01

    Report presents one in continuing series of studies of segmentation of polarimetric synthetic-aperture-radar, SAR, image data into regions. Studies directed toward refinement of method of automated analysis of SAR data.

  9. Coupled retrieval of water cloud and above-cloud aerosol properties using the Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, F.; van Harten, G.; Diner, D. J.; Rheingans, B. E.; Tosca, M.; Seidel, F. C.; Bull, M. A.; Tkatcheva, I. N.; McDuffie, J. L.; Garay, M. J.; Davis, A. B.; Jovanovic, V. M.; Brian, C.; Alexandrov, M. D.; Hostetler, C. A.; Ferrare, R. A.; Burton, S. P.

    2017-12-01

    The Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) has been flying aboard the NASA ER-2 high altitude aircraft since October 2010. AirMSPI acquires radiance and polarization data in bands centered at 355, 380, 445, 470*, 555, 660*, 865*, and 935 nm (*denotes polarimetric bands). In sweep mode, georectified images cover an area of 80-100 km (along track) by 10-25 km (across track) between ±66° off nadir, with a map-projected spatial resolution of 25 meters. An efficient and flexible retrieval algorithm has been developed using AirMSPI polarimetric bands for simultaneous retrieval of cloud and above-cloud aerosol microphysical properties. We design a three-step retrieval approach, namely 1) estimating effective droplet size distribution using polarimetric cloudbow observations and using it as initial guess for Step 2; 2) combining water cloud and aerosol above cloud retrieval by fitting polarimetric signals at all scattering angles (e.g. from 80° to 180°); and 3) constructing a lookup table of radiance for a set of cloud optical depth grids using aerosol and cloud information retrieved from Step 2 and then estimating pixel-scale cloud optical depth based on 1D radiative transfer (RT) theory by fitting the AirMSPI radiance. Retrieval uncertainty is formulated by accounting for instrumental errors and constraints imposed on spectral variations of aerosol and cloud droplet optical properties. As the forward RT model, a hybrid approach is developed to combine the computational strengths of Markov-chain and adding-doubling methods to model polarized RT in a coupled aerosol, Rayleigh and cloud system. Our retrieval approach is tested using 134 AirMSPI datasets acquired during NASA ORACLES field campaign in 09/2016, with low to high aerosol loadings. For validation, the retrieved aerosol optical depths and cloud-top heights are compared to coincident High Spectral Resolution Lidar-2 (HSRL-2) data, and the droplet size parameters including effective radius and

  10. Topological anomaly detection performance with multispectral polarimetric imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gartley, M. G.; Basener, W.,

    2009-05-01

    Polarimetric imaging has demonstrated utility for increasing contrast of manmade targets above natural background clutter. Manual detection of manmade targets in multispectral polarimetric imagery can be challenging and a subjective process for large datasets. Analyst exploitation may be improved utilizing conventional anomaly detection algorithms such as RX. In this paper we examine the performance of a relatively new approach to anomaly detection, which leverages topology theory, applied to spectral polarimetric imagery. Detection results for manmade targets embedded in a complex natural background will be presented for both the RX and Topological Anomaly Detection (TAD) approaches. We will also present detailed results examining detection sensitivities relative to: (1) the number of spectral bands, (2) utilization of Stoke's images versus intensity images, and (3) airborne versus spaceborne measurements.

  11. Application of symmetry properties to polarimetric remote sensing with JPL AIRSAR data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Yueh, Simon H.; Kwok, R.; Li, F. K.

    1992-01-01

    Based on symmetry properties, polarimetric remote sensing of geophysical media is studied. From the viewpoint of symmetry groups, media with reflection, rotation, azimuthal, and centrical symmetries are considered. The symmetries impose relations among polarimetric scattering coefficients, which are valid to all scattering mechanisms in the symmetrical configurations. Various orientation distributions of non-spherical scatterers can be identified from the scattering coefficients by a comparison with the symmetry calculations. Experimental observations are then analyzed for many geophysical scenes acquired with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) airborne polarimetric SAR at microwave frequencies over sea ice and vegetation. Polarimetric characteristics of different ice types are compared with symmetry behaviors. The polarimetric response of a tropical rain forest reveals characteristics close to the centrical symmetry properties, which can be used as a distributed target to relatively calibrate polarimetric radars without any deployment of manmade calibration targets.

  12. Airborne Polarimetric, Two-Color Laser Altimeter Measurements of Lake Ice Cover: A Pathfinder for NASA's ICESat-2 Spaceflight Mission

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Harding, David; Dabney, Philip; Valett, Susan; Yu, Anthony; Vasilyev, Aleksey; Kelly, April

    2011-01-01

    The ICESat-2 mission will continue NASA's spaceflight laser altimeter measurements of ice sheets, sea ice and vegetation using a new measurement approach: micropulse, single photon ranging at 532 nm. Differential penetration of green laser energy into snow, ice and water could introduce errors in sea ice freeboard determination used for estimation of ice thickness. Laser pulse scattering from these surface types, and resulting range biasing due to pulse broadening, is assessed using SIMPL airborne data acquired over icecovered Lake Erie. SIMPL acquires polarimetric lidar measurements at 1064 and 532 nm using the micropulse, single photon ranging measurement approach.

  13. Polarimetric Measurements Over the Sea-Surface with the Airborne STORM Radar in the Context of the Geophysical Validation of the ENVISAT ASAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Podvin, D. Hauser. T.; Dechambre, M.; Valentin, R.; Caudal, G.; Daloze, J.-F.; Mouche, A.

    2003-04-01

    Among the new specificities of the ENVISAT/ASAR particular polarization diversity make the instrument very promising, but require complementary studies in addition to those already completed with the ERS data. Moreover, in the context of the preparation of other missions which will embark polarimetric SAR (e.g. RADARSAT2) it is important to better assess the benefit of multi-polarization or polarimetric SAR systems. In particular, over the ocean the question remains open regarding the estimate of wind speed, directional spectra of surface ocean waves and maybe other parameters related to wave breaking. CETP has designed and developed a new airborne radar called STORM], which has a full polarimetric capability. STORM is a new-version of the RESSAC airborne radar already used in previous experiments (Hauser et al, JGR 1992). STORM is a real-aperture, C-Band system with a FM/CW transmission and with a rotating antenna to explore in azimuth. In addition to RESSAC (which was mono-polarized) it offers a polarization diversity (receiving simultaneously in H and V polarizations) which enables us to analyze the radar cross- section in HH, VV, HV, and other cross-polarized terms related to the scattering matrix. In the context of the validation of the ASAR wave mode of ENVISAT, a field experiment will be carried out in October and November 2002 over the ocean (offshore the coasts of Brittany, France), with STORM] embarked on the MERLIN-IV aircraft of Meteo-France. We intend to perform about 20 flights under the ENVISAT SAR swath during a one-month experiment, with overpasses over a directional wave buoy also equipped with wind measurements. The ASAR image mode (in HH or VV) or alternating polarization mode will be requested during these flights. STORM will be used in a mode which will permit to measure the full complex scattering matrix over the sea surface at incidence angles ranging from 10 to 35°. In addition to conventional analysis of the radar cross-sections in HH

  14. Manmade target extraction based on multistage decision and its application for change detection in polarimetric synthetic aperture radar image

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cong, Runmin; Han, Ping; Li, Chongyi; He, Jiaji; Zhang, Zaiji

    2016-09-01

    Targets of interest are different in various applications in which manmade targets, such as aircraft, ships, and buildings, are given more attention. Manmade target extraction methods using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images are designed in response to various demands, which include civil uses, business purposes, and military industries. This plays an increasingly vital role in monitoring, military reconnaissance, and precision strikes. Achieving accurate and complete results through traditional methods is becoming more challenging because of the scattered complexity of polarization in polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) image. A multistage decision-based method is proposed composed of power decision, dominant scattering mechanism decision, and reflection symmetry decision. In addition, the theories of polarimetric contrast enhancement, generalized Y decomposition, and maximum eigenvalue ratio are applied to assist the decision. Fully PolSAR data are adopted to evaluate and verify the approach. Experimental results show that the method can achieve an effective result with a lower false alarm rate and clear contours. Finally, on this basis, a universal framework of change detection for manmade targets is presented as an application of our method. Two sets of measured data are also used to evaluate and verify the effectiveness of the change-detection algorithm.

  15. Space-borne polarimetric SAR sensors or the golden age of radar polarimetry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pottier, E.

    2010-06-01

    SAR Polarimetry represents an active area of research in Active Earth Remote Sensing. This interest is clearly supported by the fact that nowadays there exists, or there will exist in a very next future, a non negligible quantity of launched Polarimetric SAR Spaceborne sensors. The ENVISAT satellite, developed by ESA, was launched on March 2002, and was the first Spaceborne sensor offering an innovative dualpolarization Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) system operating at C-band. The second Polarimetric Spaceborne sensor is ALOS, a Japanese Earth-Observation satellite, developed by JAXA and was launched in January 2006. This mission includes an active L-band polarimetric radar sensor (PALSAR) whose highresolution data may be used for environmental and hazard monitoring. The third Polarimetric Spaceborne sensor is TerraSAR-X, a new German radar satellite, developed by DLR, EADS-Astrium and Infoterra GmbH, was launched on June 2007. This sensor carries a dual-polarimetric and high frequency X-Band SAR sensor that can be operated in different modes and offers features that were not available from space before. At least, the Polarimetric Spaceborne sensor, developed by CSA and MDA, and named RADARSAT-2 was launched in December 2007 The Radarsat program was born out the need for effective monitoring of Canada’s icy waters, and some Radarsat-2 capabilities that benefit sea- and river ice applications are the multi-polarization options that will improve ice-edge detection, ice-type discrimination and structure information. The many advances in these different Polarimetric Spaceborne platforms were developed to respond to specific needs for radar data in environmental monitoring applications around the world, like : sea- and river-ice monitoring, marine surveillance, disaster management, oil spill detection, snow monitoring, hydrology, mapping, geology, agriculture, soil characterisation, forestry applications (biomass, allometry, height…), urban mapping etc

  16. Coupled Retrieval of Aerosol Properties and Surface Reflection Using the Airborne Multi-angle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, F.; van Harten, G.; Kalashnikova, O. V.; Diner, D. J.; Seidel, F. C.; Garay, M. J.; Dubovik, O.

    2016-12-01

    The Airborne Multi-angle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) [1] has been flying aboard the NASA ER-2 high altitude aircraft since October 2010. In step-and-stare operation mode, AirMSPI acquires radiance and polarization data at 355, 380, 445, 470*, 555, 660*, 865*, and 935 nm (* denotes polarimetric bands). The imaged area covers about 10 km by 10 km and is observed from 9 view angles between ±67° off of nadir. We have developed an efficient and flexible code that uses the information content of AirMSPI data for a coupled retrieval of aerosol properties and surface reflection. The retrieval was built based on the multi-pixel optimization concept [2], with the use of a hybrid radiative transfer model [3] that combines the Markov Chain [4] and adding/doubling methods [5]. The convergence and robustness of our algorithm is ensured by applying constraints on (a) the spectral variation of the Bidirectional Polarization Distribution Function (BPDF) and angular shape of the Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF); (b) the spectral variation of aerosol optical properties; and (c) the spatial variation of aerosol parameters across neighboring image pixels. Our retrieval approach has been tested using over 20 AirMSPI datasets having low to moderately high aerosol loadings ( 0.02550-nm< 0.45) and acquired during several field campaigns. Results are compared with AERONET aerosol reference data. We also explore the benefits of AirMSPI's ultraviolet and polarimetric bands as well as the use of multiple view angles. References[1]. D. J. Diner, et al. Atmos. Meas. Tech. 6, 1717 (2013). [2]. O. Dubovik et al. Atmos. Meas. Tech. 4, 975 (2011). [3]. F. Xu et al. Atmos. Meas. Tech. 9, 2877 (2016). [4]. F. Xu et al. Opt. Lett. 36, 2083 (2011). [5]. J. E. Hansen and L.D. Travis. Space Sci. Rev. 16, 527 (1974).

  17. Supervised fully polarimetric classification of the Black Forest test site: From MAESTROI to MAC Europe

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Degrandi, G.; Lavalle, C.; Degroof, H.; Sieber, A.

    1992-01-01

    A study on the performance of a supervised fully polarimetric maximum likelihood classifier for synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data when applied to a specific classification context: forest classification based on age classes and in the presence of a sloping terrain is presented. For the experimental part, the polarimetric AIRSAR data at P, L, and C-band, acquired over the German Black Forest near Freiburg in the frame of the 1989 MAESTRO-1 campaign and the 1991 MAC Europe campaign was used, MAESTRO-1 with an ESA/JRC sponsored campaign, and MAC Europe (Multi-sensor Aircraft Campaign); in both cases the multi-frequency polarimetric JPL Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) radar was flown over a number of European test sites. The study is structured as follows. At first, the general characteristics of the classifier and the dependencies from some parameters, like frequency bands, feature vector, calibration, using test areas lying on a flat terrain are investigated. Once it is determined the optimal conditions for the classifier performance, we then move on to the study of the slope effect. The bulk of this work is performed using the Maestrol data set. Next the classifier performance with the MAC Europe data is considered. The study is divided into two stages: first some of the tests done on the Maestro data are repeated, to highlight the improvements due to the new processing scheme that delivers 16 look data. Second we experiment with multi images classification with two goals: to assess the possibility of using a training set measured from one image to classify areas in different images; and to classify areas on critical slopes using different viewing angles. The main points of the study are listed and some of the results obtained so far are highlighted.

  18. Airborne In Situ and Ground-based Polarimetric Radar Measurements of Tropical Convection in Support of CRYSTAL-FACE

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Poellot, Michael R.; Kucera, Paul A.

    2004-01-01

    This report describes the work performed by the University of North Dakota (UND) under NASA Grant NAG5-11509, titled Airborne In Situ and Ground-based Polarimetric Radar Measurements of Tropical Convection in Support of CRYSTAL-FACE. This work focused on the collection of data by two key platforms: the UND Citation II research aircraft and the NASA NPOL radar system. The CRYSTAL-FACE (C-F) mission addresses several key issues from the NASA Earth System Enterprise, including the variability of water in the atmosphere, the forcing provided by tropical cirrus and the response of the Earth system to this forcing. In situ measurements and radar observations of tropical convection, cirrus clouds and their environment are core elements of C-F. One of the primary issues that C-F is addressing is the relationship of tropical cirrus anvils to precipitating deep convection. The in situ measurements from C-F are being used to validate remote sensing of Earth-Atmosphere properties, increase our knowledge of upper tropospheric water vapor and its distribution, and increase our knowledge of tropical cirrus cloud morphology and composition. Radar measurements, especially polarimetric diversity observations available fiom the NASA NPOL radar, are providing essential information about the initiation, modulation, and dissipation of convective cores and the generation of associated anvils in tropical convection. Specifically, NPOL radar measurements contain information about convective intensity and its vertical structure for comparison with thermodynamic and kinematic environmental measurements observed from soundings. Because of the polarimetric diversity of MOL, statistics on bulk microphysical properties can be retrieved and compared to the other characteristics of convection and associated cirrus anvils. In summary, the central objectives of this proposal were to deploy the UND Citation research aircraft as an in situ sensing platform for this mission and to provide collaborative

  19. Polarimetric imaging of biological tissues based on the indices of polarimetric purity.

    PubMed

    Van Eeckhout, Albert; Lizana, Angel; Garcia-Caurel, Enric; Gil, José J; Sansa, Adrià; Rodríguez, Carla; Estévez, Irene; González, Emilio; Escalera, Juan C; Moreno, Ignacio; Campos, Juan

    2018-04-01

    We highlight the interest of using the indices of polarimetric purity (IPPs) to the inspection of biological tissues. The IPPs were recently proposed in the literature and they result in a further synthetization of the depolarizing properties of samples. Compared with standard polarimetric images of biological samples, IPP-based images lead to larger image contrast of some biological structures and to a further physical interpretation of the depolarizing mechanisms inherent to the samples. In addition, unlike other methods, their calculation do not require advanced algebraic operations (as is the case of polar decompositions), and they result in 3 indicators of easy implementation. We also propose a pseudo-colored encoding of the IPP information that leads to an improved visualization of samples. This last technique opens the possibility of tailored adjustment of tissues contrast by using customized pseudo-colored images. The potential of the IPP approach is experimentally highlighted along the manuscript by studying 3 different ex-vivo samples. A significant image contrast enhancement is obtained by using the IPP-based methods, compared to standard polarimetric images. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  20. Attitude-error compensation for airborne down-looking synthetic-aperture imaging lidar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Guang-yuan; Sun, Jian-feng; Zhou, Yu; Lu, Zhi-yong; Zhang, Guo; Cai, Guang-yu; Liu, Li-ren

    2017-11-01

    Target-coordinate transformation in the lidar spot of the down-looking synthetic-aperture imaging lidar (SAIL) was performed, and the attitude errors were deduced in the process of imaging, according to the principle of the airborne down-looking SAIL. The influence of the attitude errors on the imaging quality was analyzed theoretically. A compensation method for the attitude errors was proposed and theoretically verified. An airborne down-looking SAIL experiment was performed and yielded the same results. A point-by-point error-compensation method for solving the azimuthal-direction space-dependent attitude errors was also proposed.

  1. Polarimetric Calibration and Assessment of GF-3 Images in Steppe

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chang, Y.; Yang, J.; Li, P.; Shi, L.; Zhao, L.

    2018-04-01

    The GaoFen-3 (GF-3) satellite is the first fully polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) satellite in China. It has three fully polarimetric imaging modes and is available for many applications. The system has been taken on several calibration experiments after the launch in Inner Mongolia by the Institute of Electronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IECAS), and the polarimetric calibration (PolCAL) strategy of GF-3 are also improved. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the image quality before any further applications. In this paper, we evaluated the polarimetric residual errors of GF-3 images that acquired in July 2017 in a steppe site. The results shows that the crosstalk of these images varies from -36 dB to -46 dB, and the channel imbalance varies from -0.43 dB to 0.55 dB with angle varying from -1.6 to 3.6 degree. We also made a PolCAL experiment to restrain the polarimetric distortion afterwards, and the polarimetric quality of the image got better after the PolCAL processing.

  2. Classification of earth terrain using polarimetric synthetic aperture radar images

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lim, H. H.; Swartz, A. A.; Yueh, H. A.; Kong, J. A.; Shin, R. T.; Van Zyl, J. J.

    1989-01-01

    Supervised and unsupervised classification techniques are developed and used to classify the earth terrain components from SAR polarimetric images of San Francisco Bay and Traverse City, Michigan. The supervised techniques include the Bayes classifiers, normalized polarimetric classification, and simple feature classification using discriminates such as the absolute and normalized magnitude response of individual receiver channel returns and the phase difference between receiver channels. An algorithm is developed as an unsupervised technique which classifies terrain elements based on the relationship between the orientation angle and the handedness of the transmitting and receiving polariation states. It is found that supervised classification produces the best results when accurate classifier training data are used, while unsupervised classification may be applied when training data are not available.

  3. Classification of fully polarimetric F-SAR ( X / S ) airborne radar images using decomposition methods. (Polish Title: Klasyfikacja treści polarymetrycznych obrazów radarowych z wykorzystaniem metod dekompozycji na przykładzie systemu F-SAR ( X / S ))

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mleczko, M.

    2014-12-01

    Polarimetric SAR data is not widely used in practice, because it is not yet available operationally from the satellites. Currently we can distinguish two approaches in POL - In - SAR technology: alternating polarization imaging (Alt - POL) and fully polarimetric (QuadPol). The first represents a subset of another and is more operational, while the second is experimental because classification of this data requires polarimetric decomposition of scattering matrix in the first stage. In the literature decomposition process is divided in two types: the coherent and incoherent decomposition. In this paper the decomposition methods have been tested using data from the high resolution airborne F - SAR system. Results of classification have been interpreted in the context of the land cover mapping capabilities

  4. Validation of Forested Inundation Extent Revealed by L-Band Polarimetric and Interferometric SAR Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chapman, Bruce; Celi, Jorge; Hamilton, Steve; McDonald, Kyle

    2013-01-01

    UAVSAR, NASA's airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), conducted an extended observational campaign in Central and South America in March 2013, primarily related to volcanic deformations along the Andean Mountain Range but also including a large number of flights studying other scientific phenomena. During this campaign, the L-Band SAR collected data over the Napo River in Ecuador. The objectives of this experiment were to acquire polarimetric and interferometric L-Band SAR data over an inundated tropical forest in Ecuador simultaneously with on-the-ground field work ascertaining the extent of inundation, and to then derive from this data a quantitative estimate for the error in the SAR-derived inundation extent. In this paper, we will first describe the processing and preliminary analysis of the SAR data. The polarimetric SAR data will be classified by land cover and inundation state. The interferometric SAR data will be used to identify those areas where change in inundation extent occurred, and to measure the change in water level between two observations separated by a week. Second, we will describe the collection of the field estimates of inundation, and have preliminary comparisons of inundation extent measured in the field field versus that estimated from the SAR data.

  5. Coupled Retrieval of Liquid Water Cloud and Above-Cloud Aerosol Properties Using the Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Feng; van Harten, Gerard; Diner, David J.; Davis, Anthony B.; Seidel, Felix C.; Rheingans, Brian; Tosca, Mika; Alexandrov, Mikhail D.; Cairns, Brian; Ferrare, Richard A.; Burton, Sharon P.; Fenn, Marta A.; Hostetler, Chris A.; Wood, Robert; Redemann, Jens

    2018-03-01

    An optimization algorithm is developed to retrieve liquid water cloud properties including cloud optical depth (COD), droplet size distribution and cloud top height (CTH), and above-cloud aerosol properties including aerosol optical depth (AOD), single-scattering albedo, and microphysical properties from sweep-mode observations by Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) instrument. The retrieval is composed of three major steps: (1) initial estimate of the mean droplet size distribution across the entire image of 80-100 km along track by 10-25 km across track from polarimetric cloudbow observations, (2) coupled retrieval of image-scale cloud and above-cloud aerosol properties by fitting the polarimetric data at all observation angles, and (3) iterative retrieval of 1-D radiative transfer-based COD and droplet size distribution at pixel scale (25 m) by establishing relationships between COD and droplet size and fitting the total radiance measurements. Our retrieval is tested using 134 AirMSPI data sets acquired during the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) field campaign ObseRvations of Aerosols above CLouds and their intEractionS. The retrieved above-cloud AOD and CTH are compared to coincident HSRL-2 (HSRL-2, NASA Langley Research Center) data, and COD and droplet size distribution parameters (effective radius reff and effective variance veff) are compared to coincident Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP) (NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies) data. Mean absolute differences between AirMSPI and HSRL-2 retrievals of above-cloud AOD at 532 nm and CTH are 0.03 and <0.5 km, respectively. At RSP's footprint scale ( 323 m), mean absolute differences between RSP and AirMSPI retrievals of COD, reff, and veff in the cloudbow area are 2.33, 0.69 μm, and 0.020, respectively. Neglect of smoke aerosols above cloud leads to an underestimate of image-averaged COD by 15%.

  6. Indices of polarimetric purity for biological tissues inspection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Van Eeckhout, Albert; Lizana, Angel; Garcia-Caurel, Enric; Gil, José J.; Sansa, Adrià; Rodríguez, Carla; Estévez, Irene; González, Emilio; Escalera, Juan C.; Moreno, Ignacio; Campos, Juan

    2018-02-01

    We highlight the interest of using the Indices of Polarimetric Purity (IPPs) for the biological tissue inspection. These are three polarimetric metrics focused on the study of the depolarizing behaviour of the sample. The IPPs have been recently proposed in the literature and provide different and synthetized information than the commonly used depolarizing indices, as depolarization index (PΔ) or depolarization power (Δ). Compared with the standard polarimetric images of biological samples, IPPs enhance the contrast between different tissues of the sample and show differences between similar tissues which are not observed using the other standard techniques. Moreover, they present further physical information related to the depolarization mechanisms inherent to different tissues. In addition, the algorithm does not require advanced calculations (as in the case of polar decompositions), being the indices of polarimetric purity fast and easy to implement. We also propose a pseudo-coloured image method which encodes the sample information as a function of the different indices weights. These images allow us to customize the visualization of samples and to highlight certain of their constitutive structures. The interest and potential of the IPP approach are experimentally illustrated throughout the manuscript by comparing polarimetric images of different ex-vivo samples obtained with standard polarimetric methods with those obtained from the IPPs analysis. Enhanced contrast and retrieval of new information are experimentally obtained from the different IPP based images.

  7. Forest Structure Characterization Using JPL's UAVSAR Multi-Baseline Polarimetric SAR Interferometry and Tomography

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Neumann, Maxim; Hensley, Scott; Lavalle, Marco; Ahmed, Razi

    2013-01-01

    This paper concerns forest remote sensing using JPL's multi-baseline polarimetric interferometric UAVSAR data. It presents exemplary results and analyzes the possibilities and limitations of using SAR Tomography and Polarimetric SAR Interferometry (PolInSAR) techniques for the estimation of forest structure. Performance and error indicators for the applicability and reliability of the used multi-baseline (MB) multi-temporal (MT) PolInSAR random volume over ground (RVoG) model are discussed. Experimental results are presented based on JPL's L-band repeat-pass polarimetric interferometric UAVSAR data over temperate and tropical forest biomes in the Harvard Forest, Massachusetts, and in the La Amistad Park, Panama and Costa Rica. The results are partially compared with ground field measurements and with air-borne LVIS lidar data.

  8. Forest Structure Characterization Using Jpl's UAVSAR Multi-Baseline Polarimetric SAR Interferometry and Tomography

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Neumann, Maxim; Hensley, Scott; Lavalle, Marco; Ahmed, Razi

    2013-01-01

    This paper concerns forest remote sensing using JPL's multi-baseline polarimetric interferometric UAVSAR data. It presents exemplary results and analyzes the possibilities and limitations of using SAR Tomography and Polarimetric SAR Interferometry (PolInSAR) techniques for the estimation of forest structure. Performance and error indicators for the applicability and reliability of the used multi-baseline (MB) multi-temporal (MT) PolInSAR random volume over ground (RVoG) model are discussed. Experimental results are presented based on JPL's L-band repeat-pass polarimetric interferometric UAVSAR data over temperate and tropical forest biomes in the Harvard Forest, Massachusetts, and in the La Amistad Park, Panama and Costa Rica. The results are partially compared with ground field measurements and with air-borne LVIS lidar data.

  9. The SPEX-airborne multi-angle spectropolarimeter on NASA's ER-2 research aircraft: capabilities, data processing and data products

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rietjens, J.; Smit, M.; Hasekamp, O. P.; Grim, M.; Eggens, M.; Eigenraam, A.; Keizer, G.; van Loon, D.; Talsma, J.; van der Vlugt, J.; Wolfs, R.; van Harten, G.; Rheingans, B. E.; Snik, F.; Keller, C. U.; Smit, H.

    2016-12-01

    A multi-angle spectropolarimeter payload, "SPEX-airborne" has been developed for observing and characterizing aerosols from NASA's high-altitude research aircraft ER-2. SPEX-airborne provides autonomously multi-angle snapshot measurements of spectral radiance and degree of linear polarization over a 7 degree swath in the visible part of the optical spectrum. The instrument is unique in the sense that it combines 30 highly accurate polarimetric measurements with hyperspectral radiance measurements at 2.5 nm resolution simultaneously at nine fixed viewing angles and that it offers the possibility to include polarimetric measurements in absorption bands at lower accuracy. This combination of measurements holds great potential for present and new retrieval algorithms to derive aerosol microphysical properties during airborne campaigns. The opto-mechanical subsystem of SPEX-airborne is based on the Spectropolarimeter for Planetary EXploration (SPEX) prototype, which has been developed over recent years by a consortium of Dutch institutes and industry. The polarimetry technique used is spectral polarization modulation, which has been proven to enable high accuracy polarimetric measurements. In laboratory conditions, the SPEX prototype has a demonstrated polarimetric accuracy of 0.002 in the degree of linear polarization. The SPEX prototype has been made fit for autonomous operation on NASA's ER-2 high altitude platform. In this presentation we will present the design and main subsystems of the payload, and address the operational modes. An outline of the data processing chain including calibration data will be given and the foreseen capability and performance will be discussed. We will discuss the quality of the polarimetric measurement in the lab and as recorded during the maiden flight in 2016 when SPEX-airborne was flying together with JPL's AirMSPI imaging polarimeter. Finally, we will give an outlook on the processing of the data of land and ocean scenes, and on the

  10. Polarimetric Signatures of Initiating Convection During MC3E

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Emory, Amber

    2012-01-01

    One of the goals of the Mid-latitude Continental Convective Clouds Experiment (MC3E) field campaign was to provide constraints for space-based rainfall retrieval algorithms over land. This study used datasets collected during the 2011 field campaign to combine radiometer and ground-based radar polarimetric retrievals in order to better understand hydrometeor type, habit and distribution for initiating continental convection. Cross-track and conically scanning nadir views from the Conical Scanning Millimeter-wave Imaging Radiometer (CoSMIR) were compared with ground-based polarimetric radar retrievals along the ER-2 flight track. Polarimetric signatures for both airborne radiometers and ground-based radars were well co-located with deep convection to relate radiometric signatures with low-level polarimetric radar data for hydrometeor identification and diameter estimation. For the time period of study, Z(sub DR) values indicated no presence of hail at the surface. However, the Z(sub DR) column extended well above the melting level into the mixed phase region, suggesting a possible source of frozen drop embryos for the future formation of hail. The results shown from this study contribute ground truth datasets for GPM PR algorithm development for convective events, which is an improvement upon previous stratiform precipitation centered framework.

  11. Present and Future Airborne and Space-borne Systems

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-02-01

    Present and Future Airborne and Space-borne Systems Wolfgang Keydel Microwaves and Radar Institute German Aerospace Research Centre (DLR...airborne and space-borne SAR systems with polarimetric interferometry capability, their technological, system technical and application related...interferometry accuracies in the cm range have been obtained. In order to reach these values an exact system calibration is indispensable. The calibration of

  12. An Analytical Calibration Approach for the Polarimetric Airborne C Band Radiometer

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pham, Hanh; Kim, Edward J.

    2004-01-01

    Passive microwave remote sensing is sensitive to the quantity and distribution of water in soil and vegetation. During summer 2000, the Microwave Geophysics Group a t the University of Michigan conducted the seventh Radiobrighness Energy Balance Experiment (REBEX-7) over a corn canopy in Michigan. Long time series of brightness temperatures, soil moisture and micrometeorology on the plot were taken. This paper addresses the calibration of the NASA GSFC polarimetric airborne C band microwave radiometer (ACMR) that participated in REBEX-7. These passive polarimeters are typically calibrated using an end-to-end approach based upon a standard artificial target or a well-known geophysical target. Analyzing the major internal functional subsystems offers a different perspective. The primary goal of this approach is to provide a transfer function that not only describes the system in its entire5 but also accounts for the contributions of each subsystem toward the final modified Stokes parameters. This approach does not assume that the radiometric system is linear as it does not take polarization isolation for granted, and it also serves as a realistic instrument simulator, a useful tool for future designs. The ACMR architecture can be partitioned into functional subsystems. The characteristics of each subsystem was extensively measured and the estimated parameters were imported into the overall dosed form system model. Inversion of the model yields a calibration for the modeled Stokes parameters with uncertainties of 0.2 K for the V and H polarizations and 2.4 K for the 3rd and 4th parameters. Application to the full Stokes parameters over a senescent cornfield is presented.

  13. Target-adaptive polarimetric synthetic aperture radar target discrimination using maximum average correlation height filters.

    PubMed

    Sadjadi, Firooz A; Mahalanobis, Abhijit

    2006-05-01

    We report the development of a technique for adaptive selection of polarization ellipse tilt and ellipticity angles such that the target separation from clutter is maximized. From the radar scattering matrix [S] and its complex components, in phase and quadrature phase, the elements of the Mueller matrix are obtained. Then, by means of polarization synthesis, the radar cross section of the radar scatters are obtained at different transmitting and receiving polarization states. By designing a maximum average correlation height filter, we derive a target versus clutter distance measure as a function of four transmit and receive polarization state angles. The results of applying this method on real synthetic aperture radar imagery indicate a set of four transmit and receive angles that lead to maximum target versus clutter discrimination. These optimum angles are different for different targets. Hence, by adaptive control of the state of polarization of polarimetric radar, one can noticeably improve the discrimination of targets from clutter.

  14. Characterization of wetland, forest, and agricultural ecosystems in Belize with airborne radar (AIRSAR)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pope, Kevin O.; Rey-Benayas, Jose Maria; Paris, Jack F.

    1992-01-01

    The Shuttle Imaging Radar-C/X-SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) Experiment includes the study of wetland dynamics in the seasonal tropics. In preparation for these wetland studies, airborne P, L, and C band radar (AIRSAR) data of Belize, Guatemala, and Mexico acquired by NASA and JPL in March 1990 were analyzed. The first phase of our study focuses on AIRSAR data from the Gallon Jug test site in northwestern Belize, for which ground data were also collected during the three days prior to the overflight. One of the main objectives of the Gallon Jug study is to develop a method for characterizing wetland vegetation types and their flooding status with multifrequency polarimetric radar data.

  15. Eigenvalue-Based Polarimetric Model for Interpreting Sea Surface Scattering with and without Oil Slicks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Buono, Andrea; Nunziata, Ferdinando; Migliaccio, Maurizio

    2016-08-01

    In this paper, microwave sea surface scattering with and without oil slicks is investigated using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) fully-polarimetric (FP) and compact- polarimetric (CP) data. They show similar trends but subtle differences apply over sea surface that are here analyzed by a new physically-based approach. The model predicts that differences between FP and CP architectures, and among CP modes, are due to the different mapping between polarimetric observables and eigenvalues. This theoretical rationale is verified using actual FP SAR data and emulated CP SAR measurements.

  16. ISRO's dual frequency airborne SAR pre-cursor to NISAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ramanujam, V. Manavala; Suneela, T. J. V. D.; Bhan, Rakesh

    2016-05-01

    The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have jointly embarked on NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) operating in L-band and S-band, which will map Earth's surface every 12 days. As a pre-cursor to the NISAR mission, ISRO is planning an airborne SAR (L&S band) which will deliver NISAR analogue data products to the science community. ISRO will develop all the hardware with the aim of adhering to system design aspects of NISAR to the maximum extent possible. It is a fully polarimetric stripmap SAR and can be operated in single, dual, compact, quasi-quad and full polarimetry modes. It has wide incidence angle coverage from 24°-77° with swath coverage from 5.5km to 15 km. Apart from simultaneous imaging operations, this system can also operate in standalone L/S SAR modes. This system is planned to operate from an aircraft platform with nominal altitude of 8000meters. Antenna for this SAR will be rigidly mounted to the aircraft, whereas, motion compensation will be implemented in the software processor to generate data products. Data products for this airborne SAR will be generated in slant & ground range azimuth dimension and geocoded in HDF5/Geotiff formats. This airborne SAR will help to prepare the Indian scientific community for optimum utilization of NISAR data. In-order to collect useful science data, airborne campaigns are planned from end of 2016 onwards.

  17. Fitting a Two-Component Scattering Model to Polarimetric SAR Data from Forests

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Freeman, Anthony

    2007-01-01

    Two simple scattering mechanisms are fitted to polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) observations of forests. The mechanisms are canopy scatter from a reciprocal medium with azimuthal symmetry and a ground scatter term that can represent double-bounce scatter from a pair of orthogonal surfaces with different dielectric constants or Bragg scatter from a moderately rough surface, which is seen through a layer of vertically oriented scatterers. The model is shown to represent the behavior of polarimetric backscatter from a tropical forest and two temperate forest sites by applying it to data from the National Aeronautic and Space Agency/Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Airborne SAR (AIRSAR) system. Scattering contributions from the two basic scattering mechanisms are estimated for clusters of pixels in polarimetric SAR images. The solution involves the estimation of four parameters from four separate equations. This model fit approach is justified as a simplification of more complicated scattering models, which require many inputs to solve the forward scattering problem. The model is used to develop an understanding of the ground-trunk double-bounce scattering that is present in the data, which is seen to vary considerably as a function of incidence angle. Two parameters in the model fit appear to exhibit sensitivity to vegetation canopy structure, which is worth further exploration. Results from the model fit for the ground scattering term are compared with estimates from a forward model and shown to be in good agreement. The behavior of the scattering from the ground-trunk interaction is consistent with the presence of a pseudo-Brewster angle effect for the air-trunk scattering interface. If the Brewster angle is known, it is possible to directly estimate the real part of the dielectric constant of the trunks, a key variable in forward modeling of backscatter from forests. It is also shown how, with a priori knowledge of the forest height, an estimate for the

  18. Proceedings of the Third Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vanzyl, Jakob J. (Editor)

    1991-01-01

    The Third Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) Workshop was held on 23-24 May 1991 at JPL. Thirty oral presentations were made and 18 poster papers displayed during the workshop. Papers from these 25 presentations are presented which include analyses of AIRSAR operations and studies in SAR remote sensing, ecology, hydrology, soil science, geology, oceanography, volcanology, and SAR mapping and data handling. Results from these studies indicate the direction and emphasis of future orbital radar-sensor missions that will be launched during the 1990's.

  19. Investigation of the Capability of Compact Polarimetric SAR Interferometry to Estimate Forest Height

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Hong; Xie, Lei; Wang, Chao; Chen, Jiehong

    2013-08-01

    The main objective of this paper is to investigate the capability of compact Polarimetric SAR Interferometry (C-PolInSAR) on forest height estimation. For this, the pseudo fully polarimetric interferomteric (F-PolInSAR) covariance matrix is firstly reconstructed, then the three- stage inversion algorithm, hybrid algorithm, Music and Capon algorithm are applied to both C-PolInSAR covariance matrix and pseudo F-PolInSAR covariance matrix. The availability of forest height estimation is demonstrated using L-band data generated by simulator PolSARProSim and X-band airborne data acquired by East China Research Institute of Electronic Engineering, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation.

  20. Investigation of Variations in the Equivalent Number of Looks for Polarimetric Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, Dingsheng; Anfinsen, Stian Normann; Tao, Ding; Qiu, Xiaolan

    2015-04-01

    Current estimators of equivalent number of looks (ENL) have already been able to adapt the full-polarimetric SAR data and work in an unsupervised way. However, for some complex SAR scenes, the existing unsupervised estimation procedure would underestimate the ENL value, as the influence of inhomogeneous factor surpasses the allowance. Before determining further solution, this paper first investigates deviations in the estimated ENL that are observed when processing polarimetric synthetic aperture radar images of ocean surfaces. Even for surface that appears to be homogeneous, the estimated ENL is significantly different in cross-polarimetric (cross-pol) and co-polarimetric (co-pol) channels. We have formulated two hypotheses for the cause of this. Both hypotheses reflect that the mixtures are different in each channel, which leads us to question the validity of using the polarimetric information as a whole to eliminate mixture influence, in terms of accuracy and rationality. In the paper, we proposes a new unsupervised estimation procedure to avoid the mixture influence and with robust capability to obtain accurate ENL estimation even for some complex SAR scene.

  1. Development and Validation of a Polarimetric-MCScene 3D Atmospheric Radiation Model

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Berk, Alexander; Hawes, Frederick; Fox, Marsha

    2016-03-15

    Polarimetric measurements can substantially enhance the ability of both spectrally resolved and single band imagery to detect the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, providing data for locating and identifying facilities, materials, and processes of undeclared and proliferant nuclear weapons programs worldwide. Unfortunately, models do not exist that efficiently and accurately predict spectral polarized signatures for the materials of interest embedded in complex 3D environments. Having such a model would enable one to test hypotheses and optimize both the enhancement of scene contrast and the signal processing for spectral signature extraction. The Phase I set the groundwork for development ofmore » fully validated polarimetric spectral signature and scene simulation models. This has been accomplished 1. by (a) identifying and downloading state-of-the-art surface and atmospheric polarimetric data sources, (b) implementing tools for generating custom polarimetric data, and (c) identifying and requesting US Government funded field measurement data for use in validation; 2. by formulating an approach for upgrading the radiometric spectral signature model MODTRAN to generate polarimetric intensities through (a) ingestion of the polarimetric data, (b) polarimetric vectorization of existing MODTRAN modules, and (c) integration of a newly developed algorithm for computing polarimetric multiple scattering contributions; 3. by generating an initial polarimetric model that demonstrates calculation of polarimetric solar and lunar single scatter intensities arising from the interaction of incoming irradiances with molecules and aerosols; 4. by developing a design and implementation plan to (a) automate polarimetric scene construction and (b) efficiently sample polarimetric scattering and reflection events, for use in a to be developed polarimetric version of the existing first-principles synthetic scene simulation model, MCScene; and 5. by planning a validation

  2. Development and validation of P-MODTRAN7 and P-MCScene, 1D and 3D polarimetric radiative transfer models

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hawes, Frederick T.; Berk, Alexander; Richtsmeier, Steven C.

    2016-05-01

    A validated, polarimetric 3-dimensional simulation capability, P-MCScene, is being developed by generalizing Spectral Sciences' Monte Carlo-based synthetic scene simulation model, MCScene, to include calculation of all 4 Stokes components. P-MCScene polarimetric optical databases will be generated by a new version (MODTRAN7) of the government-standard MODTRAN radiative transfer algorithm. The conversion of MODTRAN6 to a polarimetric model is being accomplished by (1) introducing polarimetric data, by (2) vectorizing the MODTRAN radiation calculations and by (3) integrating the newly revised and validated vector discrete ordinate model VDISORT3. Early results, presented here, demonstrate a clear pathway to the long-term goal of fully validated polarimetric models.

  3. Geologic Studies of Planetary Surfaces Using Radar Polarimetric Imaging

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Carter, Lynn M.; Campbell, Donald B.; Campbell, Bruce A.

    2010-01-01

    Radar is a useful remote sensing tool for studying planetary geology because it is sensitive to the composition, structure, and roughness of the surface and can penetrate some materials to reveal buried terrain. The Arecibo Observatory radar system transmits a single sense of circular polarization, and both senses of circular polarization are received, which allows for the construction of the Stokes polarization vector. From the Stokes vector, daughter products such as the circular polarization ratio, the degree of linear polarization, and linear polarization angle are obtained. Recent polarimetric imaging using Arecibo has included Venus and the Moon. These observations can be compared to radar data for terrestrial surfaces to better understand surface physical properties and regional geologic evolution. For example, polarimetric radar studies of volcanic settings on Venus, the Moon and Earth display some similarities, but also illustrate a variety of different emplacement and erosion mechanisms. Polarimetric radar data provides important information about surface properties beyond what can be obtained from single-polarization radar. Future observations using polarimetric synthetic aperture radar will provide information on roughness, composition and stratigraphy that will support a broader interpretation of surface evolution.

  4. Offshore platform sourced pollution monitoring using space-borne fully polarimetric C and X band synthetic aperture radar.

    PubMed

    Singha, Suman; Ressel, Rudolf

    2016-11-15

    Use of polarimetric SAR data for offshore pollution monitoring is relatively new and shows great potential for operational offshore platform monitoring. This paper describes the development of an automated oil spill detection chain for operational purposes based on C-band (RADARSAT-2) and X-band (TerraSAR-X) fully polarimetric images, wherein we use polarimetric features to characterize oil spills and look-alikes. Numbers of near coincident TerraSAR-X and RADARSAT-2 images have been acquired over offshore platforms. Ten polarimetric feature parameters were extracted from different types of oil and 'look-alike' spots and divided into training and validation dataset. Extracted features were then used to develop a pixel based Artificial Neural Network classifier. Mutual information contents among extracted features were assessed and feature parameters were ranked according to their ability to discriminate between oil spill and look-alike spots. Polarimetric features such as Scattering Diversity, Surface Scattering Fraction and Span proved to be most suitable for operational services. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. A Wavelet Polarization Decomposition Net Model for Polarimetric SAR Image Classification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    He, Chu; Ou, Dan; Yang, Teng; Wu, Kun; Liao, Mingsheng; Chen, Erxue

    2014-11-01

    In this paper, a deep model based on wavelet texture has been proposed for Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) image classification inspired by recent successful deep learning method. Our model is supposed to learn powerful and informative representations to improve the generalization ability for the complex scene classification tasks. Given the influence of speckle noise in Polarimetric SAR image, wavelet polarization decomposition is applied first to obtain basic and discriminative texture features which are then embedded into a Deep Neural Network (DNN) in order to compose multi-layer higher representations. We demonstrate that the model can produce a powerful representation which can capture some untraceable information from Polarimetric SAR images and show a promising achievement in comparison with other traditional SAR image classification methods for the SAR image dataset.

  6. Airborn Ku-band polarimetric radar remote sensing of terrestrial snow cover

    Treesearch

    Simon H. Yueh; Steve J. Dinardo; Ahmed Akgiray; Richard West; Donald W. Cline; Kelly Elder

    2009-01-01

    Characteristics of the Ku-band polarimetric scatterometer (POLSCAT) data acquired from five sets of aircraft flights in the winter months of 2006-2008 for the second Cold Land Processes Experiment (CLPX-II) in Colorado are described in this paper. The data showed the response of the Ku-band radar echoes to snowpack changes for various types of background vegetation in...

  7. Airborne irritant contact dermatitis due to synthetic fibres from an air-conditioning filter.

    PubMed

    Patiwael, Jiska A; Wintzen, Marjolein; Rustemeyer, Thomas; Bruynzeel, Derk P

    2005-03-01

    We describe 8 cases of occupational airborne irritant contact dermatitis in intensive care unit (ICU) employees caused by synthetic (polypropylene and polyethylene) fibres from an air-conditioning filter. Not until a workplace investigation was conducted, was it possible to clarify the unusual sequence of events. High filter pressure in the intensive care air-conditioning system, maintained to establish an outward airflow and prevent microorganisms from entering the ward, probably caused fibres from the filter to become airborne. Upon contact with air-exposed skin, fibres subsequently provoked skin irritation. Test periods in the ICU with varying filter pressures, in an attempt to improve environmental conditions, led to even higher filter pressure levels and more complaints. The sometimes-very-low humidity might have contributed to development of skin irritation. The fact that most patients recovered quickly after treatment with emollients and changing the filters made it most likely that the airborne dermatitis was of an irritant nature.

  8. A novel framework for change detection in bi-temporal polarimetric SAR images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pirrone, Davide; Bovolo, Francesca; Bruzzone, Lorenzo

    2016-10-01

    Last years have seen relevant increase of polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data availability, thanks to satellite sensors like Sentinel-1 or ALOS-2 PALSAR-2. The augmented information lying in the additional polarimetric channels represents a possibility for better discriminate different classes of changes in change detection (CD) applications. This work aims at proposing a framework for CD in multi-temporal multi-polarization SAR data. The framework includes both a tool for an effective visual representation of the change information and a method for extracting the multiple-change information. Both components are designed to effectively handle the multi-dimensionality of polarimetric data. In the novel representation, multi-temporal intensity SAR data are employed to compute a polarimetric log-ratio. The multitemporal information of the polarimetric log-ratio image is represented in a multi-dimensional features space, where changes are highlighted in terms of magnitude and direction. This representation is employed to design a novel unsupervised multi-class CD approach. This approach considers a sequential two-step analysis of the magnitude and the direction information for separating non-changed and changed samples. The proposed approach has been validated on a pair of Sentinel-1 data acquired before and after the flood in Tamil-Nadu in 2015. Preliminary results demonstrate that the representation tool is effective and that the use of polarimetric SAR data is promising in multi-class change detection applications.

  9. Assessment of Full and Compact Polarimetric SAR Observations for Land-Cover and Crop Classification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nafari, Nima Fallah; Homayouni, Saeid; Safari, Abdolreza; Akbari, Vahid

    2016-08-01

    The recently developed compact polarimetric (CP) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data tend to confer a valuable source of information -comparable to full polarimetric (FP) data- in many applications. However, this assertion still needs confirmation in practice. This paper evaluates the potential of FP and CP data in land- cover and crop classification and determines the prospects of CP data in such applications. To this end, two data sets including full polarimetric L-band data from UAVSAR, acquired over an agricultural area in Winnipeg (Canada), and full polarimetric C-band data acquired by RADARSAT-2 over San Francisco are used. CP data are simulated from the FP data of the both datasets and classified by the support vector machine (SVM) algorithm. Based on the results, CP system with a simpler design compared to FP system still has the potential to be used as an alternative when a larger swath width is required.

  10. Visible-regime polarimetric imager: a fully polarimetric, real-time imaging system.

    PubMed

    Barter, James D; Thompson, Harold R; Richardson, Christine L

    2003-03-20

    A fully polarimetric optical camera system has been constructed to obtain polarimetric information simultaneously from four synchronized charge-coupled device imagers at video frame rates of 60 Hz and a resolution of 640 x 480 pixels. The imagers view the same scene along the same optical axis by means of a four-way beam-splitting prism similar to ones used for multiple-imager, common-aperture color TV cameras. Appropriate polarizing filters in front of each imager provide the polarimetric information. Mueller matrix analysis of the polarimetric response of the prism, analyzing filters, and imagers is applied to the detected intensities in each imager as a function of the applied state of polarization over a wide range of linear and circular polarization combinations to obtain an average polarimetric calibration consistent to approximately 2%. Higher accuracies can be obtained by improvement of the polarimetric modeling of the splitting prism and by implementation of a pixel-by-pixel calibration.

  11. Digital Beamforming Synthetic Aperture Radar (DBSAR): Performance Analysis During the Eco-3D 2011 and Summer 2012 Flight Campaigns

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rincon, Rafael F.; Fatoyinbo, Temilola; Carter, Lynn; Ranson, K. Jon; Vega, Manuel; Osmanoglu, Batuhan; Lee, SeungKuk; Sun, Guoqing

    2014-01-01

    The Digital Beamforming Synthetic Aperture radar (DBSAR) is a state-of-the-art airborne radar developed at NASA/Goddard for the implementation, and testing of digital beamforming techniques applicable to Earth and planetary sciences. The DBSAR measurements have been employed to study: The estimation of vegetation biomass and structure - critical parameters in the study of the carbon cycle; The measurement of geological features - to explore its applicability to planetary science by measuring planetary analogue targets. The instrument flew two test campaigns over the East coast of the United States in 2011, and 2012. During the campaigns the instrument operated in full polarimetric mode collecting data from vegetation and topography features.

  12. Segmentation of Polarimetric SAR Images Usig Wavelet Transformation and Texture Features

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rezaeian, A.; Homayouni, S.; Safari, A.

    2015-12-01

    Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) sensors can collect useful observations from earth's surfaces and phenomena for various remote sensing applications, such as land cover mapping, change and target detection. These data can be acquired without the limitations of weather conditions, sun illumination and dust particles. As result, SAR images, and in particular Polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) are powerful tools for various environmental applications. Unlike the optical images, SAR images suffer from the unavoidable speckle, which causes the segmentation of this data difficult. In this paper, we use the wavelet transformation for segmentation of PolSAR images. Our proposed method is based on the multi-resolution analysis of texture features is based on wavelet transformation. Here, we use the information of gray level value and the information of texture. First, we produce coherency or covariance matrices and then generate span image from them. In the next step of proposed method is texture feature extraction from sub-bands is generated from discrete wavelet transform (DWT). Finally, PolSAR image are segmented using clustering methods as fuzzy c-means (FCM) and k-means clustering. We have applied the proposed methodology to full polarimetric SAR images acquired by the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) L-band system, during July, in 2012 over an agricultural area in Winnipeg, Canada.

  13. G0-WISHART Distribution Based Classification from Polarimetric SAR Images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, G. C.; Zhao, Q. H.

    2017-09-01

    Enormous scientific and technical developments have been carried out to further improve the remote sensing for decades, particularly Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar(PolSAR) technique, so classification method based on PolSAR images has getted much more attention from scholars and related department around the world. The multilook polarmetric G0-Wishart model is a more flexible model which describe homogeneous, heterogeneous and extremely heterogeneous regions in the image. Moreover, the polarmetric G0-Wishart distribution dose not include the modified Bessel function of the second kind. It is a kind of simple statistical distribution model with less parameter. To prove its feasibility, a process of classification has been tested with the full-polarized Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) image by the method. First, apply multilook polarimetric SAR data process and speckle filter to reduce speckle influence for classification result. Initially classify the image into sixteen classes by H/A/α decomposition. Using the ICM algorithm to classify feature based on the G0-Wshart distance. Qualitative and quantitative results show that the proposed method can classify polaimetric SAR data effectively and efficiently.

  14. Space-Based Remote Sensing of Atmospheric Aerosols: The Multi-Angle Spectro-Polarimetric Frontier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kokhanovsky, A. A.; Davis, A. B.; Cairns, B.; Dubovik, O.; Hasekamp, O. P.; Sano, I.; Mukai, S.; Rozanov, V. V.; Litvinov, P.; Lapyonok, T.; hide

    2015-01-01

    The review of optical instrumentation, forward modeling, and inverse problem solution for the polarimetric aerosol remote sensing from space is presented. The special emphasis is given to the description of current airborne and satellite imaging polarimeters and also to modern satellite aerosol retrieval algorithms based on the measurements of the Stokes vector of reflected solar light as detected on a satellite. Various underlying surface reflectance models are discussed and evaluated.

  15. Polarimetric Radar Characteristics of Simulated and Observed Intense Convection Between Continental and Maritime Environment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Matsui, T.; Dolan, B.; Tao, W. K.; Rutledge, S. A.; Iguchi, T.; Barnum, J. I.; Lang, S. E.

    2017-12-01

    This study presents polarimetric radar characteristics of intense convective cores derived from observations as well as a polarimetric-radar simulator from cloud resolving model (CRM) simulations from Midlatitude Continental Convective Clouds Experiment (MC3E) May 23 case over Oklahoma and a Tropical Warm Pool-International Cloud Experiment (TWP-ICE) Jan 23 case over Darwin, Australia to highlight the contrast between continental and maritime convection. The POLArimetric Radar Retrieval and Instrument Simulator (POLARRIS) is a state-of-art T-matrix-Mueller-Matrix-based polarimetric radar simulator that can generate synthetic polarimetric radar signals (reflectivity, differential reflectivity, specific differential phase, co-polar correlation) as well as synthetic radar retrievals (precipitation, hydrometeor type, updraft velocity) through the consistent treatment of cloud microphysics and dynamics from CRMs. The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model is configured to simulate continental and maritime severe storms over the MC3E and TWP-ICE domains with the Goddard bulk 4ICE single-moment microphysics and HUCM spectra-bin microphysics. Various statistical diagrams of polarimetric radar signals, hydrometeor types, updraft velocity, and precipitation intensity are investigated for convective and stratiform precipitation regimes and directly compared between MC3E and TWP-ICE cases. The result shows MC3E convection is characterized with very strong reflectivity (up to 60dBZ), slight negative differential reflectivity (-0.8 0 dB) and near-zero specific differential phase above the freezing levels. On the other hand, TWP-ICE convection shows strong reflectivity (up to 50dBZ), slight positive differential reflectivity (0 1.0 dB) and differential phase (0 0.8 dB/km). Hydrometeor IDentification (HID) algorithm from the observation and simulations detect hail-dominant convection core in MC3E, while graupel-dominant convection core in TWP-ICE. This land-ocean contrast

  16. Subsurface polarimetric migration imaging for full polarimetric ground-penetrating radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Xuan; Yu, Yue; Liu, Cai; Fehler, Michael

    2015-08-01

    Polarization is a property of electromagnetic wave that generally refers to the locus of the electric field vector, which can be used to characterize surface properties by polarimetric radar. However, its use has been less common in the ground-penetrating radar (GPR) community. Full polarimetric GPR data include scattering matrices, by which the polarization properties can be extracted, at each survey point. Different components of the measured scattering matrix are sensitive to different types of subsurface objects, which offers a potential improvement in the detection ability of GPR. This paper develops a polarimetric migration imaging method. By merging the Pauli polarimetric decomposition technique with the Krichhoff migration equation, we develop a polarimetric migration algorithm, which can extract three migrated coefficients that are sensitive to different types of objects. Then fusing the three migrated coefficients, we can obtain subsurface colour-coded reconstructed object images, which can be employed to interpret both the geometrical information and the scattering mechanism of the subsurface objects. A 3-D full polarimetric GPR data set was acquired in a laboratory experiment and was used to test the method. In the laboratory experiment, four objects-a scatterer, a ball, a plate and a dihedral target-were buried in homogeneous dry sand under a flat ground surface. By merging the reconstructed image with polarization properties, we enhanced the subsurface image and improved the classification ability of GPR.

  17. Evaluation of applicability of high-resolution multiangle imaging photo-polarimetric observations for aerosol atmospheric correction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalashnikova, Olga; Garay, Michael; Xu, Feng; Diner, David; Seidel, Felix

    2016-07-01

    Multiangle spectro-polarimetric measurements have been advocated as an additional tool for better understanding and quantifying the aerosol properties needed for atmospheric correction for ocean color retrievals. The central concern of this work is the assessment of the effects of absorbing aerosol properties on remote sensing reflectance measurement uncertainty caused by neglecting UV-enhanced absorption of carbonaceous particles and by not accounting for dust nonsphericity. In addition, we evaluate the polarimetric sensitivity of absorbing aerosol properties in light of measurement uncertainties achievable for the next generation of multi-angle polarimetric imaging instruments, and demonstrate advantages and disadvantages of wavelength selection in the UV/VNIR range. In this work a vector Markov Chain radiative transfer code including bio-optical models was used to quantitatively evaluate in water leaving radiances between atmospheres containing realistic UV-enhanced and non-spherical aerosols and the SEADAS carbonaceous and dust-like aerosol models. The phase matrices for the spherical smoke particles were calculated using a standard Mie code, while those for non-spherical dust particles were calculated using the numerical approach developed for modeling dust for the AERONET network of ground-based sunphotometers. As a next step, we have developed a retrieval code that employs a coupled Markov Chain (MC) and adding/doubling radiative transfer method for joint retrieval of aerosol properties and water leaving radiance from Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager-1 (AirMSPI-1) polarimetric observations. The AirMSPI-1 instrument has been flying aboard the NASA ER-2 high altitude aircraft since October 2010. AirMSPI typically acquires observations of a target area at 9 view angles between ±67° at 10 m resolution. AirMSPI spectral channels are centered at 355, 380, 445, 470, 555, 660, and 865 nm, with 470, 660, and 865 reporting linear polarization. We

  18. External calibration of polarimetric radar images using distributed targets

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Yueh, Simon H.; Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.

    1992-01-01

    A new technique is presented for calibrating polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images using only the responses from natural distributed targets. The model for polarimetric radars is assumed to be X = cRST where X is the measured scattering matrix corresponding to the target scattering matrix S distorted by the system matrices T and R (in general T does not equal R(sup t)). To allow for the polarimetric calibration using only distributed targets and corner reflectors, van Zyl assumed a reciprocal polarimetric radar model with T = R(sup t); when applied for JPL SAR data, a heuristic symmetrization procedure is used by POLCAL to compensate the phase difference between the measured HV and VH responses and then take the average of both. This heuristic approach causes some non-removable cross-polarization responses for corner reflectors, which can be avoided by a rigorous symmetrization method based on reciprocity. After the radar is made reciprocal, a new algorithm based on the responses from distributed targets with reflection symmetry is developed to estimate the cross-talk parameters. The new algorithm never experiences problems in convergence and is also found to converge faster than the existing routines implemented for POLCAL. When the new technique is implemented for the JPL polarimetric data, symmetrization and cross-talk removal are performed on a line-by-line (azimuth) basis. After the cross-talks are removed from the entire image, phase and amplitude calibrations are carried out by selecting distributed targets either with azimuthal symmetry along the looking direction or with some well-known volume and surface scattering mechanisms to estimate the relative phases and amplitude responses of the horizontal and vertical channels.

  19. Techniques and Tools for Estimating Ionospheric Effects in Interferometric and Polarimetric SAR Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rosen, P.; Lavalle, M.; Pi, X.; Buckley, S.; Szeliga, W.; Zebker, H.; Gurrola, E.

    2011-01-01

    The InSAR Scientific Computing Environment (ISCE) is a flexible, extensible software tool designed for the end-to-end processing and analysis of synthetic aperture radar data. ISCE inherits the core of the ROI_PAC interferometric tool, but contains improvements at all levels of the radar processing chain, including a modular and extensible architecture, new focusing approach, better geocoding of the data, handling of multi-polarization data, radiometric calibration, and estimation and correction of ionospheric effects. In this paper we describe the characteristics of ISCE with emphasis on the ionospheric modules. To detect ionospheric anomalies, ISCE implements the Faraday rotation method using quadpolarimetric images, and the split-spectrum technique using interferometric single-, dual- and quad-polarimetric images. The ability to generate co-registered time series of quad-polarimetric images makes ISCE also an ideal tool to be used for polarimetric-interferometric radar applications.

  20. Detecting emergence, growth, and senescence of wetland vegetation with polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Gallant, Alisa L.; Kaya, Shannon G.; White, Lori; Brisco, Brian; Roth, Mark F.; Sadinski, Walter J.; Rover, Jennifer

    2014-01-01

    Wetlands provide ecosystem goods and services vitally important to humans. Land managers and policymakers working to conserve wetlands require regularly updated information on the statuses of wetlands across the landscape. However, wetlands are challenging to map remotely with high accuracy and consistency. We investigated the use of multitemporal polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data acquired with Canada’s Radarsat-2 system to track within-season changes in wetland vegetation and surface water. We speculated, a priori, how temporal and morphological traits of different types of wetland vegetation should respond over a growing season with respect to four energy-scattering mechanisms. We used ground-based monitoring data and other ancillary information to assess the limits and consistency of the SAR data for tracking seasonal changes in wetlands. We found the traits of different types of vertical emergent wetland vegetation were detected well with the SAR data and corresponded with our anticipated backscatter responses. We also found using data from Landsat’s optical/infrared sensors in conjunction with SAR data helped remove confusion of wetland features with upland grasslands. These results suggest SAR data can provide useful monitoring information on the statuses of wetlands over time.

  1. Airborne Synthetic Aperature Radar (AIRSAR) on left rear fuselage of DC-8 Airborne Laboratory

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1998-01-01

    A view of the Airborne Synthetic Aperature Radar (AIRSAR) antenna on the left rear fuselage of the DC-8. The AIRSAR captures images of the ground from the side of the aircraft and can provide precision digital elevation mapping capabilities for a variety of studies. The AIRSAR is one of a number of research systems that have been added to the DC-8. NASA is using a DC-8 aircraft as a flying science laboratory. The platform aircraft, based at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., collects data for many experiments in support of scientific projects serving the world scientific community. Included in this community are NASA, federal, state, academic and foreign investigators. Data gathered by the DC-8 at flight altitude and by remote sensing have been used for scientific studies in archeology, ecology, geography, hydrology, meteorology, oceanography, volcanology, atmospheric chemistry, soil science and biology.

  2. Tropical forest tree stands characterization with L-band polarimetric radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wu, Shih-Tseng

    1990-01-01

    The effectiveness of using L-band polarimetric data to determine tropical tree-stand parameters is discussed with specific attention given to the correction of the radar data. Tree-parameter data from ground studies is compared to L-band polarimetric data (in both uncorrected and topographically corrected forms) for two test areas. The test sites are at two different elevations but both include 81 test plots with topographic data and tree-characteristic data given. Synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) data are found to be related to bole volume and tree volume, and the topographically corrected data show results similar to the uncorrected data. Similar r-values are given for both data sets because the data with incidence-angle values below 35 and above 55 are removed. Topographical correction is important when local incidence angles exceed the limits.

  3. Polarimetric SAR Models for Oil Fields Monitoring in China Seas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Buono, A.; Nunziata, F.; Li, X.; Wei, Y.; Ding, X.

    2014-11-01

    In this study, physical-based models for polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) oil fields monitoring are proposed. They all share a physical rationale relying on the different scattering mechanisms that characterize a free sea surface, an oil slick-covered sea surface, and a metallic target. In fact, sea surface scattering is well modeled by a Bragg-like behaviour, while a strong departure from Bragg scattering is in place when dealing with oil slicks and targets. Furthermore, the proposed polarimetric models aim at addressing simultaneously target and oil slick detection, providing useful extra information with respect to single-pol SAR data in order to approach oil discrimination and classification. Experiments undertaken over East and South China Sea from actual C-band RadarSAT-2 full-pol SAR data witness the soundness of the proposed rationale.

  4. Polarimetric SAR Models for Oil Fields Monitoring in China Seas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Buono, A.; Nunziata, F.; Li, X.; Wei, Y.; Ding, X.

    2014-11-01

    In this study, physical-based models for polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) oil fields monitoring are proposed. They all share a physical rationale relying on the different scattering mechanisms that characterize a free sea surface, an oil slick-covered sea surface, and a metallic target. In fact, sea surface scattering is well modeled by a Bragg-like behaviour, while a strong departure from Bragg scattering is in place when dealing with oil slicks and targets. Furthermore, the proposed polarimetric models aim at addressing simultaneously target and oil slick detection, providing useful extra information with respect to single-pol SAR data in order to approach oil discrimination and classification.Experiments undertaken over East and South China Sea from actual C-band RadarSAT-2 full-pol SAR data witness the soundness of the proposed rationale.

  5. Determinations of airborne synthetic musks by polyurethane foam coupled with triple quadrupole gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometer.

    PubMed

    Wang, I-Ting Ivy; Cheng, Shu-Fang; Tsai, Shih-Wei

    2014-02-21

    Synthetic musk is widely used in various scented consumer products. However, the exposure via inhalation is often ignored due to pleasant smells. In addition, the information regarding the distribution of synthetic musk in air is limited. Hence, this research is aimed to develop a highly sensitive and widely applicable method for the determination of airborne synthetic musk. In this study, polyurethane foam (PUF) and filter were employed for active air sampling. Microwave assisted extraction (MAE) and nitrogen evaporator were performed for sample preparation. A gas chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer (GC/MS-MS) with specific multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transition pairs was applied for sample analysis. Compared with using selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode traditionally, the sensitivities were improved in this study about an order at least. In terms of air concentration, as low as 0.48ngm(-3) can be determined when sampling at 3.5Lmin(-1) for 8h. The method established was further applied to the analysis of synthetic musk compounds in air samples collected in a cosmetics plant. The results showed that the airborne concentrations of gaseous polycyclic musk, gaseous nitro-musk, and particle-phase polycyclic musk were 6.4×10(2), 4.0×10(1) and 3.1×10(2)ngm(-3), respectively. Meanwhile, Cashmeran, Celstolide, Galaxolide, and Tonalide were found as the dominant musk compounds in the factory investigated. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Full Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Data for ionosphere observation - A comparative study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mohanty, S.; Singh, G.

    2017-12-01

    Ionosphere, predominantly, govern the propagation of radio waves, especially at L-band and lower frequencies. Small-scale, rapid fluctuations in the electron density, termed as scintillation phenomenon, cause rapid variations in signal amplitude and phase. Scintillation studies have been done using ground-based radio transmitter and beacon GPS signals. In this work, attempt has been made to utilize full polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite signal at L-band (1.27 GHz) to develop a new measurement index for SAR signal intensity fluctuation. Datasets acquired from Japan's latest Advanced Land Observation Satellite (ALOS)-2 over the Indian subcontinent on two different dates, with varying ionospheric activities, have been utilized to compare the index. A 20% increase in the index values for a scintillation-affected day has been observed. The result coincides with the nature of ionospheric scintillation pattern typically observed over the equatorial belt. Total electron content values, for the two dates of acquisition, obtained from freely available Ionosphere Exchange (IONEX) data have been used to validate the varying ionospheric activities as well as the trend in index results. Another interesting finding of the paper is the demarcation of the equatorial anomaly belt. The index values are comparatively higher at these latitudes on a scintillation-affected day. Furthermore, the SAR signal intensity fluctuation index has great potential in being used as a preliminary measurement index to identify low frequency SAR data affected by ionospheric scintillation.

  7. Polsar Land Cover Classification Based on Hidden Polarimetric Features in Rotation Domain and Svm Classifier

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tao, C.-S.; Chen, S.-W.; Li, Y.-Z.; Xiao, S.-P.

    2017-09-01

    Land cover classification is an important application for polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) data utilization. Rollinvariant polarimetric features such as H / Ani / α / Span are commonly adopted in PolSAR land cover classification. However, target orientation diversity effect makes PolSAR images understanding and interpretation difficult. Only using the roll-invariant polarimetric features may introduce ambiguity in the interpretation of targets' scattering mechanisms and limit the followed classification accuracy. To address this problem, this work firstly focuses on hidden polarimetric feature mining in the rotation domain along the radar line of sight using the recently reported uniform polarimetric matrix rotation theory and the visualization and characterization tool of polarimetric coherence pattern. The former rotates the acquired polarimetric matrix along the radar line of sight and fully describes the rotation characteristics of each entry of the matrix. Sets of new polarimetric features are derived to describe the hidden scattering information of the target in the rotation domain. The latter extends the traditional polarimetric coherence at a given rotation angle to the rotation domain for complete interpretation. A visualization and characterization tool is established to derive new polarimetric features for hidden information exploration. Then, a classification scheme is developed combing both the selected new hidden polarimetric features in rotation domain and the commonly used roll-invariant polarimetric features with a support vector machine (SVM) classifier. Comparison experiments based on AIRSAR and multi-temporal UAVSAR data demonstrate that compared with the conventional classification scheme which only uses the roll-invariant polarimetric features, the proposed classification scheme achieves both higher classification accuracy and better robustness

  8. Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) Level 1B2 V006 Announcement

    Atmospheric Science Data Center

    2018-05-22

    The NASA Langley Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC) and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) announce the public ... SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) Level 1B2 V006 data for all targets acquired for flight campaigns: Radar Definition ... Experiment (RADEX) flight campaign was based out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. The campaign focused on characterizing new ...

  9. POLCAL - POLARIMETRIC RADAR CALIBRATION

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vanzyl, J.

    1994-01-01

    Calibration of polarimetric radar systems is a field of research in which great progress has been made over the last few years. POLCAL (Polarimetric Radar Calibration) is a software tool intended to assist in the calibration of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems. In particular, POLCAL calibrates Stokes matrix format data produced as the standard product by the NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) airborne imaging synthetic aperture radar (AIRSAR). POLCAL was designed to be used in conjunction with data collected by the NASA/JPL AIRSAR system. AIRSAR is a multifrequency (6 cm, 24 cm, and 68 cm wavelength), fully polarimetric SAR system which produces 12 x 12 km imagery at 10 m resolution. AIRSTAR was designed as a testbed for NASA's Spaceborne Imaging Radar program. While the images produced after 1991 are thought to be calibrated (phase calibrated, cross-talk removed, channel imbalance removed, and absolutely calibrated), POLCAL can and should still be used to check the accuracy of the calibration and to correct it if necessary. Version 4.0 of POLCAL is an upgrade of POLCAL version 2.0 released to AIRSAR investigators in June, 1990. New options in version 4.0 include automatic absolute calibration of 89/90 data, distributed target analysis, calibration of nearby scenes with calibration parameters from a scene with corner reflectors, altitude or roll angle corrections, and calibration of errors introduced by known topography. Many sources of error can lead to false conclusions about the nature of scatterers on the surface. Errors in the phase relationship between polarization channels result in incorrect synthesis of polarization states. Cross-talk, caused by imperfections in the radar antenna itself, can also lead to error. POLCAL reduces cross-talk and corrects phase calibration without the use of ground calibration equipment. Removing the antenna patterns during SAR processing also forms a very important part of the calibration of SAR data. Errors in the

  10. Discrimination of Oil Slicks and Lookalikes in Polarimetric SAR Images Using CNN.

    PubMed

    Guo, Hao; Wu, Danni; An, Jubai

    2017-08-09

    Oil slicks and lookalikes (e.g., plant oil and oil emulsion) all appear as dark areas in polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images and are highly heterogeneous, so it is very difficult to use a single feature that can allow classification of dark objects in polarimetric SAR images as oil slicks or lookalikes. We established multi-feature fusion to support the discrimination of oil slicks and lookalikes. In the paper, simple discrimination analysis is used to rationalize a preferred features subset. The features analyzed include entropy, alpha, and Single-bounce Eigenvalue Relative Difference (SERD) in the C-band polarimetric mode. We also propose a novel SAR image discrimination method for oil slicks and lookalikes based on Convolutional Neural Network (CNN). The regions of interest are selected as the training and testing samples for CNN on the three kinds of polarimetric feature images. The proposed method is applied to a training data set of 5400 samples, including 1800 crude oil, 1800 plant oil, and 1800 oil emulsion samples. In the end, the effectiveness of the method is demonstrated through the analysis of some experimental results. The classification accuracy obtained using 900 samples of test data is 91.33%. It is here observed that the proposed method not only can accurately identify the dark spots on SAR images but also verify the ability of the proposed algorithm to classify unstructured features.

  11. Discrimination of Oil Slicks and Lookalikes in Polarimetric SAR Images Using CNN

    PubMed Central

    An, Jubai

    2017-01-01

    Oil slicks and lookalikes (e.g., plant oil and oil emulsion) all appear as dark areas in polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images and are highly heterogeneous, so it is very difficult to use a single feature that can allow classification of dark objects in polarimetric SAR images as oil slicks or lookalikes. We established multi-feature fusion to support the discrimination of oil slicks and lookalikes. In the paper, simple discrimination analysis is used to rationalize a preferred features subset. The features analyzed include entropy, alpha, and Single-bounce Eigenvalue Relative Difference (SERD) in the C-band polarimetric mode. We also propose a novel SAR image discrimination method for oil slicks and lookalikes based on Convolutional Neural Network (CNN). The regions of interest are selected as the training and testing samples for CNN on the three kinds of polarimetric feature images. The proposed method is applied to a training data set of 5400 samples, including 1800 crude oil, 1800 plant oil, and 1800 oil emulsion samples. In the end, the effectiveness of the method is demonstrated through the analysis of some experimental results. The classification accuracy obtained using 900 samples of test data is 91.33%. It is here observed that the proposed method not only can accurately identify the dark spots on SAR images but also verify the ability of the proposed algorithm to classify unstructured features. PMID:28792477

  12. Accounting For Gains And Orientations In Polarimetric SAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Freeman, Anthony

    1992-01-01

    Calibration method accounts for characteristics of real radar equipment invalidating standard 2 X 2 complex-amplitude R (receiving) and T (transmitting) matrices. Overall gain in each combination of transmitting and receiving channels assumed different even when only one transmitter and one receiver used. One characterizes departure of polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) system from simple 2 X 2 model in terms of single parameter used to transform measurements into format compatible with simple 2 X 2 model. Data processed by applicable one of several prior methods based on simple model.

  13. Clustering of Multi-Temporal Fully Polarimetric L-Band SAR Data for Agricultural Land Cover Mapping

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tamiminia, H.; Homayouni, S.; Safari, A.

    2015-12-01

    Recently, the unique capabilities of Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) sensors make them an important and efficient tool for natural resources and environmental applications, such as land cover and crop classification. The aim of this paper is to classify multi-temporal full polarimetric SAR data using kernel-based fuzzy C-means clustering method, over an agricultural region. This method starts with transforming input data into the higher dimensional space using kernel functions and then clustering them in the feature space. Feature space, due to its inherent properties, has the ability to take in account the nonlinear and complex nature of polarimetric data. Several SAR polarimetric features extracted using target decomposition algorithms. Features from Cloude-Pottier, Freeman-Durden and Yamaguchi algorithms used as inputs for the clustering. This method was applied to multi-temporal UAVSAR L-band images acquired over an agricultural area near Winnipeg, Canada, during June and July in 2012. The results demonstrate the efficiency of this approach with respect to the classical methods. In addition, using multi-temporal data in the clustering process helped to investigate the phenological cycle of plants and significantly improved the performance of agricultural land cover mapping.

  14. Advanced Unsupervised Classification Methods to Detect Anomalies on Earthen Levees Using Polarimetric SAR Imagery

    PubMed Central

    Marapareddy, Ramakalavathi; Aanstoos, James V.; Younan, Nicolas H.

    2016-01-01

    Fully polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (polSAR) data analysis has wide applications for terrain and ground cover classification. The dynamics of surface and subsurface water events can lead to slope instability resulting in slough slides on earthen levees. Early detection of these anomalies by a remote sensing approach could save time versus direct assessment. We used L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to screen levees for anomalies. SAR technology, due to its high spatial resolution and soil penetration capability, is a good choice for identifying problematic areas on earthen levees. Using the parameters entropy (H), anisotropy (A), alpha (α), and eigenvalues (λ, λ1, λ2, and λ3), we implemented several unsupervised classification algorithms for the identification of anomalies on the levee. The classification techniques applied are H/α, H/A, A/α, Wishart H/α, Wishart H/A/α, and H/α/λ classification algorithms. In this work, the effectiveness of the algorithms was demonstrated using quad-polarimetric L-band SAR imagery from the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s (JPL’s) Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR). The study area is a section of the lower Mississippi River valley in the Southern USA, where earthen flood control levees are maintained by the US Army Corps of Engineers. PMID:27322270

  15. Modeling Wetland Vegetation using Polarimetric SAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Slatton, K. Clint; Crawford, Melba M.; Gibeaut, James C.; Gutierrez, Roberto O.

    1996-01-01

    A three-year project to study small-scale topographic changes and relict geomorphic features on barrier islands using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is described. A study area on the Texas coast consisting of Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula was overflown by the NASA/JPL DC 8 AIRSAR in April 1995. Data was acquired in the fully polarimetric mode using C-, L-, and P-bands and in the TOPSAR configuration with C- and L-bands in interferometric mode. The study area will be overflown again in late spring 1996. The data will be registered to global positioning system (GPS) surveyed points to form high resolution digital elevation models (DEM) and then analyzed to investigate possible topographic changes.

  16. Principles and techniques of polarimetric mapping.

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Halajian, J.; Hallock, H.

    1973-01-01

    This paper introduces the concept and potential value of polarimetric maps and the techniques for generating these maps in operational remote sensing. The application-oriented polarimetric signature analyses in the literature are compiled, and several optical models are illustrated to bring out requirements of a sensor system for polarimetric mapping. By use of the concepts of Stokes parameters the descriptive specification of one sensor system is refined. The descriptive specification for a multichannel digital photometric-polarimetric mapper is based upon our experience with the present single channel device which includes the generation of polarimetric maps and pictures. High photometric accuracy and stability coupled with fast, accurate digital output has enabled us to overcome the handicap of taking sequential data from the same terrain.

  17. Marsh dieback, loss, and recovery mapped with satellite optical, airborne polarimetric radar, and field data

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ramsey, Elijah W.; Rangoonwala, Amina; Chi, Zhaohui; Jones, Cathleen E.; Bannister, Terri

    2014-01-01

    Landsat Thematic Mapper and Satellite Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT) satellite based optical sensors, NASA Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle synthetic aperture radar (UAVSAR) polarimetric SAR (PolSAR), and field data captured the occurrence and the recovery of an undetected dieback that occurred between the summers of 2010, 2011, and 2012 in the Spartina alterniflora marshes of coastal Louisiana. Field measurements recorded the dramatic biomass decrease from 2010 to 2011 and a biomass recovery in 2012 dominated by a decrease of live biomass, and the loss of marsh as part of the dieback event. Based on an established relationship, the near-infrared/red vegetation index (VI) and site-specific measurements delineated a contiguous expanse of marsh dieback encompassing 6649.9 ha of 18,292.3 ha of S. alterniflora marshes within the study region. PolSAR data were transformed to variables used in biophysical mapping, and of this variable suite, the cross-polarization HV (horizontal send and vertical receive) backscatter was the best single indicator of marsh dieback and recovery. HV backscatter exhibited substantial and significant changes over the dieback and recovery period, tracked measured biomass changes, and significantly correlated with the live/dead biomass ratio. Within the context of regional trends, both HV and VI indicators started higher in pre-dieback marshes and exhibited substantially and statistically higher variability from year to year than that exhibited in the non-dieback marshes. That distinct difference allowed the capturing of the S. alterniflora marsh dieback and recovery; however, these changes were incorporated in a regional trend exhibiting similar but more subtle biomass composition changes.

  18. Polarimetric Observations of the Lunar Surface

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, S.

    2017-12-01

    Polarimetric images contain valuable information on the lunar surface such as grain size and porosity of the regolith, from which one can estimate the space weathering environment on the lunar surface. Surprisingly, polarimetric observation has never been conducted from the lunar orbit before. A Wide-Angle Polarimetric Camera (PolCam) has been recently selected as one of three Korean science instruments onboard the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO), which is aimed to be launched in 2019/2020 as the first Korean lunar mission. PolCam will obtain 80 m-resolution polarimetric images of the whole lunar surface between -70º and +70º latitudes at 320, 430 and 750 nm bands for phase angles up to 115º. I will also discuss previous polarimetric studies on the lunar surface based on our ground-based observations.

  19. Airborne SAR systems for infrastructures monitoring

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Perna, Stefano; Berardino, Paolo; Esposito, Carmen; Natale, Antonio

    2017-04-01

    The present contribution is aimed at showing the capabilities of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems mounted onboard airborne platforms for the monitoring of infrastructures. As well known, airborne SAR systems guarantee narrower spatial coverage than satellite sensors [1]. On the other side, airborne SAR products are characterized by geometric resolution typically higher than that achievable in the satellite case, where larger antennas must be necessarily exploited. More important, airborne SAR platforms guarantee operational flexibility significantly higher than that achievable with satellite systems. Indeed, the revisit time between repeated SAR acquisitions in the satellite case cannot be freely decided, whereas in the airborne case it can be kept very short. This renders the airborne platforms of key interest for the monitoring of infrastructures, especially in case of emergencies. However, due to the platform deviations from a rectilinear, reference flight track, the generation of airborne SAR products is not a turn of the crank procedure as in the satellite case. Notwithstanding proper algorithms exist in order to circumvent this kind of limitations. In this work, we show how the exploitation of airborne SAR sensors, coupled to the use of such algorithms, allows obtaining high resolution monitoring of infrastructures in urban areas. [1] G. Franceschetti, and R.Lanari, Synthetic Aperture Radar Processing, CRC PRESS, New York, 1999.

  20. Polarimetric survey of main-belt asteroids. V. The unusual polarimetric behavior of V-type asteroids

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gil-Hutton, R.; López-Sisterna, C.; Calandra, M. F.

    2017-03-01

    Aims: We present the results of a polarimetric survey of main-belt asteroids at Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito (CASLEO), San Juan, Argentina. The aims of this survey are to increase the database of asteroid polarimetry, to estimate diversity in polarimetric properties of asteroids that belong to different taxonomic classes, and to search for objects that exhibit anomalous polarimetric properties. Methods: The data were obtained using the CASPROF and CASPOL polarimeters at the 2.15 m telescope. The CASPROF polarimeter is a two-hole aperture polarimeter with rapid modulation and CASPOL is a polarimeter based on a CCD detector, which allows us to observe fainter objects with better signal-to-noise ratio. Results: The survey began in 1995 and data on a large sample of asteroids were obtained until 2012. A second period began in 2013 using a polarimeter with a more sensitive detector in order to study small asteroids, families, and special taxonomic groups. We obtained 55 polarimetric measurements for 28 V-type main belt asteroids, all of them polarimetrically observed for the first time. The data obtained in this survey let us find polarimetric parameters for (1459) Magnya and for a group of 11 small V-type objects with similar polarimetric behavior. These polarization curves are unusual since they show a shallow minimum and a small inversion angle in comparison with (4) Vesta, although they have a steeper slope at α0. This polarimetric behavior could be explained by differences in the regoliths of these asteroids. The observations of (2579) Spartacus, and perhaps also (3944) Halliday, indicate a inversion angle larger than 24-25°. Based on observations carried out at the Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito, operated under agreement between the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de la República Argentina and the National Universities of La Plata, Córdoba, and San Juan.

  1. Polarimetric passive millimeter-wave sensing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wikner, David A.; Samples, Greg

    2001-08-01

    The US Army Research Laboratory has developed a 93-Ghz Stokes radiometer that is currently being used to quantify the polarimetric signature of various objects and materials. Preliminary measurement using the radiometer have been made of various terrain types and objects, which have included an asphalt aircraft runway, a gravel road, water, grass a tank, and a truck. A description of the development of the radiometer, its performance, and some initial results are presented. These results are the first step in assessing the utility of polarimetric radiometry and specifically how missions can be enhanced using this information. The results show that polarimetric radiometry may be useful for eliminating water as a false target in the imagery. It is also shown that asphalt aircraft runways do have a polarimetric signature that is different than short dormant grass at a 3-deg glide slope angle.

  2. Pyxis handheld polarimetric imager

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chenault, David B.; Pezzaniti, J. Larry; Vaden, Justin P.

    2016-05-01

    The instrumentation for measuring infrared polarization signatures has seen significant advancement over the last decade. Previous work has shown the value of polarimetric imagery for a variety of target detection scenarios including detection of manmade targets in clutter and detection of ground and maritime targets while recent work has shown improvements in contrast for aircraft detection and biometric markers. These data collection activities have generally used laboratory or prototype systems with limitations on the allowable amount of target motion or the sensor platform and usually require an attached computer for data acquisition and processing. Still, performance and sensitivity have been steadily getting better while size, weight, and power requirements have been getting smaller enabling polarimetric imaging for a greater or real world applications. In this paper, we describe Pyxis®, a microbolometer based imaging polarimeter that produces live polarimetric video of conventional, polarimetric, and fused image products. A polarization microgrid array integrated in the optical system captures all polarization states simultaneously and makes the system immune to motion artifacts of either the sensor or the scene. The system is battery operated, rugged, and weighs about a quarter pound, and can be helmet mounted or handheld. On board processing of polarization and fused image products enable the operator to see polarimetric signatures in real time. Both analog and digital outputs are possible with sensor control available through a tablet interface. A top level description of Pyxis® is given followed by performance characteristics and representative data.

  3. Efficient polarimetric BRDF model.

    PubMed

    Renhorn, Ingmar G E; Hallberg, Tomas; Boreman, Glenn D

    2015-11-30

    The purpose of the present manuscript is to present a polarimetric bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) model suitable for hyperspectral and polarimetric signature modelling. The model is based on a further development of a previously published four-parameter model that has been generalized in order to account for different types of surface structures (generalized Gaussian distribution). A generalization of the Lambertian diffuse model is presented. The pBRDF-functions are normalized using numerical integration. Using directional-hemispherical reflectance (DHR) measurements, three of the four basic parameters can be determined for any wavelength. This simplifies considerably the development of multispectral polarimetric BRDF applications. The scattering parameter has to be determined from at least one BRDF measurement. The model deals with linear polarized radiation; and in similarity with e.g. the facet model depolarization is not included. The model is very general and can inherently model extreme surfaces such as mirrors and Lambertian surfaces. The complex mixture of sources is described by the sum of two basic models, a generalized Gaussian/Fresnel model and a generalized Lambertian model. Although the physics inspired model has some ad hoc features, the predictive power of the model is impressive over a wide range of angles and scattering magnitudes. The model has been applied successfully to painted surfaces, both dull and glossy and also on metallic bead blasted surfaces. The simple and efficient model should be attractive for polarimetric simulations and polarimetric remote sensing.

  4. Polarimetric ISAR: Simulation and image reconstruction

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chambers, David H.

    In polarimetric ISAR the illumination platform, typically airborne, carries a pair of antennas that are directed toward a fixed point on the surface as the platform moves. During platform motion, the antennas maintain their gaze on the point, creating an effective aperture for imaging any targets near that point. The interaction between the transmitted fields and targets (e.g. ships) is complicated since the targets are typically many wavelengths in size. Calculation of the field scattered from the target typically requires solving Maxwell’s equations on a large three-dimensional numerical grid. This is prohibitive to use in any real-world imaging algorithm, somore » the scattering process is typically simplified by assuming the target consists of a cloud of independent, non-interacting, scattering points (centers). Imaging algorithms based on this scattering model perform well in many applications. Since polarimetric radar is not very common, the scattering model is often derived for a scalar field (single polarization) where the individual scatterers are assumed to be small spheres. However, when polarization is important, we must generalize the model to explicitly account for the vector nature of the electromagnetic fields and its interaction with objects. In this note, we present a scattering model that explicitly includes the vector nature of the fields but retains the assumption that the individual scatterers are small. The response of the scatterers is described by electric and magnetic dipole moments induced by the incident fields. We show that the received voltages in the antennas are linearly related to the transmitting currents through a scattering impedance matrix that depends on the overall geometry of the problem and the nature of the scatterers.« less

  5. Summaries of the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. Volume 2; AIRSAR Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kim, Yun-Jin (Editor)

    1996-01-01

    The Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on March 4-8, 1996, was divided into two smaller workshops:(1) The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, and The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop. This current paper, Volume 2 of the Summaries of the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, presents the summaries for The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop.

  6. Forest height estimation from mountain forest areas using general model-based decomposition for polarimetric interferometric synthetic aperture radar images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Minh, Nghia Pham; Zou, Bin; Cai, Hongjun; Wang, Chengyi

    2014-01-01

    The estimation of forest parameters over mountain forest areas using polarimetric interferometric synthetic aperture radar (PolInSAR) images is one of the greatest interests in remote sensing applications. For mountain forest areas, scattering mechanisms are strongly affected by the ground topography variations. Most of the previous studies in modeling microwave backscattering signatures of forest area have been carried out over relatively flat areas. Therefore, a new algorithm for the forest height estimation from mountain forest areas using the general model-based decomposition (GMBD) for PolInSAR image is proposed. This algorithm enables the retrieval of not only the forest parameters, but also the magnitude associated with each mechanism. In addition, general double- and single-bounce scattering models are proposed to fit for the cross-polarization and off-diagonal term by separating their independent orientation angle, which remains unachieved in the previous model-based decompositions. The efficiency of the proposed approach is demonstrated with simulated data from PolSARProSim software and ALOS-PALSAR spaceborne PolInSAR datasets over the Kalimantan areas, Indonesia. Experimental results indicate that forest height could be effectively estimated by GMBD.

  7. Polinsar Experiments of Multi-Mode X-Band Data Over South Area of China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, L.; Yan, Q.; Duan, M.; Zhang, Y.

    2012-08-01

    This paper makes the polarimetric and polarimetric interferometric synthetic aperture radar (PolInSAR) experiments with the high-resolution X-band data acquired by Multi-mode airborne SAR system over an area around Linshui, south of China containing tropic vegetation and urban areas. Polarimetric analysis for typical tropic vegetations and man-made objects are presented, some polarimetric descriptors sensitive to vegetations and man-made objects are selected. Then, the PolInSAR information contained in the data is investigated, considering characteristics of the Multi-mode-XSAR dataset, a dual-baseline polarimetric interferometry method is proposed in this paper. The method both guarantees the high coherence on fully polarimetric data and combines the benefits of short and long baseline that helpful to the phase unwrapping and height sensitivity promotion. PolInSAR experiment results displayed demonstrates Multi-mode-XSAR datasets have intuitive capabilities for amount of application of land classification, objects detection and DSM mapping.

  8. Comparison of JPL-AIRSAR and DLR E-SAR images from the MAC Europe 1991 campaign over testsite Oberpfaffenhofen: Frequency and polarization dependent backscatter variations from agricultural fields

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schmullius, C.; Nithack, J.

    1992-01-01

    On July 12, the MAC Europe '91 (Multi-Sensor Airborne Campaign) took place over test site Oberpfaffenhofen. The DLR Institute of Radio-Frequency Technology participated with its C-VV, X-VV, and X-HH Experimental Synthetic Aperture Radar (E-SAR). The high resolution E-SAR images with a pixel size between 1 and 2 m and the polarimetric AIRSAR images were analyzed. Using both sensors in combination is a unique opportunity to evaluate SAR images in a frequency range from P- to X-band and to investigate polarimetric information.

  9. Wetland Classification for Black Duck Habitat Management Using Combined Polarimetric RADARSAT 2 and SPOT Imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, W.; Hu, B.; Brown, G.

    2018-04-01

    The black duck population has decreased significantly due to loss of its breeding habitat. Wetlands are an important feature that relates to habitat management and requires monitoring. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems are helpful to map the wetland as the microwave signals are sensitive to water content and can be used to map surface water extent, saturated soils, and flooded vegetation. In this study, RadarSat 2 Polarimetric data is employed to map surface water and track changes in extent over the years through image thresholding and reviewed different approaches of Polarimetric decompositions for detecting flooded vegetation. Also, object-based analysis associated with beaver activity is conducted with combined multispectral SPOT satellite imagery. Results show SAR data has proven ability to improve mapping open water areas and locate flooded vegetation areas.

  10. A fine resolution multifrequency polarimetric FM radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bredow, J.; Gogineni, S.; Leung, T.; Moore, R. K.

    1988-01-01

    A fine resolution polarimetric FM SAR was developed for optimization of polarimetric SARs and interpretation of SAR data via controlled experiments with surface-base sensors. The system is designed for collecting polarimetric data at 5.3 and 10 GHz over incidence angles from 0 to 60 deg. Features of the system include broad bandwidth to obtain fine range resolution, phase stabilization and linearization loop circuitry, and digital signal processing capability. The system is used in a research program to collect polarimetric backscatter data from artificial sea ice research and design trade-offs, laboratory and field evaluation, as well as results from experiments on artificial sea ice are presented.

  11. Cloud and aerosol polarimetric imager

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Junqiang; Shao, Jianbing; Yan, Changxiang

    2014-02-01

    Cloud and Aerosol Polarimetric Imager (CAPI), which is the first onboard cloud and aerosol Polarimetric detector of CHINA, is developed to get cloud and aerosol data of atmosphere to retrieve aerosol optical and microphysical properties to increase the reversion precision of greenhouse gasses (GHGs). The instrument is neither a Polarization and Direction of Earth's Reflectance (POLDER) nor a Directional Polarimetric Camera (DPC) type polarized camera. It is a multispectral push broom system using linear detectors, and can get 5 bands spectral data, from ultraviolet (UV) to SWIR, of the same ground feature at the same time without any moving structure. This paper describes the CAPI instrument characteristics, composition, calibration, and the nearest development.

  12. Passive Polarimetric Remote Sensing of Snow and Ice

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1997-09-30

    In recent years, polarimetric radiometry has shown great potential to revolutionize passive remote sensing of the ocean surface. As a result, several...polarimetric radiometer, in 2001. This project explores the possibility of applying this new technology to remote sensing in the Polar Regions by investigating the polarimetric signature of ice and snow.

  13. Operations Manager Tim Miller checks out software for the Airborne Synthetic Aperature Radar (AIRSAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1998-01-01

    Tim Miller checks out software for the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR). He was the AIRSAR operations manager for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The AIRSAR produces imaging data for a range of studies conducted by the DC-8. NASA is using a DC-8 aircraft as a flying science laboratory. The platform aircraft, based at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., collects data for many experiments in support of scientific projects serving the world scientific community. Included in this community are NASA, federal, state, academic and foreign investigators. Data gathered by the DC-8 at flight altitude and by remote sensing have been used for scientific studies in archeology, ecology, geography, hydrology, meteorology, oceanography, volcanology, atmospheric chemistry, soil science and biology.

  14. Object-oriented crop mapping and monitoring using multi-temporal polarimetric RADARSAT-2 data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jiao, Xianfeng; Kovacs, John M.; Shang, Jiali; McNairn, Heather; Walters, Dan; Ma, Baoluo; Geng, Xiaoyuan

    2014-10-01

    The aim of this paper is to assess the accuracy of an object-oriented classification of polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) data to map and monitor crops using 19 RADARSAT-2 fine beam polarimetric (FQ) images of an agricultural area in North-eastern Ontario, Canada. Polarimetric images and field data were acquired during the 2011 and 2012 growing seasons. The classification and field data collection focused on the main crop types grown in the region, which include: wheat, oat, soybean, canola and forage. The polarimetric parameters were extracted with PolSAR analysis using both the Cloude-Pottier and Freeman-Durden decompositions. The object-oriented classification, with a single date of PolSAR data, was able to classify all five crop types with an accuracy of 95% and Kappa of 0.93; a 6% improvement in comparison with linear-polarization only classification. However, the time of acquisition is crucial. The larger biomass crops of canola and soybean were most accurately mapped, whereas the identification of oat and wheat were more variable. The multi-temporal data using the Cloude-Pottier decomposition parameters provided the best classification accuracy compared to the linear polarizations and the Freeman-Durden decomposition parameters. In general, the object-oriented classifications were able to accurately map crop types by reducing the noise inherent in the SAR data. Furthermore, using the crop classification maps we were able to monitor crop growth stage based on a trend analysis of the radar response. Based on field data from canola crops, there was a strong relationship between the phenological growth stage based on the BBCH scale, and the HV backscatter and entropy.

  15. Development of the ECOSAR P-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rincon, R. F.; Fatoyinbo, T.; Ranson, K. J.; Sun, G.; Deshpande, M.; Hale, R. D.; Bhat, A.; Perrine, M.; DuToit, C. F.; Bonds, Q.; hide

    2012-01-01

    This paper describes objectives and recent progress on the development of the EcoSAR, a new P-band airborne radar instrument being developed at the NASA/ Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) for the polarimetric and interferometric measurements of ecosystem structure and biomass. These measurements support science requirements for the study of the carbon cycle and its relationship to climate change. The instrument is scheduled to be completed and flight tested in 2013. Index Terms SAR, Digital Beamforming, Interferometry.

  16. Polarimetric C-/X-band Synthetic Aperture Radar Observations of Melting Sea Ice in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Casey, J. A.; Beckers, J. F.; Brossier, E.; Haas, C.

    2013-12-01

    Operational ice information services rely heavily on space-borne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data for the production of ice charts to meet their mandate of providing timely and accurate sea ice information to support safe and efficient marine operations. During the summer melt period, the usefulness of SAR data for sea ice monitoring is limited by the presence of wet snow and melt ponds on the ice surface, which can mask the signature of the underlying ice. This is a critical concern for ice services whose clients (e.g. commercial shipping, cruise tourism, resource exploration and extraction) are most active at this time of year when sea ice is at its minimum extent, concentration and thickness. As a result, there is a need to further quantify the loss of ice information in SAR data during the melt season and to identify what information can still be retrieved about ice surface conditions and melt pond evolution at this time of year. To date the majority of studies have been limited to analysis of single-polarization C-band SAR data. This study will investigate the potential complimentary and unique sea ice information that polarimetric C- and X-band SAR data can provide to supplement the information available from traditional single co-polarized C-band SAR data. A time-series of polarimetric C- and X-band SAR data was acquired over Jones Sound in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, in the vicinity of the Grise Fiord, Nunavut. Five RADARSAT-2 Wide Fine Quad-pol images and 11 TerraSAR-X StripMap dual-pol (HH/VV) images were acquired. The time-series begins at the onset of melt in early June and extends through advanced melt conditions in late July. Over this period several ponding and drainage events and two snowfall events occurred. Field observations of sea ice properties were collected using an Ice Mass Balance (IMB) buoy, hourly photos from a time-lapse camera deployed on a coastal cliff, and manual in situ measurements of snow thickness and melt pond depth

  17. Polarimetric Study of Jupiter's Atmosphere

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yanamandra-Fisher, P. A.; McLean, W.; Wesley, A.; Miles, P.; Masding, P.

    2017-12-01

    Jupiter's atmosphere displays polarization, attributed to changes in the clouds/thermal filed that can be brought about by endogenic dynamical processes such merger of vortices; global, planetary scale upheavals, and external factors such as celestial collisions (such as D/Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact with Jupiter in 1994, etc.). Although the range of phase angles available from Earth for Jupiter is restricted to a narrow range, limb polarization measurements provide constraints on the polarimetric properties. Jupiter is known to exhibit a strong polar limb polarization and a low equatorial limb polarization due to the presence of haze particles and Rayleigh scattering at the poles. In contrast, at the equator, the concentration of particulates in the high atmosphere might change, changing the polarimetric signature and aurorae at both poles. The polarimetric maps, in conjunction with thermal maps and albedo maps, can provide constraints on modeling efforts to understand the nature of the aerosols/hazes in Jovian atmosphere. With Jupiter experiencing morphological changes at many latitudes, we have initiated a polarimetric observing campaign of Jupiter, in conjunction with The PACA Project and preliminary results will be discussed. Some of our observations are acquired by a team of professional/amateur planetary imagers astronomers.

  18. Battlefield radar imaging through airborne millimetric wave SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carletti, U.; Daddio, E.; Farina, A.; Morabito, C.; Pangrazi, R.; Studer, F. A.

    Airborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR), operating in the millimetric-wave (mmw) region, is discussed with reference to a battlefield surveillance application. The SAR system provides high resolution real-time imaging of the battlefield and moving target detection, under adverse environmental conditions (e.g., weather, dust, smoke, obscurants). The most relevant and original aspects of the system are the band of operation (i.e., mmw in lieu of the more traditional microwave region) and the use of an unmanned platform. The former implies reduced weight and size requirements, thus allowing use of small unmanned platforms. The latter enchances the system operational effectiveness by permitting accomplishment of recognition missions in depth beyond the FEBA. An overall system architecture based on the onboard sensor, the platform, the communication equipment, and a mobile ground station is described. The main areas of ongoing investigation are presented: the simulation of the end-to-end system, and the critical technological issues such as mmw antenna, transmitter, signal processor for image formation and platform attitude errors compensation and detection and imaging of moving targets.

  19. Polarimetric optical imaging of scattering surfaces.

    PubMed

    Barter, J D; Lee, P H

    1996-10-20

    A polarimetric optical specular event detector (OSED) has been developed to provide spatially and temporally resolved polarimetric data of backscattering in the visible from water wave surfaces. The OSED acquires simultaneous, two-dimensionally resolved images of the remote target in two orthogonal planes of polarization. With the use of plane-polarized illumination the OSED presently can measure, in an ensemble of breaking waves, the equivalent four-element polarization matrix common to polarimetric radars. Upgrade to full Stokes parameter state of polarization measurements is straightforward with the use of present single-aperture, multi-imager CCD camera technology. The OSED is used in conjunction with a coherent pulse-chirped radar (PCR), which also measures the four-element polarization matrix, to provide direct time-correlated identification of backscattering mechanisms operative during wave-breaking events which heretofore have not been described theoretically. We describe the instrument and its implementation, and examples of spatially resolved polarimetric data are displayed as correlated with the PCR backscatter cross section and polarization ratio records.

  20. Change detection in a time series of polarimetric SAR data by an omnibus test statistic and its factorization (Conference Presentation)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nielsen, Allan A.; Conradsen, Knut; Skriver, Henning

    2016-10-01

    Test statistics for comparison of real (as opposed to complex) variance-covariance matrices exist in the statistics literature [1]. In earlier publications we have described a test statistic for the equality of two variance-covariance matrices following the complex Wishart distribution with an associated p-value [2]. We showed their application to bitemporal change detection and to edge detection [3] in multilook, polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data in the covariance matrix representation [4]. The test statistic and the associated p-value is described in [5] also. In [6] we focussed on the block-diagonal case, we elaborated on some computer implementation issues, and we gave examples on the application to change detection in both full and dual polarization bitemporal, bifrequency, multilook SAR data. In [7] we described an omnibus test statistic Q for the equality of k variance-covariance matrices following the complex Wishart distribution. We also described a factorization of Q = R2 R3 … Rk where Q and Rj determine if and when a difference occurs. Additionally, we gave p-values for Q and Rj. Finally, we demonstrated the use of Q and Rj and the p-values to change detection in truly multitemporal, full polarization SAR data. Here we illustrate the methods by means of airborne L-band SAR data (EMISAR) [8,9]. The methods may be applied to other polarimetric SAR data also such as data from Sentinel-1, COSMO-SkyMed, TerraSAR-X, ALOS, and RadarSat-2 and also to single-pol data. The account given here closely follows that given our recent IEEE TGRS paper [7]. Selected References [1] Anderson, T. W., An Introduction to Multivariate Statistical Analysis, John Wiley, New York, third ed. (2003). [2] Conradsen, K., Nielsen, A. A., Schou, J., and Skriver, H., "A test statistic in the complex Wishart distribution and its application to change detection in polarimetric SAR data," IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing 41(1): 4-19, 2003. [3] Schou, J

  1. STELLAR ROTATION EFFECTS IN POLARIMETRIC MICROLENSING

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Sajadian, Sedighe, E-mail: sajadian@ipm.ir

    2016-07-10

    It is well known that the polarization signal in microlensing events of hot stars is larger than that of main-sequence stars. Most hot stars rotate rapidly around their stellar axes. The stellar rotation creates ellipticity and gravity-darkening effects that break the spherical symmetry of the source's shape and the circular symmetry of the source's surface brightness respectively. Hence, it causes a net polarization signal for the source star. This polarization signal should be considered in polarimetric microlensing of fast rotating stars. For moderately rotating stars, lensing can magnify or even characterize small polarization signals due to the stellar rotation throughmore » polarimetric observations. The gravity-darkening effect due to a rotating source star creates asymmetric perturbations in polarimetric and photometric microlensing curves whose maximum occurs when the lens trajectory crosses the projected position of the rotation pole on the sky plane. The stellar ellipticity creates a time shift (i) in the position of the second peak of the polarimetric curves in transit microlensing events and (ii) in the peak position of the polarimetric curves with respect to the photometric peak position in bypass microlensing events. By measuring this time shift via polarimetric observations of microlensing events, we can evaluate the ellipticity of the projected source surface on the sky plane. Given the characterizations of the FOcal Reducer and low dispersion Spectrograph (FORS2) polarimeter at the Very Large Telescope, the probability of observing this time shift is very small. The more accurate polarimeters of the next generation may well measure these time shifts and evaluate the ellipticity of microlensing source stars.« less

  2. Bayes classification of terrain cover using normalized polarimetric data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Yueh, H. A.; Swartz, A. A.; Kong, J. A.; Shin, R. T.; Novak, L. M.

    1988-01-01

    The normalized polarimetric classifier (NPC) which uses only the relative magnitudes and phases of the polarimetric data is proposed for discrimination of terrain elements. The probability density functions (PDFs) of polarimetric data are assumed to have a complex Gaussian distribution, and the marginal PDF of the normalized polarimetric data is derived by adopting the Euclidean norm as the normalization function. The general form of the distance measure for the NPC is also obtained. It is demonstrated that for polarimetric data with an arbitrary PDF, the distance measure of NPC will be independent of the normalization function selected even when the classifier is mistrained. A complex Gaussian distribution is assumed for the polarimetric data consisting of grass and tree regions. The probability of error for the NPC is compared with those of several other single-feature classifiers. The classification error of NPCs is shown to be independent of the normalization function.

  3. A Quality Assessment Method Based on Common Distributed Targets for GF-3 Polarimetric SAR Data.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Sha; Qiu, Xiaolan; Han, Bing; Hu, Wenlong

    2018-03-07

    The GaoFen-3 (GF-3) satellite, launched on 10 August 2016, is the first C-band polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) satellite in China. The PolSAR system of GF-3 can collect a significant wealth of information for geophysical research and applications. Being used for related applications, GF-3 PolSAR images must be of good quality. It is necessary to evaluate the quality of polarimetric data and achieve the normalized quality monitoring during 8-year designed life of GF-3. In this study, a new quality assessment method of PolSAR data based on common distributed targets is proposed, and the performance of the method is analyzed by simulations and GF-3 experiments. We evaluate the quality of GF-3 PolSAR data by this method. Results suggest that GF-3 antenna is highly isolated, and the quality of calibrated data satisfies the requests of quantitative applications.

  4. The need for separate operational and engineering user interfaces for command and control of airborne synthetic aperture radar systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Klein, Laura M.; McNamara, Laura A.

    2017-05-01

    In this paper, we address the needed components to create usable engineering and operational user interfaces (UIs) for airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems. As airborne SAR technology gains wider acceptance in the remote sensing and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) communities, the need for effective and appropriate UIs to command and control these sensors has also increased. However, despite the growing demand for SAR in operational environments, the technology still faces an adoption roadblock, in large part due to the lack of effective UIs. It is common to find operational interfaces that have barely grown beyond the disparate tools engineers and technologists developed to demonstrate an initial concept or system. While sensor usability and utility are common requirements to engineers and operators, their objectives for interacting with the sensor are different. As such, the amount and type of information presented ought to be tailored to the specific application.

  5. Monitoring Canopy Moisture Using an Inversion Algorithm Applied to SAR Data from Boreas

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moghaddam, M.; Saatchi, S.

    1995-01-01

    During several intensive field campaigns in 1993 & 1994, the JPL airborne synthetic aperture radar obtained multifrequency polarimetric radar data over various areas in the Canadian boreal forest designated as primary BOREAS study sites. These were part of a major remote sensing effort geared toward studying the interaction of the forest biome and the atmosphere to identify their role in global change.

  6. MAPIR: An Airborne Polarmetric Imaging Radiometer in Support of Hydrologic Satellite Observations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Laymon, C.; Al-Hamdan, M.; Crosson, W.; Limaye, A.; McCracken, J.; Meyer, P.; Richeson, J.; Sims, W.; Srinivasan, K.; Varnevas, K.

    2010-01-01

    In this age of dwindling water resources and increasing demands, accurate estimation of water balance components at every scale is more critical to end users than ever before. Several near-term Earth science satellite missions are aimed at global hydrologic observations. The Marshall Airborne Polarimetric Imaging Radiometer (MAPIR) is a dual beam, dual angle polarimetric, scanning L band passive microwave radiometer system developed by the Observing Microwave Emissions for Geophysical Applications (OMEGA) team at MSFC to support algorithm development and validation efforts in support of these missions. MAPIR observes naturally-emitted radiation from the ground primarily for remote sensing of land surface brightness temperature from which we can retrieve soil moisture and possibly surface or water temperature and ocean salinity. MAPIR has achieved Technical Readiness Level 6 with flight heritage on two very different aircraft, the NASA P-3B, and a Piper Navajo.

  7. Cluster membership probability: polarimetric approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Medhi, Biman J.; Tamura, Motohide

    2013-04-01

    Interstellar polarimetric data of the six open clusters Hogg 15, NGC 6611, NGC 5606, NGC 6231, NGC 5749 and NGC 6250 have been used to estimate the membership probability for the stars within them. For proper-motion member stars, the membership probability estimated using the polarimetric data is in good agreement with the proper-motion cluster membership probability. However, for proper-motion non-member stars, the membership probability estimated by the polarimetric method is in total disagreement with the proper-motion cluster membership probability. The inconsistencies in the determined memberships may be because of the fundamental differences between the two methods of determination: one is based on stellar proper motion in space and the other is based on selective extinction of the stellar output by the asymmetric aligned dust grains present in the interstellar medium. The results and analysis suggest that the scatter of the Stokes vectors q (per cent) and u (per cent) for the proper-motion member stars depends on the interstellar and intracluster differential reddening in the open cluster. It is found that this method could be used to estimate the cluster membership probability if we have additional polarimetric and photometric information for a star to identify it as a probable member/non-member of a particular cluster, such as the maximum wavelength value (λmax), the unit weight error of the fit (σ1), the dispersion in the polarimetric position angles (overline{ɛ }), reddening (E(B - V)) or the differential intracluster reddening (ΔE(B - V)). This method could also be used to estimate the membership probability of known member stars having no membership probability as well as to resolve disagreements about membership among different proper-motion surveys.

  8. Passive Polarimetric Information Processing for Target Classification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sadjadi, Firooz; Sadjadi, Farzad

    Polarimetric sensing is an area of active research in a variety of applications. In particular, the use of polarization diversity has been shown to improve performance in automatic target detection and recognition. Within the diverse scope of polarimetric sensing, the field of passive polarimetric sensing is of particular interest. This chapter presents several new methods for gathering in formation using such passive techniques. One method extracts three-dimensional (3D) information and surface properties using one or more sensors. Another method extracts scene-specific algebraic expressions that remain unchanged under polariza tion transformations (such as along the transmission path to the sensor).

  9. Improved Absolute Radiometric Calibration of a UHF Airborne Radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chapin, Elaine; Hawkins, Brian P.; Harcke, Leif; Hensley, Scott; Lou, Yunling; Michel, Thierry R.; Moreira, Laila; Muellerschoen, Ronald J.; Shimada, Joanne G.; Tham, Kean W.; hide

    2015-01-01

    The AirMOSS airborne SAR operates at UHF and produces fully polarimetric imagery. The AirMOSS radar data are used to produce Root Zone Soil Moisture (RZSM) depth profiles. The absolute radiometric accuracy of the imagery, ideally of better than 0.5 dB, is key to retrieving RZSM, especially in wet soils where the backscatter as a function of soil moisture function tends to flatten out. In this paper we assess the absolute radiometric uncertainty in previously delivered data, describe a method to utilize Built In Test (BIT) data to improve the radiometric calibration, and evaluate the improvement from applying the method.

  10. Utilization of AERONET polarimetric measurements for improving retrieval of aerosol microphysics: GSFC, Beijing and Dakar data analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fedarenka, Anton; Dubovik, Oleg; Goloub, Philippe; Li, Zhengqiang; Lapyonok, Tatyana; Litvinov, Pavel; Barel, Luc; Gonzalez, Louis; Podvin, Thierry; Crozel, Didier

    2016-08-01

    The study presents the efforts on including the polarimetric data to the routine inversion of the radiometric ground-based measurements for characterization of the atmospheric aerosols and analysis of the obtained advantages in retrieval results. First, to operationally process the large amount of polarimetric data the data preparation tool was developed. The AERONET inversion code adapted for inversion of both intensity and polarization measurements was used for processing. Second, in order to estimate the effect from utilization of polarimetric information on aerosol retrieval results, both synthetic data and the real measurements were processed using developed routine and analyzed. The sensitivity study has been carried out using simulated data based on three main aerosol models: desert dust, urban industrial and urban clean aerosols. The test investigated the effects of utilization of polarization data in the presence of random noise, bias in measurements of optical thickness and angular pointing shift. The results demonstrate the advantage of polarization data utilization in the cases of aerosols with pronounced concentration of fine particles. Further, the extended set of AERONET observations was processed. The data for three sites have been used: GSFC, USA (clean urban aerosol dominated by fine particles), Beijing, China (polluted industrial aerosol characterized by pronounced mixture of both fine and coarse modes) and Dakar, Senegal (desert dust dominated by coarse particles). The results revealed considerable advantage of polarimetric data applying for characterizing fine mode dominated aerosols including industrial pollution (Beijing). The use of polarization corrects particle size distribution by decreasing overestimated fine mode and increasing the coarse mode. It also increases underestimated real part of the refractive index and improves the retrieval of the fraction of spherical particles due to high sensitivity of polarization to particle shape

  11. Study on the Classification of GAOFEN-3 Polarimetric SAR Images Using Deep Neural Network

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, J.; Zhang, J.; Zhao, Z.

    2018-04-01

    Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (POLSAR) imaging principle determines that the image quality will be affected by speckle noise. So the recognition accuracy of traditional image classification methods will be reduced by the effect of this interference. Since the date of submission, Deep Convolutional Neural Network impacts on the traditional image processing methods and brings the field of computer vision to a new stage with the advantages of a strong ability to learn deep features and excellent ability to fit large datasets. Based on the basic characteristics of polarimetric SAR images, the paper studied the types of the surface cover by using the method of Deep Learning. We used the fully polarimetric SAR features of different scales to fuse RGB images to the GoogLeNet model based on convolution neural network Iterative training, and then use the trained model to test the classification of data validation.First of all, referring to the optical image, we mark the surface coverage type of GF-3 POLSAR image with 8m resolution, and then collect the samples according to different categories. To meet the GoogLeNet model requirements of 256 × 256 pixel image input and taking into account the lack of full-resolution SAR resolution, the original image should be pre-processed in the process of resampling. In this paper, POLSAR image slice samples of different scales with sampling intervals of 2 m and 1 m to be trained separately and validated by the verification dataset. Among them, the training accuracy of GoogLeNet model trained with resampled 2-m polarimetric SAR image is 94.89 %, and that of the trained SAR image with resampled 1 m is 92.65 %.

  12. Levee Seepage Detection in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Using Polarimetric SAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    An, K.; Jones, C. E.; Bekaert, D. P.

    2017-12-01

    The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta's extensive levee system protects over 2,800 km2 of reclaimed lands and serves as the main irrigation and domestic water supply for the state of California. However, ongoing subsidence and disaster threats from floods and earthquakes make the Delta levee system highly vulnerable, endangering water supplies for 23 million California residents and 2.5 million acres of agricultural land. Levee failure in the Delta can cause saltwater intrusion from San Francisco Bay, reducing water quality and curtailing water exports to residents, commercial users, and farmers. To protect the Delta levee system, it is essential to search for signs of seepage in which water is piping through or beneath levees, which can be associated with deformation of the levees themselves. Until now, in-situ monitoring has largely been applied, however, this is a time-consuming and expensive approach. We use data acquired with NASA's UAVSAR (Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar) airborne radar instrument to identify and characterize levee seepages and associated land subsidence through advanced remote sensing technologies. The high spatial resolution of UAVSAR can help to direct surveys to areas that are likely to be experiencing damage. UAVSAR is an L-band airborne sensor with high signal-to-noise ratio, repeat flight track accuracy, and spatial resolution of 7x7 m2 (for multi-looked products) that is necessary for detailed levee monitoring. The adaptability of radar instruments in their ability to see through smoke, haze, and clouds during the day or night, is especially relevant during disaster events, when cloud cover or lack of solar illumination inhibits traditional visual surveys of damage. We demonstrate the advantages of combining polarimetric radar imagery with geographic information systems (GIS) datasets in locating seepage features along critical levee infrastructure in the Delta for 2009-2016. The ability to efficiently locate potential

  13. Assessment of tissue polarimetric properties using Stokes polarimetric imaging with circularly polarized illumination.

    PubMed

    Qi, Ji; He, Honghui; Lin, Jianyu; Dong, Yang; Chen, Dongsheng; Ma, Hui; Elson, Daniel S

    2018-04-01

    Tissue-depolarization and linear-retardance are the main polarization characteristics of interest for bulk tissue characterization, and are normally interpreted from Mueller polarimetry. Stokes polarimetry can be conducted using simpler instrumentation and in a shorter time. Here, we use Stokes polarimetric imaging with circularly polarized illumination to assess the circular-depolarization and linear-retardance properties of tissue. Results obtained were compared with Mueller polarimetry in transmission and reflection geometry, respectively. It is found that circular-depolarization obtained from these 2 methods is very similar in both geometries, and that linear-retardance is highly quantitatively similar for transmission geometry and qualitatively similar for reflection geometry. The majority of tissue circular-depolarization and linear-retardance image information (represented by local image contrast features) obtained from Mueller polarimetry is well preserved from Stokes polarimetry in both geometries. These findings can be referred to for further understanding tissue Stokes polarimetric data, and for further application of Stokes polarimetry under the circumstances where short acquisition time or low optical system complexity is a priority, such as polarimetric endoscopy and microscopy. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  14. Cross-calibration between airborne SAR sensors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zink, Manfred; Olivier, Philippe; Freeman, Anthony

    1993-01-01

    As Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) system performance and experience in SAR signature evaluation increase, quantitative analysis becomes more and more important. Such analyses require an absolute radiometric calibration of the complete SAR system. To keep the expenditure on calibration of future multichannel and multisensor remote sensing systems (e.g., X-SAR/SIR-C) within a tolerable level, data from different tracks and different sensors (channels) must be cross calibrated. The 1989 joint E-SAR/DC-8 SAR calibration campaign gave a first opportunity for such an experiment, including cross sensor and cross track calibration. A basic requirement for successful cross calibration is the stability of the SAR systems. The calibration parameters derived from different tracks and the polarimetric properties of the uncalibrated data are used to describe this stability. Quality criteria for a successful cross calibration are the agreement of alpha degree values and the consistency of radar cross sections of equally sized corner reflectors. Channel imbalance and cross talk provide additional quality in case of the polarimetric DC-8 SAR.

  15. Modeling of polarimetric BRDF characteristics of painted surfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Ying; Wang, Zeying; Zhao, Huijie

    2014-11-01

    In this paper a pBRDF (polarimetric Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function) model of painted surfaces coupled with atmospheric polarization characteristics is built and the method of simulating polarimetric radiation reaching the imaging system is advanced. Firstly, the composition of the radiation reaching the sensor is analyzed. Then, the pBRDF model of painted surfaces is developed according to the microfacet theory presented by G. Priest and the downwelled skylight polarization is modeled based on the vector radiative transfer model RT3. Furthermore, the modeled polarization state of reflected light from the surfaces was achieved through integrating the directional polarimetric information of the whole hemisphere, adding the modeled polarimetric factors of incident diffused skylight. Finally, the polarimetric radiance reaching the sensor is summed up with the assumption that the target-sensor path is assumed to be negligible since it is relatively short in the current imaging geometry. The modeled results are related to the solar-sensor geometry, atmospheric conditions and the features of the painted surfaces. This result can be used to simulate the imaging under different weather conditions and further work for the validation experiments of the model need to be done.

  16. Polarimetric SAR calibration experiment using active radar calibrators

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Freeman, Anthony; Shen, Yuhsyen; Werner, Charles L.

    1990-03-01

    Active radar calibrators are used to derive both the amplitude and phase characteristics of a multichannel polarimetric SAR from the complex image data. Results are presented from an experiment carried out using the NASA/JPL DC-8 aircraft SAR over a calibration site at Goldstone, California. As part of the experiment, polarimetric active radar calibrators (PARCs) with adjustable polarization signatures were deployed. Experimental results demonstrate that the PARCs can be used to calibrate polarimetric SAR images successfully. Restrictions on the application of the PARC calibration procedure are discussed.

  17. Polarimetric SAR calibration experiment using active radar calibrators

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Freeman, Anthony; Shen, Yuhsyen; Werner, Charles L.

    1990-01-01

    Active radar calibrators are used to derive both the amplitude and phase characteristics of a multichannel polarimetric SAR from the complex image data. Results are presented from an experiment carried out using the NASA/JPL DC-8 aircraft SAR over a calibration site at Goldstone, California. As part of the experiment, polarimetric active radar calibrators (PARCs) with adjustable polarization signatures were deployed. Experimental results demonstrate that the PARCs can be used to calibrate polarimetric SAR images successfully. Restrictions on the application of the PARC calibration procedure are discussed.

  18. "New" Vistas for Polarimetric Exploration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yanamandra-Fisher, P. A.

    2016-12-01

    The versatility of polarimetric exploration is exploited to address the overarching goals for the remote sensing and robotic exploration of our solar system and exoplanetary systems: (1) understanding the formation of planetary systems and their diversity; and (2) search for habitability. Spectral dependence of polarization is important to separate the macroscopic (bulk) properties of the scattering medium from the microscopic (particulate) properties of the scattering medium. While linear polarization of reflected light by solar system objects provides insight into the scattering characteristics of aerosols and hazes in atmospheres and surficial properties of atmosphereless objects, circular polarization and related chirality (or handedness, a property of molecules that exhibit mirror-image symmetry, similar to right and left hands) can serve as diagnostic of biological activity. Most solar system polarimetric exploration is dominantly the study of cometary and asteroidal dust/regoliths. However, efforts are starting to emerge as "new" directions in this field: from recent studies of outer planetary atmospheres and satellites; polarization of magnetic field lines; addressing taxonomy of asteroids and including amateur astronomers. Although current solar system missions do not have polarimeters on-board, ground-based polarimetric observations prove to valuable and complementary. For example, NASA/JUNO lacks a polarimeter in its payload, and one of its goals is to understand Jupiter's aurorae. Recent ground-based observations from NASA/IRTF indicate that the auroral H3+ line is polarized (Barthelemy et al., 2011, A&A, 530). Another new direction for polarimetric exploration is the inclusion of amateur astronomers. Imaging and spectroscopy are routinely performed by amateurs, but recently, there is interest in developing polarimetric exploration amongst the amateur community, such as the study of polarization of the moon (Fearnside et al., 2016, Icarus). I will

  19. Estuarine Salinity Mapping From Airborne Radiometry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Walker, J. P.; Gao, Y.; Cook, P. L. M.; Ye, N.

    2016-12-01

    Estuaries are critical ecosystems providing both ecological habitat and human amenity including boating and recreational fishing. Salinity gradients, caused by the mixing of fresh and salt water, exert an overwhelming control on estuarine ecology and biogeochemistry as well as being a key tracer for model calibration. At present, salinity monitoring within estuaries typically uses point measurements or underway boat-based methods, which makes sensing of localised phenomena such as upwelling of saline bottom water difficult. This study has pioneered the use of airborne radiometry (passive microwave) sensing as a new method to remotely quantify estuarine salinity, allowing rapid production of high resolution surface salinity maps. The airborne radiometry mapping was conducted for the Gippsland Lakes, the largest estuary in Australia, in February, July, October and November of 2015, using the Polarimetric L-band Microwave Radiometer (PLMR). Salinity was retrieved from the brightness temperature collected by PLMR with results validated against boat sampling conducted concurrently with each flight. Results showed that the retrieval accuracy of the radiative transfer model was better than 5 ppt for most flights. The spatial, temporal and seasonal variations of salinity observed in this study are also analysed and discussed.

  20. Photometric and polarimetric mapping of water turbidity and water depth

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Halajian, J.; Hallock, H.

    1973-01-01

    A Digital Photometric Mapper (DPM) was used in the Fall of 1971 in an airborne survey of New York and Boston area waters to acquire photometric, spectral and polarimetric data. The object of this study is to analyze these data with quantitative computer processing techniques to assess the potential of the DPM in the measurement and regional mapping of water turbidity and depth. These techniques have been developed and an operational potential has been demonstrated. More emphasis is placed at this time on the methodology of data acquisition, analysis and display than on the quantity of data. The results illustrate the type, quantity and format of information that could be generated operationally with the DPM-type sensor characterized by high photometric stability and fast, accurate digital output. The prototype, single-channel DPM is suggested as a unique research tool for a number of new applications. For the operational mapping of water turbidity and depth, the merits of a multichannel DPM coupled with a laser system are stressed.

  1. Rice growth monitoring using simulated compact polarimetric C band SAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Zhi; Li, Kun; Liu, Long; Shao, Yun; Brisco, Brian; Li, Weiguo

    2014-12-01

    In this study, a set of nine compact polarimetric (CP) images were simulated from polarimetric RADARSAT-2 data acquired over a test site containing two types of rice field in Jiangsu province, China. The types of rice field in the test site were (1) transplanted hybrid rice fields, and (2) direct-sown japonica rice fields. Both types have different yields and phenological stages. As a first step, the two types of rice field were distinguished with 94% and 86% accuracy respectively through analyzing CP synthetic aperture radar (SAR) observations and their behavior in terms of scattering mechanisms during the rice growth season. The focus was then on phenology retrieval for each type of rice field. A decision tree (DT) algorithm was built to fulfill the precise retrieval of rice phenological stages, in which seven phenological stages were discriminated. The key criterion for each phenological stage was composed of 1-4 CP parameters, some of which were first used for rice phenology retrieval and found to be very sensitive to rice phenological changes. The retrieval results were verified at parcel level for a set of 12 stands of rice and up to nine observation dates per stand. This gave an accuracy of 88-95%. Throughout the phenology retrieval process, only simulated CP data were used, without any auxiliary data. These results demonstrate the potential of CP SAR for rice growth monitoring applications.

  2. Classification Comparisons Between Compact Polarimetric and Quad-Pol SAR Imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Souissi, Boularbah; Doulgeris, Anthony P.; Eltoft, Torbjørn

    2015-04-01

    Recent interest in dual-pol SAR systems has lead to a novel approach, the so-called compact polarimetric imaging mode (CP) which attempts to reconstruct fully polarimetric information based on a few simple assumptions. In this work, the CP image is simulated from the full quad-pol (QP) image. We present here the initial comparison of polarimetric information content between QP and CP imaging modes. The analysis of multi-look polarimetric covariance matrix data uses an automated statistical clustering method based upon the expectation maximization (EM) algorithm for finite mixture modeling, using the complex Wishart probability density function. Our results showed that there are some different characteristics between the QP and CP modes. The classification is demonstrated using a E-SAR and Radarsat2 polarimetric SAR images acquired over DLR Oberpfaffenhofen in Germany and Algiers in Algeria respectively.

  3. Rapid Landslide Mapping by Means of Post-Event Polarimetric SAR Imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Plank, Simon; Martinis, Sandro; Twele, Andre

    2016-08-01

    Rapid mapping of landslides, quickly providing information about the extent of the affected area and type and grade of damage, is crucial to enable fast crisis response. Reviewing the literature shows that most synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data-based landslide mapping procedures use change detection techniques. However, the required very high resolution (VHR) pre-event SAR imagery, acquired shortly before the landslide event, is commonly not available. Due to limitations in onboard disk space and downlink transmission rates modern VHR SAR missions do not systematically cover the entire world. We present a fast and robust procedure for mapping of landslides, based on change detection between freely available and systematically acquired pre-event optical and post-event polarimetric SAR data.

  4. Geomorphological mapping of ice-free areas using polarimetric RADARSAT-2 data on Fildes Peninsula and Ardley Island, Antarctica

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmid, T.; López-Martínez, J.; Guillaso, S.; Serrano, E.; D'Hondt, O.; Koch, M.; Nieto, A.; O'Neill, T.; Mink, S.; Durán, J. J.; Maestro, A.

    2017-09-01

    Satellite-borne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) has been used for characterizing and mapping in two relevant ice-free areas in the South Shetland Islands. The objective has been to identify and characterize land surface covers that mainly include periglacial and glacial landforms, using fully polarimetric SAR C band RADARSAT-2 data, on Fildes Peninsula that forms part of King George Island, and Ardley Island. Polarimetric parameters obtained from the SAR data, a selection of field based training and validation sites and a supervised classification approach, using the support vector machine were chosen to determine the spatial distribution of the different landforms. Eight periglacial and glacial landforms were characterized according to their scattering mechanisms using a set of 48 polarimetric parameters. The mapping of the most representative surface covers included colluvial deposits, stone fields and pavements, patterned ground, glacial till and rock outcrops, lakes and glacier ice. The overall accuracy of the results was estimated at 81%, a significant value when mapping areas that are within isolated regions where access is limited. Periglacial surface covers such as stone fields and pavements occupy 25% and patterned ground over 20% of the ice-free areas. These are results that form the basis for an extensive monitoring of the ice-free areas throughout the northern Antarctic Peninsula region.

  5. A proposed standard method for polarimetric calibration and calibration verification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Persons, Christopher M.; Jones, Michael W.; Farlow, Craig A.; Morell, L. Denise; Gulley, Michael G.; Spradley, Kevin D.

    2007-09-01

    Accurate calibration of polarimetric sensors is critical to reducing and analyzing phenomenology data, producing uniform polarimetric imagery for deployable sensors, and ensuring predictable performance of polarimetric algorithms. It is desirable to develop a standard calibration method, including verification reporting, in order to increase credibility with customers and foster communication and understanding within the polarimetric community. This paper seeks to facilitate discussions within the community on arriving at such standards. Both the calibration and verification methods presented here are performed easily with common polarimetric equipment, and are applicable to visible and infrared systems with either partial Stokes or full Stokes sensitivity. The calibration procedure has been used on infrared and visible polarimetric imagers over a six year period, and resulting imagery has been presented previously at conferences and workshops. The proposed calibration method involves the familiar calculation of the polarimetric data reduction matrix by measuring the polarimeter's response to a set of input Stokes vectors. With this method, however, linear combinations of Stokes vectors are used to generate highly accurate input states. This allows the direct measurement of all system effects, in contrast with fitting modeled calibration parameters to measured data. This direct measurement of the data reduction matrix allows higher order effects that are difficult to model to be discovered and corrected for in calibration. This paper begins with a detailed tutorial on the proposed calibration and verification reporting methods. Example results are then presented for a LWIR rotating half-wave retarder polarimeter.

  6. Polarimetric Interferometry

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-02-01

    frequency radio wave propagation through the ionosphere , where the earths magnetic field lines break this reciprocity symmetry and as a result the cross...polarisation terms are no longer equal. This observation can be used to calibrate the effects of Faraday rotation due to trans- ionospheric ...currently under investigation is polarimetric SAR tomography , which is the extension of conventional two-dimensional SAR imaging principle to three

  7. Performance of Scattering Matrix Decomposition and Color Spaces for Synthetic Aperture Radar Imagery

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2010-03-01

    Color Spaces and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Multicolor Imaging. 15 2.3.1 Colorimetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 2.3.2...III. Decomposition Techniques on SAR Polarimetry and Colorimetry applied to SAR Imagery...space polarimetric SAR systems. Colorimetry is also introduced in this chapter, presenting the fundamentals of the RGB and CMY color spaces, defined for

  8. UAVSAR Instrument: Current Operations and Planned Upgrades

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lou, Yunling; Hensley, Scott; Chao, Roger; Chapin, Elaine; Heavy, Brandon; Jones, Cathleen; Miller, Timothy; Naftel, Chris; Fratello, David

    2011-01-01

    The Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) instrument is a pod-based Lband polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR), specifically designed to acquire airborne repeat track SAR data for differential interferometric measurements. This instrument is currently installed on the NASA Gulfstream- III (G-III) aircraft with precision real-time Global Positioning System (GPS) and a sensor-controlled flight management system for precision repeat-pass data acquisitions. UAVSAR has conducted engineering and preliminary science data flights since October 2007 on the G-III. We are porting the radar to the Global Hawk Unmanned Airborne Vehicle (UAV) to enable long duration/long range data campaigns. We plan to install two radar pods (each with its own active array antenna) under the wings of the Global Hawk to enable the generation of precision topographic maps and single pass polarimetric-interferometry (SPI) providing vertical structure of ice and vegetation. Global Hawk's range of 8000 nm will enable regional surveys with far fewer sorties as well as measurements of remote locations without the need for long and complicated deployments. We are also developing P-band polarimetry and Ka-band single-pass interferometry capabilities on UAVSAR by replacing the radar antenna and front-end electronics to operate at these

  9. Polarimetric measurements of natural surfaces at 95 GHz

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chang, Paul S.; McIntosh, Robert E.

    1992-08-01

    A high power 95 GHz radar system, developed at the University of Massachusetts, was used to make polarimetric measurements of natural surfaces. Over the two year period of this grant, the following items were accomplished: (1) The 95 GHz radar was configured into a unique system capable of simultaneously making coherent and incoherent Mueller matrix measurements; (2) The equivalence of the coherent and noncoherent measurement technique was demonstrated; (3) The polarimetric properties of various foliage targets were characterized. These included the weeping willow, the sugar maple, and the white pine tree species; (4) The polarimetric properties of various snowcover types were characterized; and (5) Mueller matrix models for wet and dry snow were developed.

  10. Invariant polarimetric contrast parameters of coherent light.

    PubMed

    Réfrégier, Philippe; Goudail, François

    2002-06-01

    Many applications use an active coherent illumination and analyze the variation of the polarization state of optical signals. However, as a result of the use of coherent light, these signals are generally strongly perturbed with speckle noise. This is the case, for example, for active polarimetric imaging systems that are useful for enhancing contrast between different elements in a scene. We propose a rigorous definition of the minimal set of parameters that characterize the difference between two coherent and partially polarized states. Indeed, two states of partially polarized light are a priori defined by eight parameters, for example, their two Stokes vectors. We demonstrate that the processing performance for such signal processing tasks as detection, localization, or segmentation of spatial or temporal polarization variations is uniquely determined by two scalar functions of these eight parameters. These two scalar functions are the invariant parameters that define the polarimetric contrast between two polarized states of coherent light. Different polarization configurations with the same invariant contrast parameters will necessarily lead to the same performance for a given task, which is a desirable quality for a rigorous contrast measure. The definition of these polarimetric contrast parameters simplifies the analysis and the specification of processing techniques for coherent polarimetric signals.

  11. Enhanced facial recognition for thermal imagery using polarimetric imaging.

    PubMed

    Gurton, Kristan P; Yuffa, Alex J; Videen, Gorden W

    2014-07-01

    We present a series of long-wave-infrared (LWIR) polarimetric-based thermal images of facial profiles in which polarization-state information of the image-forming radiance is retained and displayed. The resultant polarimetric images show enhanced facial features, additional texture, and details that are not present in corresponding conventional thermal imagery. It has been generally thought that conventional thermal imagery (MidIR or LWIR) could not produce the detailed spatial information required for reliable human identification due to the so-called "ghosting" effect often seen in thermal imagery of human subjects. By using polarimetric information, we are able to extract subtle surface features of the human face, thus improving subject identification. Polarimetric image sets considered include the conventional thermal intensity image, S0, the two Stokes images, S1 and S2, and a Stokes image product called the degree-of-linear-polarization image.

  12. Science Drivers for Polarimetric Exploration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yanamandra-Fisher, Padma

    2017-04-01

    The versatility of polarimetric exploration is exploited to address: (1) understanding the formation of planetary systems and their diversity; and (2) search for habitability. Polarized light occurs in three states: unpolarized, linear and circularized. Each mode of polarized light provides information about the scattering medium, from atmospheres to search for signatures of habitability. Spectral dependence of polarization is important to separate the macroscopic (bulk) properties of the scattering medium from the microscopic (particulate) properties of the scattering medium. Linear polarization of reflected light by solar system objects provides insight into the scattering characteristics of aerosols and hazes in atmospheres and surficial properties of atmosphereless objects, circular polarization and related chirality (or handedness, a property of molecules that exhibit mirror-image symmetry, similar to right and left hands) can serve as diagnostic of biological activity. Atmospheric phenomena such as rainbows, clouds and haloes exhibit polarimetric signatures that can be used as diagnostics to probe the atmosphere and may be possible to extend this approach to other planets and exoplanets. Biological molecules exhibit an inherent handedness or circular polarization or chirality, assisting in search for the identification of astrobiological material in the solar system. Polarimetry is also utilized in the exploration of comets, asteroids, dust/regoliths. Renewed efforts for ground-based polarimetry are emerging, from probing planetary atmospheres to the study of magnetic field lines and taxonomy of asteroids. While imaging and spectroscopy are routinely performed by amateurs, there is growing interest and progress in developing polarimetric exploration amongst the amateur community, with encouraging results.I will present a review of these efforts and the goal to create a global " PACA* Polarimetry Network" of observers, modelers and instrument experts to fully

  13. Remote detection of buried land-mines and IEDs using LWIR polarimetric imaging.

    PubMed

    Gurton, Kristan P; Felton, Melvin

    2012-09-24

    We report results of an ongoing study designed to assess the ability for enhanced detection of recently buried land-mines and/or improvised explosive devices (IED) devices using passive long-wave infrared (LWIR) polarimetric imaging. Polarimetric results are presented for a series of field tests conducted at various locations and soil types. Well-calibrated Stokes images, S0, S1, S2, and the degree-of-linear-polarization (DoLP) are recorded for different line-of-sight (LOS) slant paths at varying distances. Results span a three-year time period in which three different LWIR polarimetric camera systems are used. All three polarimetric imaging platforms used a spinning-achromatic-retarder (SAR) design capable of achieving high polarimetric frame rates and good radiometric throughput without the loss of spatial resolution inherent in other optical designs. Receiver-operating-characteristic (ROC) analysis and a standardized contrast parameter are used to compare detectability between conventional LWIR thermal and polarimetric imagery. Results suggest improved detectability, regardless of geographic location or soil type.

  14. HIGH-RESOLUTION LINEAR POLARIMETRIC IMAGING FOR THE EVENT HORIZON TELESCOPE

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chael, Andrew A.; Johnson, Michael D.; Narayan, Ramesh

    Images of the linear polarizations of synchrotron radiation around active galactic nuclei (AGNs) highlight their projected magnetic field lines and provide key data for understanding the physics of accretion and outflow from supermassive black holes. The highest-resolution polarimetric images of AGNs are produced with Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). Because VLBI incompletely samples the Fourier transform of the source image, any image reconstruction that fills in unmeasured spatial frequencies will not be unique and reconstruction algorithms are required. In this paper, we explore some extensions of the Maximum Entropy Method (MEM) to linear polarimetric VLBI imaging. In contrast to previousmore » work, our polarimetric MEM algorithm combines a Stokes I imager that only uses bispectrum measurements that are immune to atmospheric phase corruption, with a joint Stokes Q and U imager that operates on robust polarimetric ratios. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our technique on 7 and 3 mm wavelength quasar observations from the VLBA and simulated 1.3 mm Event Horizon Telescope observations of Sgr A* and M87. Consistent with past studies, we find that polarimetric MEM can produce superior resolution compared to the standard CLEAN algorithm, when imaging smooth and compact source distributions. As an imaging framework, MEM is highly adaptable, allowing a range of constraints on polarization structure. Polarimetric MEM is thus an attractive choice for image reconstruction with the EHT.« less

  15. High-resolution Linear Polarimetric Imaging for the Event Horizon Telescope

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chael, Andrew A.; Johnson, Michael D.; Narayan, Ramesh; Doeleman, Sheperd S.; Wardle, John F. C.; Bouman, Katherine L.

    2016-09-01

    Images of the linear polarizations of synchrotron radiation around active galactic nuclei (AGNs) highlight their projected magnetic field lines and provide key data for understanding the physics of accretion and outflow from supermassive black holes. The highest-resolution polarimetric images of AGNs are produced with Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). Because VLBI incompletely samples the Fourier transform of the source image, any image reconstruction that fills in unmeasured spatial frequencies will not be unique and reconstruction algorithms are required. In this paper, we explore some extensions of the Maximum Entropy Method (MEM) to linear polarimetric VLBI imaging. In contrast to previous work, our polarimetric MEM algorithm combines a Stokes I imager that only uses bispectrum measurements that are immune to atmospheric phase corruption, with a joint Stokes Q and U imager that operates on robust polarimetric ratios. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our technique on 7 and 3 mm wavelength quasar observations from the VLBA and simulated 1.3 mm Event Horizon Telescope observations of Sgr A* and M87. Consistent with past studies, we find that polarimetric MEM can produce superior resolution compared to the standard CLEAN algorithm, when imaging smooth and compact source distributions. As an imaging framework, MEM is highly adaptable, allowing a range of constraints on polarization structure. Polarimetric MEM is thus an attractive choice for image reconstruction with the EHT.

  16. Assessment and application of AirMSPI high-resolution multiangle imaging photo-polarimetric observations for atmospheric correction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalashnikova, O. V.; Xu, F.; Garay, M. J.; Seidel, F. C.; Diner, D. J.

    2016-02-01

    Water-leaving radiance comprises less than 10% of the signal measured from space, making correction for absorption and scattering by the intervening atmosphere imperative. Modern improvements have been developed in ocean color retrieval algorithms to handle absorbing aerosols such as urban particulates in coastal areas and transported desert dust over the open ocean. In addition, imperfect knowledge of the absorbing aerosol optical properties or their height distribution results in well-documented sources of error in the retrieved water leaving radiance. Multi-angle spectro-polarimetric measurements have been advocated as an additional tool to better understand and retrieve the aerosol properties needed for atmospheric correction for ocean color retrievals. The Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager-1 (AirMSPI-1) has been flying aboard the NASA ER-2 high altitude aircraft since October 2010. AirMSPI typically acquires observations of a target area at 9 view angles between ±67° at 10 m resolution. AirMSPI spectral channels are centered at 355, 380, 445, 470, 555, 660, and 865 nm, with 470, 660, and 865 reporting linear polarization. We have developed a retrieval code that employs a coupled Markov Chain (MC) and adding/doubling radiative transfer method for joint retrieval of aerosol properties and water leaving radiance from AirMSPI polarimetric observations. We tested prototype retrievals by comparing the retrieved aerosol concentration, size distribution, water-leaving radiance, and chlorophyll concentrations to values reported by the USC SeaPRISM AERONET-OC site off the coast of California. The retrieval then was applied to a variety of costal regions in California to evaluate variability in the water-leaving radiance under different atmospheric conditions. We will present results, and will discuss algorithm sensitivity and potential applications for future space-borne coastal monitoring.

  17. UAVSAR: Airborne L-band Radar for Repeat Pass Interferometry

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moes, Timothy R.

    2009-01-01

    The primary objectives of the UAVSAR Project were to: a) develop a miniaturized polarimetric L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) for use on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or piloted vehicle. b) develop the associated processing algorithms for repeat-pass differential interferometric measurements using a single antenna. c) conduct measurements of geophysical interest, particularly changes of rapidly deforming surfaces such as volcanoes or earthquakes. Two complete systems were developed. Operational Science Missions began on February 18, 2009 ... concurrent development and testing of the radar system continues.

  18. Precipitation information from GNSS Polarimetric Radio Occultation observations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Padulles, R.; Cardellach, E.; Turk, J.; Tomás, S.; Ao, C. O.; de la Torre-Juárez, M.

    2017-12-01

    There is currently a gap in satellite observations of the moisture structure during heavy precipitation conditions, since infrared and microwave sounders cannot sense water vapor structure near the surface in the presence of intense precipitation. Conversely, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Radio Occultations (RO) can profile the moisture structure with high precision and vertical resolution, but cannot directly indicate the presence of precipitation. Polarimetric RO (PRO) measurements have been proposed as a method to characterize heavy rain in GNSS RO, by measuring the polarimetric differential phase delay induced by large size hydrometeors. The PRO concept will be tested from space for the first time on board the Spanish PAZ satellite, planned for launch by the end of 2017. Therefore, for the first time ever, GNSS RO measurements will be taken at two polarizations, to exploit the potential capabilities of polarimetric RO for detecting and quantifying heavy precipitation events. If the concept is proved, PAZ will mean a new application of the GNSS Radio-Occultation observations, by providing coincident thermodynamic and precipitation information with high vertical resolution within regions with thick clouds. Before the launch, a series of studies have been performed in order to assess the retrieval of precipitation information from the polarimetric observations. These studies have been based on coincident observations from the COSMIC / FORMOSAT-3 RO satellite constellation, and TRMM and GPM missions. This massive collocation exercise allowed us to build a series of Look Up Tables that relate probabilistically the precipitation intensity to the polarimetric observables. Such studies needed a previous characterization of the polarimetric observable, since it contains contributions from the ionosphere and the emitting and receiving systems. For this purpose, complete end-to-end simulations have been performed, where information from the ionospheric state

  19. Monitoring flooding and vegetation on seasonally inundated floodplains with multifrequency polarimetric synthetic aperture radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hess, Laura Lorraine

    The ability of synthetic aperture radar to detect flooding and vegetation structure was evaluated for three seasonally inundated floodplain sites supporting a broad variety of wetland and upland vegetation types: two reaches of the Solimoes floodplain in the central Amazon, and the Magela Creek floodplain in Northern Territory, Australia. For each site, C- and L-band polarimetric Shuttle Imaging Radar-C (SIR-C) data was obtained at both high- and low-water stages. Inundation status and vegetation structure were documented simultaneous with the SIR-C acquisitions using low-altitude videography and ground measurements. SIR-C images were classified into cover states defined by vegetation physiognomy and presence of standing water, using a decision-tree model with backscattering coefficients at HH, VV, and HV polarizations as input variables. Classification accuracy was assessed using user's accuracy, producer's accuracy, and kappa coefficient for a test population of pixels. At all sites, both C- and L-band were necessary to accurately classify cover types with two dates. HH polarization was most. useful for distinguishing flooded from non-flooded vegetation (C-HH for macrophyte versus pasture, L-HH for flooded versus non-flooded forest), and cross-polarized L-band data provided the best separation between woody and non-woody vegetation. Increases in L-HH backscattering due to flooding were on the order of 3--4 dB for closed-canopy varzea and igapo forest, and 4--7 dB, for open Melaleuca woodland. The broad range of physiognomies and stand structures found in both herbaceous and woody wetland communities, combined with the variation in the amount of emergent canopy caused by water level fluctuations and phenologic changes, resulted in a large range in backscattering characteristics of wetland communities both within and between sites. High accuracies cannot be achieved for these communities using single-date, single-band, single-polarization data, particularly in the

  20. Imager-to-Radiometer In-flight Cross Calibration: RSP Radiometric Comparison with Airborne and Satellite Sensors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    McCorkel, Joel; Cairns, Brian; Wasilewski, Andrzej

    2016-01-01

    This work develops a method to compare the radiometric calibration between a radiometer and imagers hosted on aircraft and satellites. The radiometer is the airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP), which takes multi-angle, photo-polarimetric measurements in several spectral channels. The RSP measurements used in this work were coincident with measurements made by the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS), which was on the same aircraft. These airborne measurements were also coincident with an overpass of the Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI). First we compare the RSP and OLI radiance measurements to AVIRIS since the spectral response of the multispectral instruments can be used to synthesize a spectrally equivalent signal from the imaging spectrometer data. We then explore a method that uses AVIRIS as a transfer between RSP and OLI to show that radiometric traceability of a satellite-based imager can be used to calibrate a radiometer despite differences in spectral channel sensitivities. This calibration transfer shows agreement within the uncertainty of both the various instruments for most spectral channels.

  1. Polarimetric Signatures of Sea Ice. Part 1; Theoretical Model

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Yueh, S. H.; Drinkwater, M. R.

    1995-01-01

    Physical, structural, and electromagnetic properties and interrelating processes in sea ice are used to develop a composite model for polarimetric backscattering signatures of sea ice. Physical properties of sea ice constituents such as ice, brine, air, and salt are presented in terms of their effects on electromagnetic wave interactions. Sea ice structure and geometry of scatterers are related to wave propagation, attenuation, and scattering. Temperature and salinity, which are determining factors for the thermodynamic phase distribution in sea ice, are consistently used to derive both effective permittivities and polarimetric scattering coefficients. Polarimetric signatures of sea ice depend on crystal sizes and brine volumes, which are affected by ice growth rates. Desalination by brine expulsion, drainage, or other mechanisms modifies wave penetration and scattering. Sea ice signatures are further complicated by surface conditions such as rough interfaces, hummocks, snow cover, brine skim, or slush layer. Based on the same set of geophysical parameters characterizing sea ice, a composite model is developed to calculate effective permittivities and backscattering covariance matrices at microwave frequencies for interpretation of sea ice polarimetric signatures.

  2. Retrieval of the thickness of undeformed sea ice from simulated C-band compact polarimetric SAR images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Xi; Dierking, Wolfgang; Zhang, Jie; Meng, Junmin; Lang, Haitao

    2016-07-01

    In this paper we introduce a parameter for the retrieval of the thickness of undeformed first-year sea ice that is specifically adapted to compact polarimetric (CP) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. The parameter is denoted as the "CP ratio". In model simulations we investigated the sensitivity of the CP ratio to the dielectric constant, ice thickness, ice surface roughness, and radar incidence angle. From the results of the simulations we deduced optimal sea ice conditions and radar incidence angles for the ice thickness retrieval. C-band SAR data acquired over the Labrador Sea in circular transmit and linear receive (CTLR) mode were generated from RADARSAT-2 quad-polarization images. In comparison with results from helicopter-borne measurements, we tested different empirical equations for the retrieval of ice thickness. An exponential fit between the CP ratio and ice thickness provides the most reliable results. Based on a validation using other compact polarimetric SAR images from the same region, we found a root mean square (rms) error of 8 cm and a maximum correlation coefficient of 0.94 for the retrieval procedure when applying it to level ice between 0.1 and 0.8 m thick.

  3. Polarimetric passive remote sensing of periodic surfaces

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Veysoglu, Murat E.; Yueh, H. A.; Shin, R. T.; Kong, J. A.

    1991-01-01

    The concept of polarimetry in active remote sensing is extended to passive remote sensing. The potential use of the third and fourth Stokes parameters U and V, which play an important role in polarimetric active remote sensing, is demonstrated for passive remote sensing. It is shown that, by the use of the reciprocity principle, the polarimetric parameters of passive remote sensing can be obtained through the solution of the associated direct scattering problem. These ideas are applied to study polarimetric passive remote sensing of periodic surfaces. The solution of the direct scattering problem is obtained by an integral equation formulation which involves evaluation of periodic Green's functions and normal derivative of those on the surface. Rapid evaluation of the slowly convergent series associated with these functions is observed to be critical for the feasibility of the method. New formulas, which are rapidly convergent, are derived for the calculation of these series. The study has shown that the brightness temperature of the Stokes parameter U can be significant in passive remote sensing. Values as high as 50 K are observed for certain configurations.

  4. Airborne Radar Observations of Severe Hailstorms: Implications for Future Spaceborne Radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Heymsfield, Gerald M.; Tian, Lin; Li, Lihua; McLinden, Matthew; Cervantes, Jaime I.

    2013-01-01

    A new dual-frequency (Ku and Ka band) nadir-pointing Doppler radar on the high-altitude NASA ER-2 aircraft, called the High-Altitude Imaging Wind and Rain Airborne Profiler (HIWRAP), has collected data over severe thunderstorms in Oklahoma and Kansas during the Midlatitude Continental Convective Clouds Experiment (MC3E). The overarching motivation for this study is to understand the behavior of the dualwavelength airborne radar measurements in a global variety of thunderstorms and how these may relate to future spaceborne-radar measurements. HIWRAP is operated at frequencies that are similar to those of the precipitation radar on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (Ku band) and the upcoming Global Precipitation Measurement mission satellite's dual-frequency (Ku and Ka bands) precipitation radar. The aircraft measurements of strong hailstorms have been combined with ground-based polarimetric measurements to obtain a better understanding of the response of the Ku- and Ka-band radar to the vertical distribution of the hydrometeors, including hail. Data from two flight lines on 24 May 2011 are presented. Doppler velocities were approx. 39m/s2at 10.7-km altitude from the first flight line early on 24 May, and the lower value of approx. 25m/s on a second flight line later in the day. Vertical motions estimated using a fall speed estimate for large graupel and hail suggested that the first storm had an updraft that possibly exceeded 60m/s for the more intense part of the storm. This large updraft speed along with reports of 5-cm hail at the surface, reflectivities reaching 70 dBZ at S band in the storm cores, and hail signals from polarimetric data provide a highly challenging situation for spaceborne-radar measurements in intense convective systems. The Ku- and Ka-band reflectivities rarely exceed approx. 47 and approx. 37 dBZ, respectively, in these storms.

  5. ARMOR Dual-Polarimetric Radar Observations of Tornadic Debris Signatures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Petersen, W. A,; Carey, L. D.; Knupp, K. R.; Schultz, C.; Johnson, E.

    2008-01-01

    During the Super-Tuesday tornado outbreak of 5-6 February 2008, two EF-4 tornadoes occurred in Northern Alabama within 75 km range of the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) Advanced Radar for Meteorological and Operational Research (ARMOR, C-band dual-polarimetric). This study will present an analysis of ARMOR radar-indicated dual-polarimetric tornadic debris signatures. The debris signatures were associated with spatially-confined large decreases in the copolar correlation coefficient (rho(hv)hv) that were embedded within broader mesocyclone "hook" signatures. These debris signatures were most obviously manifest during the F-3 to F-4 intensity stages of the tornado(s) and extended to altitudes of approximately 3 km. The rho(hv) signatures of the tornadic debris were the most easily distinguished relative to other polarimetric and radial velocity parameters (e.g., associated with large hail and/or the incipient mesocyclone). Based on our analysis, and consistent with the small number of studies found in the literature, we conclude that dual-polarimetric radar data offer at least the possibility for enhancing specificity and confidence in the process of issuing tornado warnings based only on radar detection of threatening circulation features.

  6. Calibration of complex polarimetric SAR imagery using backscatter correlations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Klein, Jeffrey D.

    1992-01-01

    A new technique for calibration of multipolarization synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery is described. If scatterer reciprocity and lack of correlation between co- and cross-polarized radar echoes (for azimuthally symmetric distributed targets) is assumed, the effects of signal leakage between the radar data channels can be removed without the use of known ground targets. If known targets are available, all data channels may be calibrated relative to one another and radiometrically as well. The method is verified with simulations and application to airborne SAR data.

  7. A new polarimetric active radar calibrator and calibration technique

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Jianguo; Xu, Xiaojian

    2015-10-01

    Polarimetric active radar calibrator (PARC) is one of the most important calibrators with high radar cross section (RCS) for polarimetry measurement. In this paper, a new double-antenna polarimetric active radar calibrator (DPARC) is proposed, which consists of two rotatable antennas with wideband electromagnetic polarization filters (EMPF) to achieve lower cross-polarization for transmission and reception. With two antennas which are rotatable around the radar line of sight (LOS), the DPARC provides a variety of standard polarimetric scattering matrices (PSM) through the rotation combination of receiving and transmitting polarization, which are useful for polarimatric calibration in different applications. In addition, a technique based on Fourier analysis is proposed for calibration processing. Numerical simulation results are presented to demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed DPARC and processing technique.

  8. Identification of terrain cover using the optimum polarimetric classifier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kong, J. A.; Swartz, A. A.; Yueh, H. A.; Novak, L. M.; Shin, R. T.

    1988-01-01

    A systematic approach for the identification of terrain media such as vegetation canopy, forest, and snow-covered fields is developed using the optimum polarimetric classifier. The covariance matrices for various terrain cover are computed from theoretical models of random medium by evaluating the scattering matrix elements. The optimal classification scheme makes use of a quadratic distance measure and is applied to classify a vegetation canopy consisting of both trees and grass. Experimentally measured data are used to validate the classification scheme. Analytical and Monte Carlo simulated classification errors using the fully polarimetric feature vector are compared with classification based on single features which include the phase difference between the VV and HH polarization returns. It is shown that the full polarimetric results are optimal and provide better classification performance than single feature measurements.

  9. Polarimetric SAR Interferometry to Monitor Land Subsidence in Tehran

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sadeghi, Zahra; Valadan Zoej, Mohammad Javad; Muller, Jan-Peter

    2016-08-01

    This letter uses a combination of ADInSAR with a coherence optimization method. Polarimetric DInSAR is able to enhance pixel phase quality and thus coherent pixel density. The coherence optimization method is a search-based approach to find the optimized scattering mechanism introduced by Navarro-Sanchez [1]. The case study is southwest of Tehran basin located in the North of Iran. It suffers from a high-rate of land subsidence and is covered by agricultural fields. Usually such an area would significantly decorrelate but applying polarimetric ADInSAR it is possible to obtain a more coherent pixel coverage. A set of dual-pol TerraSAR-X images was ordered for polarimetric ADInSAR procedure. The coherence optimization method is shown to have increased the density and phase quality of coherent pixels significantly.

  10. Advanced Antenna Design for NASA's EcoSAR Instrument

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Du Toit, Cornelis F.; Deshpande, Manohar; Rincon, Rafael F.

    2016-01-01

    Advanced antenna arrays were designed for NASA's EcoSAR airborne radar instrument. EcoSAR is a beamforming synthetic aperture radar instrument designed to make polarimetric and "single pass" interferometric measurements of Earth surface parameters. EcoSAR's operational requirements of a 435MHz center frequency with up to 200MHz bandwidth, dual polarization, high cross-polarization isolation (> 30 dB), +/- 45deg beam scan range and antenna form-factor constraints imposed stringent requirements on the antenna design. The EcoSAR project successfully developed, characterized, and tested two array antennas in an anechoic chamber. EcoSAR's first airborne campaign conducted in the spring of 2014 generated rich data sets of scientific and engineering value, demonstrating the successful operation of the antennas.

  11. Even Shallower Exploration with Airborne Electromagnetics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Auken, E.; Christiansen, A. V.; Kirkegaard, C.; Nyboe, N. S.; Sørensen, K.

    2015-12-01

    Airborne electromagnetics (EM) is in many ways undergoing the same type rapid technological development as seen in the telecommunication industry. These developments are driven by a steadily increasing demand for exploration of minerals, groundwater and geotechnical targets. The latter two areas demand shallow and accurate resolution of the near surface geology in terms of both resistivity and spatial delineation of the sedimentary layers. Airborne EM systems measure the grounds electromagnetic response when subject to either a continuous discrete sinusoidal transmitter signal (frequency domain) or by measuring the decay of currents induced in the ground by rapid transmission of transient pulses (time domain). In the last decade almost all new developments of both instrument hardware and data processing techniques has focused around time domain systems. Here we present a concept for measuring the time domain response even before the transient transmitter current has been turned off. Our approach relies on a combination of new instrument hardware and novel modeling algorithms. The newly developed hardware allows for measuring the instruments complete transfer function which is convolved with the synthetic earth response in the inversion algorithm. The effect is that earth response data measured while the transmitter current is turned off can be included in the inversion, significantly increasing the amount of available information. We demonstrate the technique using both synthetic and field data. The synthetic examples provide insight on the physics during the turn off process and the field examples document the robustness of the method. Geological near surface structures can now be resolved to a degree that is unprecedented to the best of our knowledge, making airborne EM even more attractive and cost-effective for exploration of water and minerals that are crucial for the function of our societies.

  12. Airborne Radar Interferometric Repeat-Pass Processing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hensley, Scott; Michel, Thierry R.; Jones, Cathleen E.; Muellerschoen, Ronald J.; Chapman, Bruce D.; Fore, Alexander; Simard, Marc; Zebker, Howard A.

    2011-01-01

    Earth science research often requires crustal deformation measurements at a variety of time scales, from seconds to decades. Although satellites have been used for repeat-track interferometric (RTI) synthetic-aperture-radar (SAR) mapping for close to 20 years, RTI is much more difficult to implement from an airborne platform owing to the irregular trajectory of the aircraft compared with microwave imaging radar wavelengths. Two basic requirements for robust airborne repeat-pass radar interferometry include the ability to fly the platform to a desired trajectory within a narrow tube and the ability to have the radar beam pointed in a desired direction to a fraction of a beam width. Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) is equipped with a precision auto pilot developed by NASA Dryden that allows the platform, a Gulfstream III, to nominally fly within a 5 m diameter tube and with an electronically scanned antenna to position the radar beam to a fraction of a beam width based on INU (inertial navigation unit) attitude angle measurements.

  13. Pattern recognition for passive polarimetric data using nonparametric classifiers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Thilak, Vimal; Saini, Jatinder; Voelz, David G.; Creusere, Charles D.

    2005-08-01

    Passive polarization based imaging is a useful tool in computer vision and pattern recognition. A passive polarization imaging system forms a polarimetric image from the reflection of ambient light that contains useful information for computer vision tasks such as object detection (classification) and recognition. Applications of polarization based pattern recognition include material classification and automatic shape recognition. In this paper, we present two target detection algorithms for images captured by a passive polarimetric imaging system. The proposed detection algorithms are based on Bayesian decision theory. In these approaches, an object can belong to one of any given number classes and classification involves making decisions that minimize the average probability of making incorrect decisions. This minimum is achieved by assigning an object to the class that maximizes the a posteriori probability. Computing a posteriori probabilities requires estimates of class conditional probability density functions (likelihoods) and prior probabilities. A Probabilistic neural network (PNN), which is a nonparametric method that can compute Bayes optimal boundaries, and a -nearest neighbor (KNN) classifier, is used for density estimation and classification. The proposed algorithms are applied to polarimetric image data gathered in the laboratory with a liquid crystal-based system. The experimental results validate the effectiveness of the above algorithms for target detection from polarimetric data.

  14. A novel snapshot polarimetric imager

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wong, Gerald; McMaster, Ciaran; Struthers, Robert; Gorman, Alistair; Sinclair, Peter; Lamb, Robert; Harvey, Andrew R.

    2012-10-01

    Polarimetric imaging (PI) is of increasing importance in determining additional scene information beyond that of conventional images. For very long-range surveillance, image quality is degraded due to turbulence. Furthermore, the high magnification required to create images with sufficient spatial resolution suitable for object recognition and identification require long focal length optical systems. These are incompatible with the size and weight restrictions for aircraft. Techniques which allow detection and recognition of an object at the single pixel level are therefore likely to provide advance warning of approaching threats or long-range object cueing. PI is a technique that has the potential to detect object signatures at the pixel level. Early attempts to develop PI used rotating polarisers (and spectral filters) which recorded sequential polarized images from which the complete Stokes matrix could be derived. This approach has built-in latency between frames and requires accurate registration of consecutive frames to analyze real-time video of moving objects. Alternatively, multiple optical systems and cameras have been demonstrated to remove latency, but this approach increases cost and bulk of the imaging system. In our investigation we present a simplified imaging system that divides an image into two orthogonal polarimetric components which are then simultaneously projected onto a single detector array. Thus polarimetric data is recorded without latency on a single snapshot. We further show that, for pixel-level objects, the data derived from only two orthogonal states (H and V) is sufficient to increase the probability of detection whilst reducing false alarms compared to conventional unpolarised imaging.

  15. CAROLS: a new airborne L-band radiometer for ocean surface and land observations.

    PubMed

    Zribi, Mehrez; Pardé, Mickael; Boutin, Jacquline; Fanise, Pascal; Hauser, Daniele; Dechambre, Monique; Kerr, Yann; Leduc-Leballeur, Marion; Reverdin, Gilles; Skou, Niels; Søbjærg, Sten; Albergel, Clement; Calvet, Jean Christophe; Wigneron, Jean Pierre; Lopez-Baeza, Ernesto; Rius, Antonio; Tenerelli, Joseph

    2011-01-01

    The "Cooperative Airborne Radiometer for Ocean and Land Studies" (CAROLS) L-Band radiometer was designed and built as a copy of the EMIRAD II radiometer constructed by the Technical University of Denmark team. It is a fully polarimetric and direct sampling correlation radiometer. It is installed on board a dedicated French ATR42 research aircraft, in conjunction with other airborne instruments (C-Band scatterometer-STORM, the GOLD-RTR GPS system, the infrared CIMEL radiometer and a visible wavelength camera). Following initial laboratory qualifications, three airborne campaigns involving 21 flights were carried out over South West France, the Valencia site and the Bay of Biscay (Atlantic Ocean) in 2007, 2008 and 2009, in coordination with in situ field campaigns. In order to validate the CAROLS data, various aircraft flight patterns and maneuvers were implemented, including straight horizontal flights, circular flights, wing and nose wags over the ocean. Analysis of the first two campaigns in 2007 and 2008 leads us to improve the CAROLS radiometer regarding isolation between channels and filter bandwidth. After implementation of these improvements, results show that the instrument is conforming to specification and is a useful tool for Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite validation as well as for specific studies on surface soil moisture or ocean salinity.

  16. Correction of amplitude-phase distortion for polarimetric active radar calibrator

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Jianzhi; Li, Weixing; Zhang, Yue; Chen, Zengping

    2015-01-01

    The polarimetric active radar calibrator (PARC) is extensively used as an external test target for system distortion compensation and polarimetric calibration for the high-resolution polarimetric radar. However, the signal undergoes distortion in the PARC, affecting the effectiveness of the compensation and the calibration. The system distortion compensation resulting from the distortion of the amplitude and phase in the PARC was analyzed based on the "method of paired echoes." Then the correction method was proposed, which separated the ideal signals from the distorted signals. Experiments were carried on real radar data, and the experimental results were in good agreement with the theoretical analysis. After the correction, the PARC can be better used as an external test target for the system distortion compensation.

  17. Heterogeneity Measurement Based on Distance Measure for Polarimetric SAR Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xing, Xiaoli; Chen, Qihao; Liu, Xiuguo

    2018-04-01

    To effectively test the scene heterogeneity for polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) data, in this paper, the distance measure is introduced by utilizing the similarity between the sample and pixels. Moreover, given the influence of the distribution and modeling texture, the K distance measure is deduced according to the Wishart distance measure. Specifically, the average of the pixels in the local window replaces the class center coherency or covariance matrix. The Wishart and K distance measure are calculated between the average matrix and the pixels. Then, the ratio of the standard deviation to the mean is established for the Wishart and K distance measure, and the two features are defined and applied to reflect the complexity of the scene. The proposed heterogeneity measure is proceeded by integrating the two features using the Pauli basis. The experiments conducted on the single-look and multilook PolSAR data demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method for the detection of the scene heterogeneity.

  18. Oil spill characterization thanks to optical airborne imagery during the NOFO campaign 2015

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Viallefont-Robinet, F.; Ceamanos, X.; Angelliaume, S.; Miegebielle, V.

    2017-10-01

    One of the objectives of the NAOMI (New Advanced Observation Method Integration) research project, fruit of a partnership between Total and ONERA, is to work on the detection, the quantification and the characterization of offshore hydrocarbon at the sea surface using airborne remote sensing. In this framework, work has been done to characterize the spectral signature of hydrocarbons in lab in order to build a database of oil spectral signatures. The main objective of this database is to provide spectral libraries for data processing algorithms to be applied to airborne VNIRSWIR hyperspectral images. A campaign run by the NOFO institute (Norwegian Clean Seas Association for Operating Companies) took place in 2015 to test anti-pollution equipment. During this campaign, several hydrocarbon products, including an oil emulsion, were released into the sea, off the Norwegian coast. The NOFO team allowed the NAOMI project to acquire data over the resulting oil slicks using the SETHI system, which is an airborne remote sensing imaging system developed by ONERA. SETHI integrates a new generation of optoelectronic and radar payloads and can operate over a wide range of frequency bands. SETHI is a pod-based system operating onboard a Falcon 20 Dassault aircraft, which is owned by AvDEF. For these experiments, imaging sensors were constituted by 2 synthetic aperture radar (SAR), working at X and L bands in a full polarimetric mode (HH, HV, VH, VV) and 2 HySpex hyperspectral cameras working in the VNIR (0,4 to 1 μm) and SWIR (1 to 2,5 μm) spectral ranges. A sample of the oil emulsion that was used during the campaign was sent to our laboratory for analysis. Measurements of its transmission and of its reflectance in the VNIR and SWIR spectral domains have been performed at ONERA with a Perkin Elmer spectroradiometer and a spectrogoniometer. Several samples of the oil emulsion were prepared in order to measure spectral variations according to oil thickness, illumination angle

  19. Study of Movement and Seepage Along Levees Using DINSAR and the Airborne UAVSAR Instrument

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jones, Cathleen E.; Bawden, Gerald; Deverel, Steven; Dudas, Joel; Hensley, Scott

    2012-01-01

    We have studied the utility of high resolution SAR (synthetic aperture radar) for levee monitoring using UAVSAR (Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar) data collected along the dikes and levees in California's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and along the lower Mississippi River. Our study has focused on detecting and tracking changes that are indicative of potential problem spots, namely deformation of the levees, subsidence along the levee toe, and seepage through the levees, making use of polarimetric and interferometric SAR techniques. Here was present some results of those studies, which show that high resolution, low noise SAR imaging could supplement more traditional ground-based monitoring methods by providing early indicators of seepage and deformation.

  20. Lightning Initiation Forecasting: An Operational Dual-Polarimetric Radar Technique

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Woodard, Crystal J.; Carey, L. D.; Petersen, W. A.; Roeder, W. P.

    2011-01-01

    The objective of this NASA MSFC and NOAA CSTAR funded study is to develop and test operational forecast algorithms for the prediction of lightning initiation utilizing the C-band dual-polarimetric radar, UAHuntsville's Advanced Radar for Meteorological and Operational Research (ARMOR). Although there is a rich research history of radar signatures associated with lightning initiation, few studies have utilized dual-polarimetric radar signatures (e.g., Z(sub dr) columns) and capabilities (e.g., fuzzy-logic particle identification [PID] of precipitation ice) in an operational algorithm for first flash forecasting. The specific goal of this study is to develop and test polarimetric techniques that enhance the performance of current operational radar reflectivity based first flash algorithms. Improving lightning watch and warning performance will positively impact personnel safety in both work and leisure environments. Advanced warnings can provide space shuttle launch managers time to respond appropriately to secure equipment and personnel, while they can also provide appropriate warnings for spectators and players of leisure sporting events to seek safe shelter. Through the analysis of eight case dates, consisting of 35 pulse-type thunderstorms and 20 non-thunderstorm case studies, lightning initiation forecast techniques were developed and tested. The hypothesis is that the additional dual-polarimetric information could potentially reduce false alarms while maintaining high probability of detection and increasing lead-time for the prediction of the first lightning flash relative to reflectivity-only based techniques. To test the hypothesis, various physically-based techniques using polarimetric variables and/or PID categories, which are strongly correlated to initial storm electrification (e.g., large precipitation ice production via drop freezing), were benchmarked against the operational reflectivity-only based approaches to find the best compromise between

  1. Directionality of Spectral and Polarimetric Measurements of Soils

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Furey, J.; Zahniser, S. R.; Morgan, C.; Lewis, M. G.

    2017-12-01

    Spectral and polarimetric instruments mounted on a goniometer in a laboratory setting measured directionality effects for discriminating disturbed from undisturbed soils at varied illumination and look angles. Over 8000 custom polarimetric images, using rotating linear polarizers, were acquired at 63 goniometer positions in the Visible (Vis), Near InfraRed (NIR), Short Wave IR (SWIR), and Long Wave IR (LWIR) spectral bands, as well as a hyperspectral imager in the Vis through NIR (Resonon Pika), and a nonimaging hyperspectral instrument (ASD Fieldspec). The soils had been sampled from earlier field studies in the Global Undisturbed/Disturbed Earth (GUIDE) program, and the soil surfaces were prepared in disturbed and undisturbed states for laboratory measurement. No one spectral range was most effective at discriminating at all azimuth and elevation angles for any soil, but polarimetric SWIR was the most often effective. Azimuthal spectral variations did not provide statistically significant discrimination in themselves. Other preliminary findings are that polarimetry is key to understanding azimuthal effects and that nadir spectra are the least predictive.

  2. Sea Oil Spill Detection Using Self-Similarity Parameter of Polarimetric SAR Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tong, S.; Chen, Q.; Liu, X.

    2018-04-01

    The ocean oil spills cause serious damage to the marine ecosystem. Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) is an important mean for oil spill detections on sea surface. The major challenge is how to distinguish oil slicks from look-alikes effectively. In this paper, a new parameter called self-similarity parameter, which is sensitive to the scattering mechanism of oil slicks, is introduced to identify oil slicks and reduce false alarm caused by look-alikes. Self-similarity parameter is small in oil slicks region and it is large in sea region or look-alikes region. So, this parameter can be used to detect oil slicks from look-alikes and water. In addition, evaluations and comparisons were conducted with one Radarsat-2 image and two SIR-C images. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the self-similarity parameter for oil spill detection.

  3. Monitoring land use and degradation using satellite and airborne data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ray, Terrill W.; Farr, Thomas G.; Blom, Ronald G.; Crippen, Robert E.

    1993-01-01

    In July 1990 AVIRIS and AIRSAR data were collected over the Manix Basin Area of the Mojave Desert to study land degradation in an arid area where centerpivot irrigation had been in use. The Manix Basin is located NE of Barstow, California, along Interstate-15 at 34 deg 57 min N 116 deg 35 min W. This region was covered by a series of lakes during the Late Pleistocence and Early Holocene. Beginning in the 1960's, areas were cleared of the native creosote bush-dominated plant community to be used for agricultural purposes. Starting in 1972 fields have been abandoned due to the increased cost of electricity needed to pump the irrigation water, with some fields abandoned as recently as 1988 and 1992. These circumstances provide a time series of abandoned fields which provide the possibility of studying the processes which act on agricultural fields in arid regions when they are abandoned. Ray et al. reported that polarimetric SAR (AIRSAR) could detect that the concentric circular planting furrows plowed on these fields persists for a few years after abandonment and then disappear over time and that wind ripples which form on these fields over time due to wind erosion can be detected with polarimetric radar. Ray et al. used Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) bandpasses to generate NDVI images of the Manix Basin which showed that the fields abandoned for only a few years had higher NDVI's than the undisturbed desert while the fields abandoned for a longer time had NDVI levels lower than that of the undisturbed desert. The purpose of this study is to use a fusion of a time series of satellite data with airborne data to provide a context for the airborne data. The satellite data time series will additionally help to validate the observation and analysis of time-dependent processes observed in the single AVIRIS image of fields abandoned for different periods of time.

  4. Summaries of the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. Volume 1; AVIRIS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Green, Robert O. (Editor)

    1996-01-01

    This publication contains the summaries for the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on March 4-8, 1996. The main workshop is divided into two smaller workshops as follows: (1) The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on March 4-6. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1; (2) The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on March 6-8. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2.

  5. Polarimetric Multispectral Imaging Technology

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cheng, L.-J.; Chao, T.-H.; Dowdy, M.; Mahoney, C.; Reyes, G.

    1993-01-01

    The Jet Propulsion Laboratory is developing a remote sensing technology on which a new generation of compact, lightweight, high-resolution, low-power, reliable, versatile, programmable scientific polarimetric multispectral imaging instruments can be built to meet the challenge of future planetary exploration missions. The instrument is based on the fast programmable acousto-optic tunable filter (AOTF) of tellurium dioxide (TeO2) that operates in the wavelength range of 0.4-5 microns. Basically, the AOTF multispectral imaging instrument measures incoming light intensity as a function of spatial coordinates, wavelength, and polarization. Its operation can be in either sequential, random access, or multiwavelength mode as required. This provides observation flexibility, allowing real-time alternation among desired observations, collecting needed data only, minimizing data transmission, and permitting implementation of new experiments. These will result in optimization of the mission performance with minimal resources. Recently we completed a polarimetric multispectral imaging prototype instrument and performed outdoor field experiments for evaluating application potentials of the technology. We also investigated potential improvements on AOTF performance to strengthen technology readiness for applications. This paper will give a status report on the technology and a prospect toward future planetary exploration.

  6. Polarimetric Ku-Band Scatterometer for High Accuracy, Large Swath Global Wind Vector Measurements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tsai, Wu-Yang; Nghiem, Son V.; Huddleston, James; Spencer, Michael; Stiles, Bryan; West, Richard

    2000-01-01

    In the past, wind measurements from space using fan-beam antennas, such as Seasat Scatterometer (SASS-1), ERS-1 &2, and NASA scatterometer (NSCAT), required up to six large stick-like antennas and suffered a nadir gap of up to 400 km. In the near future, a spinning pencil-beam scatterometer system is to be used for the SeaWinds scatterometer on QuikSCAT (QSCAT) and on ADEOS-2 (SeaWinds). This scatterometer, though offering wind measurements in the nadir region, still suffers from degraded performance in the nadir and outer swath. The purpose of this paper is to present an advanced polarimetric spinning pencil-beam scatterometer system, which can significantly improve the wind performance across the entire swath. The polarimetric scatterometer simultaneously measures co-polarized backscatter and the polarimetric correlation of co- and cross-polarized radar returns from the ocean surface. The advantage over the conventional scatterometer system is that, while the co-polarization radar returns are even function of the wind direction, the polarimetric correlation is an odd function of wind direction due to the reflection symmetry of the wind roughened surface. Therefore, this polarimetric scatterometer system can provide additional, equivalent measurements at azimuth angle 45degree away from the corresponding co-polarization measurements. The combined co-polarization and correlation measurements enable good wind performance across the whole swath to be obtained. In this paper, we will first present the theoretical formulation of all of the key components required for designing a polarimetric scatterometer. Then, we show that good wind performance can be achieved by a slight improvement in the signal-to-noise ratio of the current QSCAT/SeaWinds design. We then present the predicated wind performance using computer simulation based on a model function for the co-polarized backscatter obtained from actual spaceborne scatterometer data and an estimated model function for

  7. Summaries of the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop. Volume 1: AVIRIS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Green, Robert O. (Editor)

    1992-01-01

    This publication contains the preliminary agenda and summaries for the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop, held at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, on 1-5 June 1992. This main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: (1) the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on June 1 and 2; (2) the Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on June 3; and (3) the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on June 4 and 5. The summaries are contained in Volumes 1, 2, and 3, respectively.

  8. Identification of hydrometeor mixtures in polarimetric radar measurements and their linear de-mixing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Besic, Nikola; Ventura, Jordi Figueras i.; Grazioli, Jacopo; Gabella, Marco; Germann, Urs; Berne, Alexis

    2017-04-01

    The issue of hydrometeor mixtures affects radar sampling volumes without a clear dominant hydrometeor type. Containing a number of different hydrometeor types which significantly contribute to the polarimetric variables, these volumes are likely to occur in the vicinity of the melting layer and mainly, at large distance from a given radar. Motivated by potential benefits for both quantitative and qualitative applications of dual-pol radar, we propose a method for the identification of hydrometeor mixtures and their subsequent linear de-mixing. This method is intrinsically related to our recently proposed semi-supervised approach for hydrometeor classification. The mentioned classification approach [1] performs labeling of radar sampling volumes by using as a criterion the Euclidean distance with respect to five-dimensional centroids, depicting nine hydrometeor classes. The positions of the centroids in the space formed by four radar moments and one external parameter (phase indicator), are derived through a technique of k-medoids clustering, applied on a selected representative set of radar observations, and coupled with statistical testing which introduces the assumed microphysical properties of the different hydrometeor types. Aside from a hydrometeor type label, each radar sampling volume is characterized by an entropy estimate, indicating the uncertainty of the classification. Here, we revisit the concept of entropy presented in [1], in order to emphasize its presumed potential for the identification of hydrometeor mixtures. The calculation of entropy is based on the estimate of the probability (pi ) that the observation corresponds to the hydrometeor type i (i = 1,ṡṡṡ9) . The probability is derived from the Euclidean distance (di ) of the observation to the centroid characterizing the hydrometeor type i . The parametrization of the d → p transform is conducted in a controlled environment, using synthetic polarimetric radar datasets. It ensures balanced

  9. Polarimetric phenomenology in the reflective regime: a case study using polarized hyperspectral data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gibney, Mark

    2016-05-01

    Understanding the phenomenology of polarimetric data is necessary if we want to obtain the maximum benefit when we exploit that data. To first order, polarimetric phenomenology is driven by two things; the target material type (specular or diffuse) and the illuminating source (point (sun) or extended (body emission)). Polarimetric phenomenology can then be broken into three basic categories; ([specular material/sun source], [diffuse/sun], [specular/body]) where we have assigned body emission to the IR passband where materials are generally specular. The task of interest determines the category of interest since the task determines the dominant target material and the illuminating source (eg detecting diffuse targets under trees in VNIR = [diffuse/sun] category). In this paper, a specific case study for the important [diffuse/sun] category will be presented. For the reflective regime (0.3 - 3.0um), the largest polarimetric signal is obtained when the sun illuminates a significant portion of the material BRDF lobe. This naturally points us to problems whose primary target materials are diffuse since the BRDF lobe for specular materials is tiny (low probability of acquiring on the BRDF lobe) and glinty (high probability of saturating the sensor when on lobe). In this case study, we investigated signatures of solar illuminated diffuse paints acquired by a polarimetric hyperspectral sensor. We will discuss the acquisition, reduction and exploitation of that data, and use it to illustrate the primary characteristics of reflective polarimetric phenomenology.

  10. Polarimetric subspace target detector for SAR data based on the Huynen dihedral model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Larson, Victor J.; Novak, Leslie M.

    1995-06-01

    Two new polarimetric subspace target detectors are developed based on a dihedral signal model for bright peaks within a spatially extended target signature. The first is a coherent dihedral target detector based on the exact Huynen model for a dihedral. The second is a noncoherent dihedral target detector based on the Huynen model with an extra unknown phase term. Expressions for these polarimetric subspace target detectors are developed for both additive Gaussian clutter and more general additive spherically invariant random vector clutter including the K-distribution. For the case of Gaussian clutter with unknown clutter parameters, constant false alarm rate implementations of these polarimetric subspace target detectors are developed. The performance of these dihedral detectors is demonstrated with real millimeter-wave fully polarimetric SAR data. The coherent dihedral detector which is developed with a more accurate description of a dihedral offers no performance advantage over the noncoherent dihedral detector which is computationally more attractive. The dihedral detectors do a better job of separating a set of tactical military targets from natural clutter compared to a detector that assumes no knowledge about the polarimetric structure of the target signal.

  11. A New Polarimetric Classification Approach Evaluated for Agricultural Crops

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hoekman, D.

    2003-04-01

    Statistical properties of the polarimetric backscatter behaviour for a single homogeneous area are described by the Wishart distribution or its marginal distributions. These distributions do not necessarily well describe the statistics for a collection of homogeneous areas of the same class because of variation in, for example, biophysical parameters. Using Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) tests of fit it is shown that, for example, the Beta distribution is a better descriptor for the coherence magnitude, and the log-normal distribution for the backscatter level. An evaluation is given for a number of agricultural crop classes, grasslands and fruit tree plantations at the Flevoland test site, using an AirSAR (C-, L- and P- band polarimetric) image of 3 July 1991. A new reversible transform of the covariance matrix into backscatter intensities will be introduced in order to describe the full polarimetric target properties in a mathematically alternative way, allowing for the development of simple, versatile and robust classifiers. Moreover, it allows for polarimetric image segmentation using conventional approaches. The effect of azimuthally asymmetric backscatter behaviour on the classification results is discussed. Several models are proposed and results are compared with results from literature for the same test site. It can be concluded that the introduced classifiers perform very well, with levels of accuracy for this test site of 90.4% for C-band, 88.7% for L- band and 96.3% for the combination of C- and L-band.

  12. Polarimetric Interferometry - Remote Sensing Applications

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-02-01

    This lecture is mainly based on the work of S.R. Cloude and presents examples for remote sensing applications Polarimetric SAR Interferometry...PolInSAR). PolInSAR has its origins in remote sensing and was first developed for applications in 1997 using SIRC L-Band data [1,2]. In its original form it

  13. Airborne Microwave Imaging of River Velocities

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Plant, William J.

    2002-01-01

    The objective of this project was to determine whether airborne microwave remote sensing systems can measure river surface currents with sufficient accuracy to make them prospective instruments with which to monitor river flow from space. The approach was to fly a coherent airborne microwave Doppler radar, developed by APL/UW, on a light airplane along several rivers in western Washington state over an extended period of time. The fundamental quantity obtained by this system to measure river currents is the mean offset of the Doppler spectrum. Since this scatter can be obtained from interferometric synthetic aperture radars (INSARs), which can be flown in space, this project provided a cost effective means for determining the suitability of spaceborne INSAR for measuring river flow.

  14. Passive Fully Polarimetric W-Band Millimeter-Wave Imaging

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bernacki, Bruce E.; Kelly, James F.; Sheen, David M.

    2012-04-01

    We present the theory, design, and experimental results obtained from a scanning passive W-band fully polarimetric imager. Passive millimeter-wave imaging offers persistent day/nighttime imaging and the ability to penetrate dust, clouds and other obscurants, including clothing and dry soil. The single-pixel scanning imager includes both far-field and near-field fore-optics for investigation of polarization phenomena. Using both fore-optics, a variety of scenes including natural and man-made objects was imaged and these results are presented showing the utility of polarimetric imaging for anomaly detection. Analysis includes conventional Stokes-parameter based approaches as well as multivariate image analysis methods.

  15. Polarimetric signature imaging of anisotropic bio-medical tissues

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Stewart H.; Yang, De-Ming; Chiou, Arthur; Nee, Soe-Mie F.; Nee, Tsu-Wei

    2010-02-01

    Polarimetric imaging of Stokes vector (I, Q, U, V) can provide 4 independent signatures showing the linear and circular polarizations of biological tissues and cells. Using a recently developed Stokes digital imaging system, we measured the Stokes vector images of tissue samples from sections of rat livers containing normal portions and hematomas. The derived Mueller matrix elements can quantitatively provide multi-signature data of the bio-sample. This polarimetric optical technology is a new option of biosensing technology to inspect the structures of tissue samples, particularly for discriminating tumor and non-tumor biopsy. This technology is useful for critical disease discrimination and medical diagnostics applications.

  16. Summaries of the 4th Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop. Volume 3: AIRSAR Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vanzyl, Jakob (Editor)

    1993-01-01

    This publication contains the summaries for the Fourth Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop, held in Washington, D.C. on October 25-29, 1993. The main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: The Airborne Visible/Infrared Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on October 25-26, whose summaries appear in Volume 1; The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on October 27, whose summaries appear in Volume 2; and The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on October 28-29, whose summaries appear in this volume, Volume 3.

  17. 3-D airborne ultrasound synthetic aperture imaging based on capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers.

    PubMed

    Park, Kwan Kyu; Khuri-Yakub, Butrus T

    2013-09-01

    In this paper, we present an airborne 3-D volumetric imaging system based on capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs). For this purpose we fabricated 89-kHz CMUTs where each CMUT is made of a circular single-crystal silicon plate with a radius of 1mm and a thickness of 20 μm, which is actuated by electrostatic force through a 20-μm vacuum gap. The measured transmit sensitivity at 300-V DC bias is 14.6 Pa/V and 24.2 Pa/V, when excited by a 30-cycle burst and a continuous wave, respectively. The measured receive sensitivity at 300-V DC bias is 16.6 mV/Pa (-35.6 dB re 1 V/Pa) for a 30-cycle burst. A 26×26 2-D array was implemented by mechanical scanning a co-located transmitter and receiver using the classic synthetic aperture (CSA) method. The measurement of a 1.6λ-size target at a distance of 500 mm presented a lateral resolution of 3.17° and also showed good agreement with the theoretical point spread function. The 3-D imaging of two plates at a distance of 350 mm and 400 mm was constructed to exhibit the capability of the imaging system. This study experimentally demonstrates that a 2-D CMUT array can be used for practical 3-D imaging applications in air, such as a human-machine interface. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. Retrieval of pine forest biomass using JPL AIRSAR data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Beaudoin, A.; Letoan, T.; Zagolski, F.; Hsu, C. C.; Han, H. C.; Kong, J. A.

    1992-01-01

    The analysis of Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) data over the Landes forest in South-West France revealed strong correlation between L- and especially P-band sigma degrees and the pine forest biomass. To explain the physical link of radar backscatter to biomass, a polarimetric backscattering model was developed and validated. Then the model was used in a simulation study to predict sigma degree sensitivity to undesired canopy and environmental parameters. Main results concerning the data analysis, modeling, and simulation at P-band are reported.

  19. Polarimetric Imaging using Two Photoelastic Modulators

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wang, Yu; Cunningham, Thomas; Diner, David; Davis, Edgar; Sun, Chao; Hancock, Bruce; Gutt, Gary; Zan, Jason; Raouf, Nasrat

    2009-01-01

    A method of polarimetric imaging, now undergoing development, involves the use of two photoelastic modulators in series, driven at equal amplitude but at different frequencies. The net effect on a beam of light is to cause (1) the direction of its polarization to rotate at the average of two excitation frequencies and (2) the amplitude of its polarization to be modulated at the beat frequency (the difference between the two excitation frequencies). The resulting modulated optical light beam is made to pass through a polarizing filter and is detected at the beat frequency, which can be chosen to equal the frame rate of an electronic camera or the rate of sampling the outputs of photodetectors in an array. The method was conceived to satisfy a need to perform highly accurate polarimetric imaging, without cross-talk between polarization channels, at frame rates of the order of tens of hertz. The use of electro-optical modulators is necessitated by a need to obtain accuracy greater than that attainable by use of static polarizing filters over separate fixed detectors. For imaging, photoelastic modulators are preferable to such other electrio-optical modulators as Kerr cells and Pockels cells in that photoelastic modulators operate at lower voltages, have greater angular acceptances, and are easier to use. Prior to the conception of the present method, polarimetric imaging at frame rates of tens of hertz using photoelastic modulators was not possible because the resonance frequencies of photoelastic modulators usually lie in the range from about 20 to about 100 kHz.

  20. Testing a polarimetric cloud imager aboard research vessel Polarstern: comparison of color-based and polarimetric cloud detection algorithms.

    PubMed

    Barta, András; Horváth, Gábor; Horváth, Ákos; Egri, Ádám; Blahó, Miklós; Barta, Pál; Bumke, Karl; Macke, Andreas

    2015-02-10

    Cloud cover estimation is an important part of routine meteorological observations. Cloudiness measurements are used in climate model evaluation, nowcasting solar radiation, parameterizing the fluctuations of sea surface insolation, and building energy transfer models of the atmosphere. Currently, the most widespread ground-based method to measure cloudiness is based on analyzing the unpolarized intensity and color distribution of the sky obtained by digital cameras. As a new approach, we propose that cloud detection can be aided by the additional use of skylight polarization measured by 180° field-of-view imaging polarimetry. In the fall of 2010, we tested such a novel polarimetric cloud detector aboard the research vessel Polarstern during expedition ANT-XXVII/1. One of our goals was to test the durability of the measurement hardware under the extreme conditions of a trans-Atlantic cruise. Here, we describe the instrument and compare the results of several different cloud detection algorithms, some conventional and some newly developed. We also discuss the weaknesses of our design and its possible improvements. The comparison with cloud detection algorithms developed for traditional nonpolarimetric full-sky imagers allowed us to evaluate the added value of polarimetric quantities. We found that (1) neural-network-based algorithms perform the best among the investigated schemes and (2) global information (the mean and variance of intensity), nonoptical information (e.g., sun-view geometry), and polarimetric information (e.g., the degree of polarization) improve the accuracy of cloud detection, albeit slightly.

  1. Analysis of Fully Polarimetric Laboratory Measurements Performed with the WISDOM Radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Plettemeier, D.; Ciarletti, V.; Cais, P.; Benedix, W.-S.; Zhang, H.; Hamran, S.-E.; Clifford, S.

    2012-04-01

    algorithms were applied to reduce the interference from radiation coupling and cross-talk between transmitting and receiving antenna. The analysis of the laboratory measurement will show features of the fully polarimetric radar system and quantify most of the important performance parameters. Synthetic aperture processing is implemented to increase the azimuth resolution of radar. The three dimensional reconstruction of the positioning of an arrangement of discrete objects will be shown.

  2. Polarimetric scattering from layered media with multiple species of scatterers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Yueh, S. H.; Kong, J. A.; Hsu, C. C.; Tassoudji, M. A.; Shin, R. T.

    1995-01-01

    Geophysical media are usually heterogeneous and contain multiple species of scatterers. In this paper a model is presented to calculate effective permittivities and polarimetric backscattering coefficients of multispecies-layered media. The same physical description is consistently used in the derivation of both permittivities and scattering coefficients. The strong permittivity fluctuation theory is extended to account for the multiple species of scatterers with a general ellipsoidal shape whose orientations are randomly distributed. Under the distorted Born approximation, polarimetric scattering coefficients are obtained. These calculations are applicable to the special cases of spheroidal and spherical scatterers. The model is used to study effects of scatterer shapes and multispecies mixtures on polarimetric signatures of heterogeneous media. The multispecies model accounts for moisture content in scattering media such as snowpack in an ice sheet. The results indicate a high sensitivity of backscatter to moisture with a stronger dependence for drier snow and ice grain size is important to the backscatter. For frost-covered saline ice, model results for bare ice are compared with measured data at C band and then the frost flower formation is simulated with a layer of fanlike ice crystals including brine infiltration over a rough interface. The results with the frost cover suggest a significant increase in scattering coefficients and a polarimetric signature closer to isotropic characteristics compared to the thin saline ice case.

  3. Processing and Analysis of Polarimetric Ship Signatures from MARSIE: Report on Results for Polar Epsilon

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2006-10-01

    trial has provided a vast and valuable polarimetric data set that has and will be beneficial to the study of polarimetric signatures of ships. iv...following polarimetric issues are relevant to the Polar Epsilon CONOPS and will be studied further: • The effects of acquisition geometry, target...between minimum detectable ship size and area coverage rate. Therefore, vessel detection will be dependent upon beam mode selection. The vessel

  4. Retrieval of ice thickness from polarimetric SAR data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kwok, R.; Yueh, S. H.; Nghiem, S. V.; Huynh, D. D.

    1993-01-01

    We describe a potential procedure for retrieving ice thickness from multi-frequency polarimetric SAR data for thin ice. This procedure includes first masking out the thicker ice types with a simple classifier and then deriving the thickness of the remaining pixels using a model-inversion technique. The technique used to derive ice thickness from polarimetric observations is provided by a numerical estimator or neural network. A three-layer perceptron implemented with the backpropagation algorithm is used in this investigation with several improved aspects for a faster convergence rate and a better accuracy of the neural network. These improvements include weight initialization, normalization of the output range, the selection of offset constant, and a heuristic learning algorithm. The performance of the neural network is demonstrated by using training data generated by a theoretical scattering model for sea ice matched to the database of interest. The training data are comprised of the polarimetric backscattering coefficients of thin ice and the corresponding input ice parameters to the scattering model. The retrieved ice thickness from the theoretical backscattering coefficients is compare with the input ice thickness to the scattering model to illustrate the accuracy of the inversion method. Results indicate that the network convergence rate and accuracy are higher when multi-frequency training sets are presented. In addition, the dominant backscattering coefficients in retrieving ice thickness are found by comparing the behavior of the network trained backscattering data at various incidence angels. After the neural network is trained with the theoretical backscattering data at various incidence anges, the interconnection weights between nodes are saved and applied to the experimental data to be investigated. In this paper, we illustrate the effectiveness of this technique using polarimetric SAR data collected by the JPL DC-8 radar over a sea ice scene.

  5. Summaries of the 4th Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop. Volume 1: AVIRIS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Green, Robert O. (Editor)

    1993-01-01

    This publication contains the summaries for the Fourth Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop, held in Washington, D. C. October 25-29, 1993 The main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, October 25-26 (the summaries for this workshop appear in this volume, Volume 1); The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TMIS) workshop, on October 27 (the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2); and The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, October 28-29 (the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 3).

  6. Disaster debris estimation using high-resolution polarimetric stereo-SAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Koyama, Christian N.; Gokon, Hideomi; Jimbo, Masaru; Koshimura, Shunichi; Sato, Motoyuki

    2016-10-01

    This paper addresses the problem of debris estimation which is one of the most important initial challenges in the wake of a disaster like the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. Reasonable estimates of the debris have to be made available to decision makers as quickly as possible. Current approaches to obtain this information are far from being optimal as they usually rely on manual interpretation of optical imagery. We have developed a novel approach for the estimation of tsunami debris pile heights and volumes for improved emergency response. The method is based on a stereo-synthetic aperture radar (stereo-SAR) approach for very high-resolution polarimetric SAR. An advanced gradient-based optical-flow estimation technique is applied for optimal image coregistration of the low-coherence non-interferometric data resulting from the illumination from opposite directions and in different polarizations. By applying model based decomposition of the coherency matrix, only the odd bounce scattering contributions are used to optimize echo time computation. The method exclusively considers the relative height differences from the top of the piles to their base to achieve a very fine resolution in height estimation. To define the base, a reference point on non-debris-covered ground surface is located adjacent to the debris pile targets by exploiting the polarimetric scattering information. The proposed technique is validated using in situ data of real tsunami debris taken on a temporary debris management site in the tsunami affected area near Sendai city, Japan. The estimated height error is smaller than 0.6 m RMSE. The good quality of derived pile heights allows for a voxel-based estimation of debris volumes with a RMSE of 1099 m3. Advantages of the proposed method are fast computation time, and robust height and volume estimation of debris piles without the need for pre-event data or auxiliary information like DEM, topographic maps or GCPs.

  7. A particle swarm optimized kernel-based clustering method for crop mapping from multi-temporal polarimetric L-band SAR observations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tamiminia, Haifa; Homayouni, Saeid; McNairn, Heather; Safari, Abdoreza

    2017-06-01

    Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) data, thanks to their specific characteristics such as high resolution, weather and daylight independence, have become a valuable source of information for environment monitoring and management. The discrimination capability of observations acquired by these sensors can be used for land cover classification and mapping. The aim of this paper is to propose an optimized kernel-based C-means clustering algorithm for agriculture crop mapping from multi-temporal PolSAR data. Firstly, several polarimetric features are extracted from preprocessed data. These features are linear polarization intensities, and several statistical and physical based decompositions such as Cloude-Pottier, Freeman-Durden and Yamaguchi techniques. Then, the kernelized version of hard and fuzzy C-means clustering algorithms are applied to these polarimetric features in order to identify crop types. The kernel function, unlike the conventional partitioning clustering algorithms, simplifies the non-spherical and non-linearly patterns of data structure, to be clustered easily. In addition, in order to enhance the results, Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm is used to tune the kernel parameters, cluster centers and to optimize features selection. The efficiency of this method was evaluated by using multi-temporal UAVSAR L-band images acquired over an agricultural area near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, during June and July in 2012. The results demonstrate more accurate crop maps using the proposed method when compared to the classical approaches, (e.g. 12% improvement in general). In addition, when the optimization technique is used, greater improvement is observed in crop classification, e.g. 5% in overall. Furthermore, a strong relationship between Freeman-Durden volume scattering component, which is related to canopy structure, and phenological growth stages is observed.

  8. External calibration of polarimetric radars using point and distributed targets

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Yueh, S. H.; Kong, J. A.; Shin, R. T.

    1991-01-01

    Polarimetric calibration algorithms using combinations of point targets and reciprocal distributed targets are developed. From the reciprocity relations of distributed targets, and equivalent point target response is derived. Then the problem of polarimetric calibration using two point targets and one distributed target reduces to that using three point targets, which has been previously solved. For calibration using one point target and one reciprocal distributed target, two cases are analyzed with the point target being a trihedral reflector or a polarimetric active radar calibrator (PARC). For both cases, the general solutions of the system distortion matrices are written as a product of a particular solution and a matrix with one free parameter. For the trihedral-reflector case, this free parameter is determined by assuming azimuthal symmetry for the distributed target. For the PARC case, knowledge of one ratio of two covariance matrix elements of the distributed target is required to solve for the free parameter. Numerical results are simulated to demonstrate the usefulness of the developed algorithms.

  9. External calibration of polarimetric radars using point and distributed targets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yueh, S. H.; Kong, J. A.; Shin, R. T.

    1991-08-01

    Polarimetric calibration algorithms using combinations of point targets and reciprocal distributed targets are developed. From the reciprocity relations of distributed targets, and equivalent point target response is derived. Then the problem of polarimetric calibration using two point targets and one distributed target reduces to that using three point targets, which has been previously solved. For calibration using one point target and one reciprocal distributed target, two cases are analyzed with the point target being a trihedral reflector or a polarimetric active radar calibrator (PARC). For both cases, the general solutions of the system distortion matrices are written as a product of a particular solution and a matrix with one free parameter. For the trihedral-reflector case, this free parameter is determined by assuming azimuthal symmetry for the distributed target. For the PARC case, knowledge of one ratio of two covariance matrix elements of the distributed target is required to solve for the free parameter. Numerical results are simulated to demonstrate the usefulness of the developed algorithms.

  10. Summaries of the Seventh JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop January 12-16, 1998. Volume 1; AVIRIS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Green, Robert O. (Editor)

    1998-01-01

    This publication contains the summaries for the Seventh JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on January 12-16, 1998. The main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops, and each workshop has a volume as follows: (1) Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) Workshop; (2) Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) Workshop; and (3) Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) Workshop. This Volume 1 publication contains 58 papers taken from the AVIRIS workshop.

  11. Comparison of three different detectors applied to synthetic aperture radar data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ranney, Kenneth I.; Khatri, Hiralal; Nguyen, Lam H.

    2002-08-01

    The U.S. Army Research Laboratory has investigated the relative performance of three different target detection paradigms applied to foliage penetration (FOPEN) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data. The three detectors - a quadratic polynomial discriminator (QPD), Bayesian neural network (BNN) and a support vector machine (SVM) - utilize a common collection of statistics (feature values) calculated from the fully polarimetric FOPEN data. We describe the parametric variations required as part of the algorithm optimizations, and we present the relative performance of the detectors in terms of probability of false alarm (Pfa) and probability of detection (Pd).

  12. GLORI: A GNSS-R Dual Polarization Airborne Instrument for Land Surface Monitoring.

    PubMed

    Motte, Erwan; Zribi, Mehrez; Fanise, Pascal; Egido, Alejandro; Darrozes, José; Al-Yaari, Amen; Baghdadi, Nicolas; Baup, Frédéric; Dayau, Sylvia; Fieuzal, Remy; Frison, Pierre-Louis; Guyon, Dominique; Wigneron, Jean-Pierre

    2016-05-20

    Global Navigation Satellite System-Reflectometry (GNSS-R) has emerged as a remote sensing tool, which is complementary to traditional monostatic radars, for the retrieval of geophysical parameters related to surface properties. In the present paper, we describe a new polarimetric GNSS-R system, referred to as the GLObal navigation satellite system Reflectometry Instrument (GLORI), dedicated to the study of land surfaces (soil moisture, vegetation water content, forest biomass) and inland water bodies. This system was installed as a permanent payload on a French ATR42 research aircraft, from which simultaneous measurements can be carried out using other instruments, when required. Following initial laboratory qualifications, two airborne campaigns involving nine flights were performed in 2014 and 2015 in the Southwest of France, over various types of land cover, including agricultural fields and forests. Some of these flights were made concurrently with in situ ground truth campaigns. Various preliminary applications for the characterisation of agricultural and forest areas are presented. Initial analysis of the data shows that the performance of the GLORI instrument is well within specifications, with a cross-polarization isolation better than -15 dB at all elevations above 45°, a relative polarimetric calibration accuracy better than 0.5 dB, and an apparent reflectivity sensitivity better than -30 dB, thus demonstrating its strong potential for the retrieval of land surface characteristics.

  13. GLORI: A GNSS-R Dual Polarization Airborne Instrument for Land Surface Monitoring

    PubMed Central

    Motte, Erwan; Zribi, Mehrez; Fanise, Pascal; Egido, Alejandro; Darrozes, José; Al-Yaari, Amen; Baghdadi, Nicolas; Baup, Frédéric; Dayau, Sylvia; Fieuzal, Remy; Frison, Pierre-Louis; Guyon, Dominique; Wigneron, Jean-Pierre

    2016-01-01

    Global Navigation Satellite System-Reflectometry (GNSS-R) has emerged as a remote sensing tool, which is complementary to traditional monostatic radars, for the retrieval of geophysical parameters related to surface properties. In the present paper, we describe a new polarimetric GNSS-R system, referred to as the GLObal navigation satellite system Reflectometry Instrument (GLORI), dedicated to the study of land surfaces (soil moisture, vegetation water content, forest biomass) and inland water bodies. This system was installed as a permanent payload on a French ATR42 research aircraft, from which simultaneous measurements can be carried out using other instruments, when required. Following initial laboratory qualifications, two airborne campaigns involving nine flights were performed in 2014 and 2015 in the Southwest of France, over various types of land cover, including agricultural fields and forests. Some of these flights were made concurrently with in situ ground truth campaigns. Various preliminary applications for the characterisation of agricultural and forest areas are presented. Initial analysis of the data shows that the performance of the GLORI instrument is well within specifications, with a cross-polarization isolation better than −15 dB at all elevations above 45°, a relative polarimetric calibration accuracy better than 0.5 dB, and an apparent reflectivity sensitivity better than −30 dB, thus demonstrating its strong potential for the retrieval of land surface characteristics. PMID:27213393

  14. Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) Investigation of Airborne Particle Health Impacts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Diner, D. J.

    2016-12-01

    Airborne particulate matter (PM) is a well-known cause of heart disease, cardiovascular and respiratory illness, low birth weight, and lung cancer. The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study ranks PM as a major environmental risk factor worldwide. Global maps of PM2.5concentrations derived from satellite instruments, including MISR and MODIS, have provided key contributions to the GBD and many other health-related investigations. Although it is well established that PM exposure increases the risks of mortality and morbidity, our understanding of the relative toxicity of specific PM types is relatively poor. To address this, the Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) investigation was proposed to NASA's third Earth Venture Instrument (EVI-3) solicitation. The satellite instrument that is part of the investigation is a multiangle, multispectral, and polarimetric camera system based on the first and second generation Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imagers, AirMSPI and AirMSPI-2. MAIA was selected for funding in March 2016. Estimates of the abundances of different aerosol types from the WRF-Chem model will be combined with MAIA instrument data. Geostatistical models derived from collocated surface and MAIA retrievals will then be used to relate retrieved fractional column aerosol optical depths to near-surface concentrations of major PM constituents, including sulfate, nitrate, organic carbon, black carbon, and dust. Epidemiological analyses of geocoded birth, death, and hospital records will be used to associate exposure to PM types with adverse health outcomes. MAIA launch is planned for early in the next decade. The MAIA instrument incorporates a pair of cameras on a two-axis gimbal to provide regional multiangle observations of selected, globally distributed target areas. Primary Target Areas (PTAs) on five continents are chosen to include major population centers covering a range of PM concentrations and particle types, surface-based aerosol sunphotometers

  15. Urban-area extraction from polarimetric SAR image using combination of target decomposition and orientation angle

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zou, Bin; Lu, Da; Wu, Zhilu; Qiao, Zhijun G.

    2016-05-01

    The results of model-based target decomposition are the main features used to discriminate urban and non-urban area in polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) application. Traditional urban-area extraction methods based on modelbased target decomposition usually misclassified ground-trunk structure as urban-area or misclassified rotated urbanarea as forest. This paper introduces another feature named orientation angle to improve urban-area extraction scheme for the accurate mapping in urban by PolSAR image. The proposed method takes randomness of orientation angle into account for restriction of urban area first and, subsequently, implements rotation angle to improve results that oriented urban areas are recognized as double-bounce objects from volume scattering. ESAR L-band PolSAR data of the Oberpfaffenhofen Test Site Area was used to validate the proposed algorithm.

  16. Fast polarimetric dehazing method for visibility enhancement in HSI colour space

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Wenfei; Liang, Jian; Ren, Liyong; Ju, Haijuan; Bai, Zhaofeng; Wu, Zhaoxin

    2017-09-01

    Image haze removal has attracted much attention in optics and computer vision fields in recent years due to its wide applications. In particular, the fast and real-time dehazing methods are of significance. In this paper, we propose a fast dehazing method in hue, saturation and intensity colour space based on the polarimetric imaging technique. We implement the polarimetric dehazing method in the intensity channel, and the colour distortion of the image is corrected using the white patch retinex method. This method not only reserves the detailed information restoration capacity, but also improves the efficiency of the polarimetric dehazing method. Comparison studies with state of the art methods demonstrate that the proposed method obtains equal or better quality results and moreover the implementation is much faster. The proposed method is promising in real-time image haze removal and video haze removal applications.

  17. Quantitative analysis of surface characteristics and morphology in Death Valley, California using AIRSAR data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kierein-Young, K. S.; Kruse, F. A.; Lefkoff, A. B.

    1992-01-01

    The Jet Propulsion Laboratory Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (JPL-AIRSAR) is used to collect full polarimetric measurements at P-, L-, and C-bands. These data are analyzed using the radar analysis and visualization environment (RAVEN). The AIRSAR data are calibrated using in-scene corner reflectors to allow for quantitative analysis of the radar backscatter. RAVEN is used to extract surface characteristics. Inversion models are used to calculate quantitative surface roughness values and fractal dimensions. These values are used to generate synthetic surface plots that represent the small-scale surface structure of areas in Death Valley. These procedures are applied to a playa, smooth salt-pan, and alluvial fan surfaces in Death Valley. Field measurements of surface roughness are used to verify the accuracy.

  18. Calibration of the Hubble Space Telescope polarimetric modes

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lupie, O. L.; Stockman, H. S.

    1988-01-01

    Stellar and galactic polarimetry from space is an unexplored observational regime and one which holds exciting promise for answering many fundamental astrophysical questions. The Hubble Space Telescope will be the first space observatory to provide a variety of polarimetric modes to astronomers including spectral, imaging, and single-aperture UV polarimetry. As part of the calibration program for these modes, the Space Telescope Science Institute has initiated a ground-based program to define faint standard fields and solicited community support to establish a temporal baseline for these potential standard targets. In this paper, the polarimetric capabilities of the Hubble Space Telescope, the philosophy and complications of in-flight calibration, and the status and direction of the standard targets program are discussed.

  19. Summaries of the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, March 4-8, 1996. Volume 2; AIRSAR Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kim, Yunjin (Editor)

    1996-01-01

    This publication contains the summaries for the Sixth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on March 4-8, 1996. The main workshop is divided into two smaller workshops as follows: The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on March 4-6. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1. The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on March 6-8. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2.

  20. Summaries of the Fifth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. Volume 3: AIRSAR Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vanzyl, Jakob (Editor)

    1995-01-01

    This publication is the third containing summaries for the Fifth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on January 23-26, 1995. The main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: (1) The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on January 23-24. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1; (2) The Airborne synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on January 25-26. The summaries for this workshop appear in this volume; and (3) The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on January 26. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2.

  1. Summaries of the Fifth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. Volume 1: AVIRIS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Green, Robert O. (Editor)

    1995-01-01

    This publication is the first of three containing summaries for the Fifth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on January 23-26, 1995. The main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: (1) The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on January 23-24. The summaries for this workshop appear in this volume; (2) The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on January 25-26. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 3; and (3) The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on January 26. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2.

  2. Summaries of the Fifth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop. Volume 2: TIMS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Realmuto, Vincent J. (Editor)

    1995-01-01

    This publication is the second volume of the summaries for the Fifth Annual JPL Airborne Earth Science Workshop, held in Pasadena, California, on January 23-26, 1995. The main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: (1) The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop on January 23-24. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1; (2) The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop on January 25-26. The summaries for this workshop appear in volume 3; and (3) The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop on January 26. The summaries for this workshop appear in this volume.

  3. Summaries of the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop. Volume 2: TIMS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Realmuto, Vincent J. (Editor)

    1992-01-01

    This publication contains the preliminary agenda and summaries for the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop, held at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, on 1-5 June 1992. This main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: (1) the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on June 1 and 2; the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1; (2) the Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on June 3; the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2; and (3) the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on June 4 and 5; the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 3.

  4. Summaries of the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop. Volume 3: AIRSAR Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vanzyl, Jakob (Editor)

    1992-01-01

    This publication contains the preliminary agenda and summaries for the Third Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop, held at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, on 1-5 June 1992. This main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: (1) the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on June 1 and 2; the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1; (2) the Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on June 3; the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2; and (3) the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on June 4 and 5; the summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 3.

  5. Resolving polarized stellar features thanks to polarimetric interferometry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rousselet-Perraut, Karine; Chesneau, Olivier; Vakili, Farrokh; Mourard, Denis; Janel, Sebastien; Lavaud, Laurent; Crocherie, Axel

    2003-02-01

    Polarimetry is a powerful means for detecting and constraining various physical phenomena, such as scattering processes or magnetic fields, occuring in a large panel of stellar objects: extended atmospheres of hot stars, CP stars, Young Stellar Objects, Active Galaxy Nuclei, ... However, the lack of angular resolution is generally a strong handicap to drastically constrain the physical parameters and the geometry of the polarizing phenomena because of the cancelling of the polarized signal. In fact, even if stellar features are strongly polarized, the (spectro-)polarimetric signal integrated over the stellar surface rarely exceeds few percents. Coupling polarimetric and interferometric devices allows to resolve these local polarized structures and thus to constrain complex patchy stellar surfaces and/or environments such as disk topology in T Tauri stars, hot stars radiative winds or oscillations in Be star envelopes. In this article, we explain how interfero-polarimetric observables, basically the contrast and the position of the interference fringe patterns versus polarization (and even versus wavelength) are powerful to address the above scientific drivers and we emphasize on the key point of instrumental and data calibrations: since interferometric measurements are differential ones between 2 or more beams, this strongly relaxes the calibration requirements for the fringe phase observable. Prospects induced by the operation of the optical aperture synthesis arrays are also discussed.

  6. Airborne Multi-Band SAR in the Arctic

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gardner, J. M.; Brozena, J. M.; Liang, R.; Ball, D.; Holt, B.; Thomson, J.

    2016-12-01

    As one component of the Office of Naval Research supported Sea State Departmental Research Initiative during October of 2015 the Naval Research Laboratory flew an ultrawide-band, low-frequency, polarimetric SAR over the southward advancing sea ice in Beaufort Sea. The flights were coordinated with the research team aboard the R/V Sikuliaq working near and in the advancing pack ice. The majority of the SAR data were collected with the L-Band sensor (1000-1500 MHz) from an altitude of 10,000', providing a useful swath 6 km wide with 75o and 25 o angles of incidence at the inner and outer edge of the swath respectively. Some data were also collected with the P-Band SAR (215-915 MHz). The extremely large bandwidths allowed for formation of image pixels as small as 30 cm, however, we selected 60 cm pixel size to reduce image speckle. The separate polarimetric images are calibrated to one pixel to allow for calculations such as polarimetric decompositions that require the images to be well aligned. Both frequencies are useful particularly for the detection of ridges and areas of deformed ice. There are advantages and disadvantages to airborne SAR imagery compared to satellites. The chief advantages being the enormous allowable bandwidth leading to very fine range resolution, and the ability to fly arbitrary trajectories on demand. The latter permits specific areas to be imaged at a given time with a specified illumination direction. An area can even be illuminated from all directions by flying a circular trajectory around the target area. This captures ice features that are sensitive to illumination direction such as cracks, sastrugi orientation, and ridges. The disadvantages include variation of intensity across the swath with range and incidence angle. In addition to the SAR data, we collected photogrammetric imagery from a DSS-439, scanning lidar from a Riegl Q560 and surface brightness temperatures from a KT-19. However, since all of these sensors are nadir pointing

  7. Estimating lava volume by precision combination of multiple baseline spaceborne and airborne interferometric synthetic aperture radar: The 1997 eruption of Okmok Volcano, Alaska

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lu, Z.; Fielding, E.; Patrick, M.R.; Trautwein, C.M.

    2003-01-01

    Interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) techniques are used to calculate the volume of extrusion at Okmok volcano, Alaska by constructing precise digital elevation models (DEMs) that represent volcano topography before and after the 1997 eruption. The posteruption DEM is generated using airborne topographic synthetic aperture radar (TOPSAR) data where a three-dimensional affine transformation is used to account for the misalignments between different DEM patches. The preeruption DEM is produced using repeat-pass European Remote Sensing satellite data; multiple interferograms are combined to reduce errors due to atmospheric variations, and deformation rates are estimated independently and removed from the interferograms used for DEM generation. The extrusive flow volume associated with the 1997 eruption of Okmok volcano is 0.154 ?? 0.025 km3. The thickest portion is approximately 50 m, although field measurements of the flow margin's height do not exceed 20 m. The in situ measurements at lava edges are not representative of the total thickness, and precise DEM data are absolutely essential to calculate eruption volume based on lava thickness estimations. This study is an example that demonstrates how InSAR will play a significant role in studying volcanoes in remote areas.

  8. Passive Polarimetric Microwave Signatures Observed Over Antarctica

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    WindSat satellite-based fully polarimetric passive microwave observations, expressed in the form of the Stokes vector, were analyzed over the Antarctic ice sheet. The vertically and horizontally polarized brightness temperatures (first two Stokes components) from WindSat are shown to be consistent w...

  9. High-performance mushroom plasmonic metamaterial absorbers for infrared polarimetric imaging

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ogawa, Shinpei; Fujisawa, Daisuke; Hata, Hisatoshi; Uetsuki, Mitsuharu; Kuboyama, Takafumi; Kimata, Masafumi

    2017-02-01

    Infrared (IR) polarimetric imaging is a promising approach to enhance object recognition with conventional IR imaging for applications such as artificial object recognition from the natural environment and facial recognition. However, typical infrared polarimetric imaging requires the attachment of polarizers to an IR camera or sensor, which leads to high cost and lower performance caused by their own IR radiation. We have developed asymmetric mushroom plasmonic metamaterial absorbers (A-MPMAs) to address this challenge. The A-MPMAs have an all-Al construction that consists of micropatches and a reflector layer connected with hollow rectangular posts. The asymmetric-shaped micropatches lead to strong polarization-selective IR absorption due to localized surface plasmon resonance at the micropatches. The operating wavelength region can be controlled mainly by the micropatch and the hollow rectangular post size. AMPMAs are complicated three-dimensional structures, the fabrication of which is challenging. Hollow rectangular post structures are introduced to enable simple fabrication using conventional surface micromachining techniques, such as sacrificial layer etching, with no degradation of the optical properties. The A-MPMAs have a smaller thermal mass than metal-insulator-metal based metamaterials and no influence of the strong non-linear dispersion relation of the insulator materials constant, which produces a gap in the wavelength region and additional absorption insensitive to polarization. A-MPMAs are therefore promising candidates for uncooled IR polarimetric image sensors in terms of both their optical properties and ease of fabrication. The results presented here are expected to contribute to the development of highperformance polarimetric uncooled IR image sensors that do not require polarizers.

  10. RADARSAT-2 Polarimetric Radar Imaging for Lake Ice Mapping

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pan, F.; Kang, K.; Duguay, C. R.

    2016-12-01

    Changes in lake ice dates and duration are useful indicators for assessing long-term climate trends and variability in northern countries. Lake ice cover observations are also a valuable data source for predictions with numerical ice and weather forecasting models. In recent years, satellite remote sensing has assumed a greater role in providing observations of lake ice cover extent for both modeling and climate monitoring purposes. Polarimetric radar imaging has become a promising tool for lake ice mapping at high latitudes where meteorological conditions and polar darkness severely limit observations from optical sensors. In this study, we assessed and characterized the physical scattering mechanisms of lake ice from fully polarimetric RADARSAT-2 datasets obtained over Great Bear Lake, Canada, with the intent of classifying open water and different ice types during the freeze-up and break-up periods. Model-based and eigen-based decompositions were employed to construct the coherency matrix into deterministic scattering mechanisms. These procedures as well as basic polarimetric parameters were integrated into modified convolutional neural networks (CNN). The CNN were modified via introduction of a Markov random field into the higher iterative layers of networks for acquiring updated priors and classifying ice and open water areas over the lake. We show that the selected polarimetric parameters can help with interpretation of radar-ice/water interactions and can be used successfully for water-ice segmentation, including different ice types. As more satellite SAR sensors are being launched or planned, such as the Sentinel-1a/b series and the upcoming RADARSAT Constellation Mission, the rapid volume growth of data and their analysis require the development of robust automated algorithms. The approach developed in this study was therefore designed with the intent of moving towards fully automated mapping of lake ice for consideration by ice services.

  11. Authentication of gold nanoparticle encoded pharmaceutical tablets using polarimetric signatures.

    PubMed

    Carnicer, Artur; Arteaga, Oriol; Suñé-Negre, Josep M; Javidi, Bahram

    2016-10-01

    The counterfeiting of pharmaceutical products represents concerns for both industry and the safety of the general public. Falsification produces losses to companies and poses health risks for patients. In order to detect fake pharmaceutical tablets, we propose producing film-coated tablets with gold nanoparticle encoding. These coated tablets contain unique polarimetric signatures. We present experiments to show that ellipsometric optical techniques, in combination with machine learning algorithms, can be used to distinguish genuine and fake samples. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report using gold nanoparticles encoded with optical polarimetric classifiers to prevent the counterfeiting of pharmaceutical products.

  12. Speckle Filtering of GF-3 Polarimetric SAR Data with Joint Restriction Principle.

    PubMed

    Xie, Jinwei; Li, Zhenfang; Zhou, Chaowei; Fang, Yuyuan; Zhang, Qingjun

    2018-05-12

    Polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) scattering characteristics of imagery are always obtained from the second order moments estimation of multi-polarization data, that is, the estimation of covariance or coherency matrices. Due to the extra-paths that signal reflected from separate scatterers within the resolution cell has to travel, speckle noise always exists in SAR images and has a severe impact on the scattering performance, especially on single look complex images. In order to achieve high accuracy in estimating covariance or coherency matrices, three aspects are taken into consideration: (1) the edges and texture of the scene are distinct after speckle filtering; (2) the statistical characteristic should be similar to the object pixel; and (3) the polarimetric scattering signature should be preserved, in addition to speckle reduction. In this paper, a joint restriction principle is proposed to meet the requirement. Three different restriction principles are introduced to the processing of speckle filtering. First, a new template, which is more suitable for the point or line targets, is designed to ensure the morphological consistency. Then, the extent sigma filter is used to restrict the pixels in the template aforementioned to have an identical statistic characteristic. At last, a polarimetric similarity factor is applied to the same pixels above, to guarantee the similar polarimetric features amongst the optional pixels. This processing procedure is named as speckle filtering with joint restriction principle and the approach is applied to GF-3 polarimetric SAR data acquired in San Francisco, CA, USA. Its effectiveness of keeping the image sharpness and preserving the scattering mechanism as well as speckle reduction is validated by the comparison with boxcar filters and refined Lee filter.

  13. Polarimetric Remote Sensing of Atmospheric Particulate Pollutants

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Z.; Zhang, Y.; Hong, J.

    2018-04-01

    Atmospheric particulate pollutants not only reduce atmospheric visibility, change the energy balance of the troposphere, but also affect human and vegetation health. For monitoring the particulate pollutants, we establish and develop a series of inversion algorithms based on polarimetric remote sensing technology which has unique advantages in dealing with atmospheric particulates. A solution is pointed out to estimate the near surface PM2.5 mass concentrations from full remote sensing measurements including polarimetric, active and infrared remote sensing technologies. It is found that the mean relative error of PM2.5 retrieved by full remote sensing measurements is 35.5 % in the case of October 5th 2013, improved to a certain degree compared to previous studies. A systematic comparison with the ground-based observations further indicates the effectiveness of the inversion algorithm and reliability of results. A new generation of polarized sensors (DPC and PCF), whose observation can support these algorithms, will be onboard GF series satellites and launched by China in the near future.

  14. C-band polarimetric scatterometer for soil studies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    D'Alessio, Angelo C.; Mongelli, Antonio; Notarnicola, Claudia; Paparella, Giuseppina; Posa, Francesco; Sabatelli, Vincenzo

    2003-03-01

    The aim of this study is to evaluate the performances of a polarimetric scatterometer. This sensor can measure the module of the electromagnetic backscattering matrix elements. The knowledge of this matrix permits the computation of all the possible polarisation combinations of transmitted and received signals through a Polarisation Synthesis approach. Scatterometer data are useful for monitoring a large number of soil physical parameters. In particular, the sensitivity of a C-band radar to different growing conditions of vegetation depends on the wave polarisation. As consequences, the possibility of acquiringi both polarisation components presents a great advantage in the vegetarian studies. In addition, this type of ground sensor can permit a fast coverage of the areas of interest. A first test of the polarimetric scatterometer has been performed over an asphalt surface, which has a well-known electromagnetic response. Moreover, a calibration procedure has been tested using both passive (Trihedral Corner Reflector, TCR) and active (Active Radar Calibrator, ARC) radar calibrator.

  15. Summaries of the 4th Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop. Volume 2: TIMS Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Realmuto, Vincent J. (Editor)

    1993-01-01

    This is volume 2 of a three volume set of publications that contain the summaries for the Fourth Annual JPL Airborne Geoscience Workshop, held in Washington, D.C. on October 25-29, 1993. The main workshop is divided into three smaller workshops as follows: The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop, on October 25-26. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 1. The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) workshop, on October 27. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 2. The Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) workshop, on October 28-29. The summaries for this workshop appear in Volume 3.

  16. The Event Horizon Telescope: Future Polarimetric Capabilities

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fish, Vincent L.; Doeleman, S. S.; EHT Collaboration

    2010-01-01

    The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) is a (sub)mm wavelength VLBI network that will achieve angular resolutions sufficient to resolve and image the Event Horizons of the nearest supermassive black holes. Recent millimeter observations with the initial three stations of the EHT (located in Hawaii, Arizona, and California) have constrained the size of the emitting region of Sgr A*, the Galactic Center radio/infrared/X-ray source associated with a supermassive black hole, to be no more than a few Schwarzschild radii. While EHT observations have heretofore focused on detecting Sgr A* in total intensity, theoretical models predict large polarization signatures well in excess of the few percent linear polarization detected by low resolution arrays (e.g., SMA). Here, we generalize our previous total intensity simulations of future EHT observations to include full polarimetric quantities. Ratios of polarimetric visibilities provide baseline-based observables that are robust against most calibration errors. We find that the shortest VLBI baselines track the integrated polarization fraction and position angle, as presently observed by connected-element arrays, while longer VLBI baselines are sensitive to highly-polarized substructures that are beam-diluted at lower angular resolution. Ratios of polarized visibilities may be even more sensitive to detecting periodic structural changes, as might be expected from a hot spot near the innermost stable circular orbit of the black hole, than closure quantities obtained from total intensity quantities. These results suggest that high priority should be given to upgrading telescopes in the EHT collaboration in order to allow full polarimetric observations of Sgr A* and other supermassive black hole sources. This research is made possible thanks to funding provided by the National Science Foundation.

  17. Detection of foliage-obscured vehicle using a multiwavelength polarimetric lidar

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Tan, S.; Stoker, J.; Greenlee, S.

    2008-01-01

    Foliage obscured man-made targets detection and identification is of great interest to many applications. In this paper, the backscattered laser signals from a multiwavelength polarimetric lidar were used to detect a vehicle hidden inside a vegetated area. The Polarimetric reflectance data from the lidar at two separate laser wavelengths at 1064 nm and 532 nm revealed distinct target characteristics from both the vehicle and the vegetation. The results from this case study demonstrated the validity of the proposed lidar detection technique. Furthermore, the results could potentially lead to a lidar detection and identification technique for a wide variety of foliage-obscured man-made targets under various application scenarios. ?? 2007 IEEE.

  18. Two-Dimensional Synthetic Aperture Radiometry over Land Surface During Soil Moisture Experiment in 2003 (SMEX03)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ryu, Dongryeol; Jackson, Thomas J.; Bindlish, Rajat; Le Vine, David M.; Haken, Michael

    2007-01-01

    Microwave radiometry at low frequencies (L-band, approx. 1.4 GHz) has been known as an optimal solution for remote sensing of soil moisture. However, the antenna size required to achieve an appropriate resolution from space has limited the development of spaceborne L-band radiometers. This problem can be addressed by interferometric technology called aperture synthesis. The Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission will apply this technique to monitor global-scale surface parameters in the near future. The first airborne experiment using an aircraft prototype of this approach, the Two-Dimensional Synthetic Aperture Radiometer (2D-STAR), was performed in the Soil Moisture Experiment in 2003 (SMEX03). The L-band brightness temperature data acquired in Alabama by the 2DSTAR was compared with ground-based measurements of soil moisture and with C-band data collected by the Polarimetric Scanning Radiometer (PSR). Our results demonstrate a good response of the 2D-STAR brightness temperature to changes in surface wetness, both in agricultural and forest lands. The behavior of the horizontally polarized brightness temperature data with increasing view-angle over the forest area was noticeably different than over bare soil. The results from the comparison of 2D-STAR and PSR indicate a better response of the 2D-STAR to the surface wetness under both wet and dry conditions. Our results have important implications for the performance of the future SMOS mission.

  19. The NASA Polarimetric Radar (NPOL)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Petersen, Walter A.; Wolff, David B.

    2013-01-01

    Characteristics of the NASA NPOL S-band dual-polarimetric radar are presented including its operating characteristics, field configuration, scanning capabilities and calibration approaches. Examples of precipitation science data collections conducted using various scan types, and associated products, are presented for different convective system types and previous field campaign deployments. Finally, the NASA NPOL radar location is depicted in its home base configuration within the greater Wallops Flight Facility precipitation research array supporting NASA Global Precipitation Measurement Mission ground validation.

  20. Applicability Assessment of Uavsar Data in Wetland Monitoring: a Case Study of Louisiana Wetland

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, J.; Niu, Y.; Lu, Z.; Yang, J.; Li, P.; Liu, W.

    2018-04-01

    Wetlands are highly productive and support a wide variety of ecosystem goods and services. Monitoring wetland is essential and potential. Because of the repeat-pass nature of satellite orbit and airborne, time-series of remote sensing data can be obtained to monitor wetland. UAVSAR is a NASA L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensor compact pod-mounted polarimetric instrument for interferometric repeat-track observations. Moreover, UAVSAR images can accurately map crustal deformations associated with natural hazards, such as volcanoes and earthquakes. And its polarization agility facilitates terrain and land-use classification and change detection. In this paper, the multi-temporal UAVSAR data are applied for monitoring the wetland change. Using the multi-temporal polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) data, the change detection maps are obtained by unsupervised and supervised method. And the coherence is extracted from the interfometric SAR (InSAR) data to verify the accuracy of change detection map. The experimental results show that the multi-temporal UAVSAR data is fit for wetland monitor.

  1. Polarimetric Hyperspectral Imaging Systems and Applications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cheng, Li-Jen; Mahoney, Colin; Reyes, George; Baw, Clayton La; Li, G. P.

    1996-01-01

    This paper reports activities in the development of AOTF Polarimetric Hyperspectral Imaging (PHI) Systems at JPL along with field observation results for illustrating the technology capabilities and advantages in remote sensing. In addition, the technology was also used to measure thickness distribution and structural imperfections of silicon-on-silicon wafers using white light interference phenomenon for demonstrating the potential in scientific and industrial applications.

  2. Feasibility of inter-comparing airborne and spaceborne observations of radar backscattering coefficients

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    This paper investigates the feasibility of using an airborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to validate spaceborne SAR data. This is directed at soil moisture sensing and the recently launched Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite. The value of this approach is related to the fact that vicar...

  3. WISDOM, a polarimetric GPR for the shallow subsurface characterization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ciarletti, V.; Plettemeier, D.; Hassen-Kodja, R.; Clifford, S. M.; Wisdom Team

    2011-12-01

    WISDOM (Water Ice and Subsurface Deposit Observations on Mars) is a polarimetric Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) that has been selected to be part of the Pasteur payload onboard the Rover of the 2018 ExoMars mission. It will perform large-scale scientific investigations of the sub-surface of the landing site and provide precise information about the subsurface structure prior to drilling. WISDOM has been designed to provide accurate information on the sub-surface structure down to a depth in excess to 2 meters (commensurate to the drill capacities) with a vertical resolution of a several centimetres. It will give access to the geological structure, electromagnetic nature, and, possibly, to the hydrological state of the shallow subsurface by retrieving the layering and properties of the layers and buried reflectors. The data will also be used to determine the most promising locations to collect underground samples with the drilling system mounted on board the rover. Polarimetric measurements have been recently acquired on perfectly known targets as well as in natural environments. They demonstrated the ability to provide a better understanding of sub-surface structure and significantly reduce the ambiguity associated with identifying the location of off-nadir reflectors, relative to the rover path. This work describes the instrument and its operating modes with particular emphasis on its polarimetric capacities.

  4. Hydrometeor classification through statistical clustering of polarimetric radar measurements: a semi-supervised approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Besic, Nikola; Ventura, Jordi Figueras i.; Grazioli, Jacopo; Gabella, Marco; Germann, Urs; Berne, Alexis

    2016-09-01

    Polarimetric radar-based hydrometeor classification is the procedure of identifying different types of hydrometeors by exploiting polarimetric radar observations. The main drawback of the existing supervised classification methods, mostly based on fuzzy logic, is a significant dependency on a presumed electromagnetic behaviour of different hydrometeor types. Namely, the results of the classification largely rely upon the quality of scattering simulations. When it comes to the unsupervised approach, it lacks the constraints related to the hydrometeor microphysics. The idea of the proposed method is to compensate for these drawbacks by combining the two approaches in a way that microphysical hypotheses can, to a degree, adjust the content of the classes obtained statistically from the observations. This is done by means of an iterative approach, performed offline, which, in a statistical framework, examines clustered representative polarimetric observations by comparing them to the presumed polarimetric properties of each hydrometeor class. Aside from comparing, a routine alters the content of clusters by encouraging further statistical clustering in case of non-identification. By merging all identified clusters, the multi-dimensional polarimetric signatures of various hydrometeor types are obtained for each of the studied representative datasets, i.e. for each radar system of interest. These are depicted by sets of centroids which are then employed in operational labelling of different hydrometeors. The method has been applied on three C-band datasets, each acquired by different operational radar from the MeteoSwiss Rad4Alp network, as well as on two X-band datasets acquired by two research mobile radars. The results are discussed through a comparative analysis which includes a corresponding supervised and unsupervised approach, emphasising the operational potential of the proposed method.

  5. Multispectral and polarimetric photodetection using a plasmonic metasurface

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pelzman, Charles; Cho, Sang-Yeon

    2018-01-01

    We present a metasurface-integrated Si 2-D CMOS sensor array for multispectral and polarimetric photodetection applications. The demonstrated sensor is based on the polarization selective extraordinary optical transmission from periodic subwavelength nanostructures, acting as artificial atoms, known as meta-atoms. The meta-atoms were created by patterning periodic rectangular apertures that support optical resonance at the designed spectral bands. By spatially separating meta-atom clusters with different lattice constants and orientations, the demonstrated metasurface can convert the polarization and spectral information of an optical input into a 2-D intensity pattern. As a proof-of-concept experiment, we measured the linear components of the Stokes parameters directly from captured images using a CMOS camera at four spectral bands. Compared to existing multispectral polarimetric sensors, the demonstrated metasurface-integrated CMOS system is compact and does not require any moving components, offering great potential for advanced photodetection applications.

  6. Polarimetric thermal emission from periodic water surfaces

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Yueh, S. H.; Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Wilson, W. J.; Li, F. K.; Johnson, J. T.; Kong, J. A.

    1993-01-01

    Experimental results and theoretical calculations are presented to study the polarimetric emission from water surfaces with directional features. For our ground-based Ku-band radiometer measurements, a water pool was constructed on the roof of a building in the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and a fiberglass surface with periodic corrugations in one direction was impressed on the top of the water surface to create a stationary water surface underneath it. It is observed that the measured Stokes parameters of corrugated fiberglass-covered water surfaces are functions of azimuth angles and agree very well with the theoretical calculations. The theory, after being verified by the experimental data, was then used to calculate the Stokes parameters of periodic surfaces without fiberglass surface layer and with rms height of the order of wind-generated water ripples. The magnitudes of the azimuthal variation of the calculated emissivities at horizontal and vertical polarizations corresponding to the first two Stokes parameters are found to be comparable to the values measured by airborne radiometers and SSM/I. In addition, the third Stokes parameter not shown in the literature is seen to have approximately twice the magnitude of the azimuth variation of either T(sub h) or T(sub v), which may make it more sensitive to the row direction, while less susceptive to noises because the atmospheric and system noises tend to be unpolarized and are expected to be cancelled out when the third Stokes parameter is derived as the difference of two or three power measurements, as indicated by another experiment carried out at a swimming pool with complicated surroundings. The results indicate that passive polarimetry is a potential technology in the remote sensing of ocean wind vector which is a crucial component in the understanding of global climate change. Issues related to the application of microwave passive polarimetry to ocean wind are also discussed.

  7. Development of a Cost-Effective Airborne Remote Sensing System for Coastal Monitoring

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Duk-jin; Jung, Jungkyo; Kang, Ki-mook; Kim, Seung Hee; Xu, Zhen; Hensley, Scott; Swan, Aaron; Duersch, Michael

    2015-01-01

    Coastal lands and nearshore marine areas are productive and rapidly changing places. However, these areas face many environmental challenges related to climate change and human-induced impacts. Space-borne remote sensing systems may be restricted in monitoring these areas because of their spatial and temporal resolutions. In situ measurements are also constrained from accessing the area and obtaining wide-coverage data. In these respects, airborne remote sensing sensors could be the most appropriate tools for monitoring these coastal areas. In this study, a cost-effective airborne remote sensing system with synthetic aperture radar and thermal infrared sensors was implemented to survey coastal areas. Calibration techniques and geophysical model algorithms were developed for the airborne system to observe the topography of intertidal flats, coastal sea surface current, sea surface temperature, and submarine groundwater discharge. PMID:26437413

  8. Development of a Cost-Effective Airborne Remote Sensing System for Coastal Monitoring.

    PubMed

    Kim, Duk-jin; Jung, Jungkyo; Kang, Ki-mook; Kim, Seung Hee; Xu, Zhen; Hensley, Scott; Swan, Aaron; Duersch, Michael

    2015-09-30

    Coastal lands and nearshore marine areas are productive and rapidly changing places. However, these areas face many environmental challenges related to climate change and human-induced impacts. Space-borne remote sensing systems may be restricted in monitoring these areas because of their spatial and temporal resolutions. In situ measurements are also constrained from accessing the area and obtaining wide-coverage data. In these respects, airborne remote sensing sensors could be the most appropriate tools for monitoring these coastal areas. In this study, a cost-effective airborne remote sensing system with synthetic aperture radar and thermal infrared sensors was implemented to survey coastal areas. Calibration techniques and geophysical model algorithms were developed for the airborne system to observe the topography of intertidal flats, coastal sea surface current, sea surface temperature, and submarine groundwater discharge.

  9. Snapshot spectral and polarimetric imaging; target identification with multispectral video

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bartlett, Brent D.; Rodriguez, Mikel D.

    2013-05-01

    As the number of pixels continue to grow in consumer and scientific imaging devices, it has become feasible to collect the incident light field. In this paper, an imaging device developed around light field imaging is used to collect multispectral and polarimetric imagery in a snapshot fashion. The sensor is described and a video data set is shown highlighting the advantage of snapshot spectral imaging. Several novel computer vision approaches are applied to the video cubes to perform scene characterization and target identification. It is shown how the addition of spectral and polarimetric data to the video stream allows for multi-target identification and tracking not possible with traditional RGB video collection.

  10. Integrated quantitative fractal polarimetric analysis of monolayer lung cancer cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shrestha, Suman; Zhang, Lin; Quang, Tri; Farrahi, Tannaz; Narayan, Chaya; Deshpande, Aditi; Na, Ying; Blinzler, Adam; Ma, Junyu; Liu, Bo; Giakos, George C.

    2014-05-01

    Digital diagnostic pathology has become one of the most valuable and convenient advancements in technology over the past years. It allows us to acquire, store and analyze pathological information from the images of histological and immunohistochemical glass slides which are scanned to create digital slides. In this study, efficient fractal, wavelet-based polarimetric techniques for histological analysis of monolayer lung cancer cells will be introduced and different monolayer cancer lines will be studied. The outcome of this study indicates that application of fractal, wavelet polarimetric principles towards the analysis of squamous carcinoma and adenocarcinoma cancer cell lines may be proved extremely useful in discriminating among healthy and lung cancer cells as well as differentiating among different lung cancer cells.

  11. A Model with Ellipsoidal Scatterers for Polarimetric Remote Sensing of Anisotropic Layered Media

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Kong, J. A.; Shin, R. T.

    1993-01-01

    This paper presents a model with ellipsoidal scatterers for applications to polarimetric remote sensing of anisotropic layered media at microwave frequencies. The physical configuration includes an isotropic layer covering an anisotropic layer above a homogeneous half space. The isotropic layer consists of randomly oriented spheroids. The anisotropic layer contains ellipsoidal scatterers with a preferential vertical alignment and random azimuthal orientations. Effective permittivities of the scattering media are calculated with the strong fluctuation theory extended to account for the nonspherical shapes and the scatterer orientation distributions. On the basis of the analytic wave theory, dyadic Green's functions for layered media are used to derive polarimetric backscattering coefficients under the distorted Born approximation. The ellipsoidal shape of the scatterers gives rise to nonzero cross-polarized returns from the untilted anisotropic medium in the first-order approximation. Effects of rough interfaces are estimated by an incoherent addition method. Theoretical results and experimental data are matched at 9 GHz for thick first-year sea ice with a bare surface and with a snow cover at Point Barrow, Alaska. The model is then used to study the sensitivity of polarimetric backscattering coefficients with respect to correlation lengths representing the geometry of brine inclusions. Polarimetric signatures of bare and snow-covered sea ice are also simulated based on the model to investigate effects of different scattering mechanisms.

  12. On the potential of long wavelength imaging radars for mapping vegetation types and woody biomass in tropical rain forests

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rignot, Eric J.; Zimmermann, Reiner; Oren, Ram

    1995-01-01

    In the tropical rain forests of Manu, in Peru, where forest biomass ranges from 4 kg/sq m in young forest succession up to 100 kg/sq m in old, undisturbed floodplain stands, the P-band polarimetric radar data gathered in June of 1993 by the AIRSAR (Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar) instrument separate most major vegetation formations and also perform better than expected in estimating woody biomass. The worldwide need for large scale, updated biomass estimates, achieved with a uniformly applied method, as well as reliable maps of land cover, justifies a more in-depth exploration of long wavelength imaging radar applications for tropical forests inventories.

  13. Material Characterization using Passive Multispectral Polarimetric Imagery

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-03-01

    least intuitive RS technique is undoubtedly polarimetry . Polarization is a property of all TEM waves, so its applications are not limited to any...Shaw. “Review of passive imaging polarimetry for remote sensing applications”. Applied Optics, 45(22):5453–5469, 2006. [48] Vanderbilt, V.C. and...refractive index; polarimetry ; multispectral; polarization; polarisation; polarimetric imagery; dispersion; Drude model; Cauchy equation; remote

  14. SYNTHETIC PARTICLES ENHANCE AIRWAY RESPONSES TO OVALBUMIN ANTIGEN IN BALB/C MICE

    EPA Science Inventory

    SYNTHETIC PARTICLES ENHANCE AIRWAY RESPONSES TO OVALBUMIN ANTIGEN IN BALB/CJ MICE. S H Gavett, N Haykal-Coates, and M I Gilmour. Experimental Toxicology Division, NHEERL, ORD, USEPA, Research Triangle Park, NC

    Levels of airborne particulate matter (PM) are positively c...

  15. Joint aerosol and water-leaving radiance retrieval from Airborne Multi-angle SpectroPolarimeter Imager

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, F.; Dubovik, O.; Zhai, P.; Kalashnikova, O. V.; Diner, D. J.

    2015-12-01

    The Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) [1] has been flying aboard the NASA ER-2 high altitude aircraft since October 2010. In step-and-stare operation mode, AirMSPI typically acquires observations of a target area at 9 view angles between ±67° off the nadir. Its spectral channels are centered at 355, 380, 445, 470*, 555, 660*, and 865* nm, where the asterisk denotes the polarimetric bands. In order to retrieve information from the AirMSPI observations, we developed a efficient and flexible retrieval code that can jointly retrieve aerosol and water leaving radiance simultaneously. The forward model employs a coupled Markov Chain (MC) [2] and adding/doubling [3] radiative transfer method which is fully linearized and integrated with a multi-patch retrieval algorithm to obtain aerosol and water leaving radiance/Chl-a information. Various constraints are imposed to improve convergence and retrieval stability. We tested the aerosol and water leaving radiance retrievals using the AirMSPI radiance and polarization measurements by comparing to the retrieved aerosol concentration, size distribution, water-leaving radiance, and chlorophyll concentration to the values reported by the USC SeaPRISM AERONET-OC site off the coast of Southern California. In addition, the MC-based retrievals of aerosol properties were compared with GRASP ([4-5]) retrievals for selected cases. The MC-based retrieval approach was then used to systematically explore the benefits of AirMSPI's ultraviolet and polarimetric channels, the use of multiple view angles, and constraints provided by inclusion of bio-optical models of the water-leaving radiance. References [1]. D. J. Diner, et al. Atmos. Meas. Tech. 6, 1717 (2013). [2]. F. Xu et al. Opt. Lett. 36, 2083 (2011). [3]. J. E. Hansen and L.D. Travis. Space Sci. Rev. 16, 527 (1974). [4]. O. Dubovik et al. Atmos. Meas. Tech., 4, 975 (2011). [5]. O. Dubovik et al. SPIE: Newsroom, DOI:10.1117/2.1201408.005558 (2014).

  16. NASA's DC-8 Airborne Science research aircraft, in new colors and markings, takes off Feb. 24, 2004

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2004-02-24

    NASA's DC-8 Airborne Science research aircraft, in new colors and markings, takes off Feb. 24, 2004. Dark panels on lower fuselage are synthetic aperture radar antennas enabling sophisticated studies of Earth features.

  17. NASA's DC-8 Airborne Science research aircraft, in new colors and markings, in flight Feb. 24, 2004

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2004-02-24

    NASA's DC-8 Airborne Science research aircraft, in new colors and markings, in flight Feb. 24, 2004. Dark panels on lower fuselage are synthetic aperture radar antennas enabling sophisticated studies of Earth features.

  18. Nonlinear Polarimetric Microscopy for Biomedical Imaging

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Samim, Masood

    A framework for the nonlinear optical polarimetry and polarimetric microscopy is developed. Mathematical equations are derived in terms of linear and nonlinear Stokes Mueller formalism, which comprehensively characterize the polarization properties of the incoming and outgoing radiations, and provide structural information about the organization of the investigated materials. The algebraic formalism developed in this thesis simplifies many predictions for a nonlinear polarimetry study and provides an intuitive understanding of various polarization properties for radiations and the intervening medium. For polarimetric microscopy experiments, a custom fast-scanning differential polarization microscope is developed, which is also capable of real-time three-dimensional imaging. The setup is equipped with a pair of high-speed resonant and galvanometric scanning mirrors, and supplemented by advanced adaptive optics and data acquisition modules. The scanning mirrors when combined with the adaptive optics deformable mirror enable fast 3D imaging. Deformable membrane mirrors and genetic algorithm optimization routines are employed to improve the imaging conditions including correcting the optical aberrations, maximizing signal intensities, and minimizing point-spread-functions of the focal volume. A field-programmable-gate array (FPGA) chip is exploited to rapidly acquire and process the multidimensional data. Using the nonlinear optical polarimetry framework and the home-built polarization microscope, a few biologically important tissues are measured and analyzed to gain insight as to their structure and dynamics. The structure and distribution of muscle sarcomere myosins, connective tissue collagen, carbohydrate-rich starch, and fruit fly eye retinal molecules are characterized with revealing polarization studies. In each case, using the theoretical framework, polarization sensitive data are analyzed to decipher the molecular orientations and nonlinear optical

  19. [Modeling and Simulation of Spectral Polarimetric BRDF].

    PubMed

    Ling, Jin-jiang; Li, Gang; Zhang, Ren-bin; Tang, Qian; Ye, Qiu

    2016-01-01

    Under the conditions of the polarized light, The reflective surface of the object is affected by many factors, refractive index, surface roughness, and so the angle of incidence. For the rough surface in the different wavelengths of light exhibit different reflection characteristics of polarization, a spectral polarimetric BRDF based on Kirchhof theory is proposee. The spectral model of complex refraction index is combined with refraction index and extinction coefficient spectral model which were got by using the known complex refraction index at different value. Then get the spectral model of surface roughness derived from the classical surface roughness measuring method combined with the Fresnel reflection function. Take the spectral model of refraction index and roughness into the BRDF model, then the spectral polarimetirc BRDF model is proposed. Compare the simulation results of the refractive index varies with wavelength, roughness is constant, the refraction index and roughness both vary with wavelength and origin model with other papers, it shows that, the spectral polarimetric BRDF model can show the polarization characteristics of the surface accurately, and can provide a reliable basis for the application of polarization remote sensing, and other aspects of the classification of substances.

  20. Comparing the Behavior of Polarimetric SAR Imagery (TerraSAR-X and Radarsat-2) for Automated Sea Ice Classification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ressel, Rudolf; Singha, Suman; Lehner, Susanne

    2016-08-01

    Arctic Sea ice monitoring has attracted increasing attention over the last few decades. Besides the scientific interest in sea ice, the operational aspect of ice charting is becoming more important due to growing navigational possibilities in an increasingly ice free Arctic. For this purpose, satellite borne SAR imagery has become an invaluable tool. In past, mostly single polarimetric datasets were investigated with supervised or unsupervised classification schemes for sea ice investigation. Despite proven sea ice classification achievements on single polarimetric data, a fully automatic, general purpose classifier for single-pol data has not been established due to large variation of sea ice manifestations and incidence angle impact. Recently, through the advent of polarimetric SAR sensors, polarimetric features have moved into the focus of ice classification research. The higher information content four polarimetric channels promises to offer greater insight into sea ice scattering mechanism and overcome some of the shortcomings of single- polarimetric classifiers. Two spatially and temporally coincident pairs of fully polarimetric acquisitions from the TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X and RADARSAT-2 satellites are investigated. Proposed supervised classification algorithm consists of two steps: The first step comprises a feature extraction, the results of which are ingested into a neural network classifier in the second step. Based on the common coherency and covariance matrix, we extract a number of features and analyze the relevance and redundancy by means of mutual information for the purpose of sea ice classification. Coherency matrix based features which require an eigendecomposition are found to be either of low relevance or redundant to other covariance matrix based features. Among the most useful features for classification are matrix invariant based features (Geometric Intensity, Scattering Diversity, Surface Scattering Fraction).

  1. Construction of Polarimetric Radar-Based Reference Rain Maps for the Iowa Flood Studies Campaign

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Petersen, Walter; Wolff, David; Krajewski, Witek; Gatlin, Patrick

    2015-01-01

    The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission Iowa Flood Studies (IFloodS) campaign was conducted in central and northeastern Iowa during the months of April-June, 2013. Specific science objectives for IFloodS included quantification of uncertainties in satellite and ground-based estimates of precipitation, 4-D characterization of precipitation physical processes and associated parameters (e.g., size distributions, water contents, types, structure etc.), assessment of the impact of precipitation estimation uncertainty and physical processes on hydrologic predictive skill, and refinement of field observations and data analysis approaches as they pertain to future GPM integrated hydrologic validation and related field studies. In addition to field campaign archival of raw and processed satellite data (including precipitation products), key ground-based platforms such as the NASA NPOL S-band and D3R Ka/Ku-band dual-polarimetric radars, University of Iowa X-band dual-polarimetric radars, a large network of paired rain gauge platforms, and a large network of 2D Video and Parsivel disdrometers were deployed. In something of a canonical approach, the radar (NPOL in particular), gauge and disdrometer observational assets were deployed to create a consistent high-quality distributed (time and space sampling) radar-based ground "reference" rainfall dataset, with known uncertainties, that could be used for assessing the satellite-based precipitation products at a range of space/time scales. Subsequently, the impact of uncertainties in the satellite products could be evaluated relative to the ground-benchmark in coupled weather, land-surface and distributed hydrologic modeling frameworks as related to flood prediction. Relative to establishing the ground-based "benchmark", numerous avenues were pursued in the making and verification of IFloodS "reference" dual-polarimetric radar-based rain maps, and this study documents the process and results as they pertain specifically

  2. Towards automated mapping of lake ice using RADARSAT-2 and simulated RCM compact polarimetric data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Duguay, Claude

    2016-04-01

    The Canadian Ice Service (CIS) produces a weekly ice fraction product (a text file with a single lake-wide ice fraction value, in tenth, estimated for about 140 large lakes across Canada and northern United States) created from the visual interpretation of RADARSAT-2 ScanSAR dual-polarization (HH and HV) imagery, complemented by optical satellite imagery (AVHRR, MODIS and VIIRS). The weekly ice product is generated in support of the Canadian Meteorological Centre (CMC) needs for lake ice coverage in their operational numerical weather prediction model. CIS is interested in moving from its current (manual) way of generating the ice fraction product to a largely automated process. With support from the Canadian Space Agency, a project was recently initiated to assess the potential of polarimetric SAR data for lake ice cover mapping in light of the upcoming RADARSAT Constellation Mission (to be launched in 2018). The main objectives of the project are to evaluate: 1) state-of-the-art image segmentation algorithms and 2) RADARSAT-2 polarimetric and simulated RADARSAT Constellation Mission (RCM) compact polarimetric SAR data for ice/open water discrimination. The goal is to identify the best segmentation algorithm and non-polarimetric/polarimetric parameters for automated lake ice monitoring at CIS. In this talk, we will present the background and context of the study as well as initial results from the analysis of RADARSAT-2 Standard Quad-Pol data acquired during the break-up and freeze-up periods of 2015 on Great Bear Lake, Northwest Territories.

  3. Utility of Characterizing and Monitoring Suspected Underground Nuclear Sites with VideoSAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dauphin, S. M.; Yocky, D. A.; Riley, R.; Calloway, T. M.; Wahl, D. E.

    2016-12-01

    Sandia National Laboratories proposed using airborne synthetic aperture RADAR (SAR) collected in VideoSAR mode to characterize the Underground Nuclear Explosion Signature Experiment (UNESE) test bed site at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS). The SNL SAR collected airborne, Ku-band (16.8 GHz center frequency), 0.2032 meter ground resolution over NNSS in August 2014 and X-band (9.6 GHz), 0.1016 meter ground resolution fully-polarimetric SAR in April 2015. This paper reports the findings of processing and exploiting VideoSAR for creating digital elevation maps, detecting cultural artifacts and exploiting full-circle polarimetric signatures. VideoSAR collects a continuous circle of phase history data, therefore, imagery can be formed over the 360-degrees of the site. Since the Ku-band VideoSAR had two antennas suitable for interferometric digital elevation mapping (DEM), DEMs could be generated over numerous aspect angles, filling in holes created by targets with height by imaging from all sides. Also, since the X-band VideoSAR was fully-polarimetric, scattering signatures could be gleaned from all angles also. Both of these collections can be used to find man-made objects and changes in elevation that might indicate testing activities. VideoSAR provides a unique, coherent measure of ground objects allowing one to create accurate DEMS, locate man-made objects, and identify scattering signatures via polarimetric exploitation. Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory managed and operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation, for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-AC04-94AL85000. The authors would like to thank the National Nuclear Security Administration, Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development, for sponsoring this work. We would also like to thank the Underground Nuclear Explosion Signatures Experiment team, a multi

  4. Applications of Polarimetric Radar to the Hydrometeorology of Urban Floods in St. Louis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chaney, M. M.; Smith, J. A.; Baeck, M. L.

    2017-12-01

    Predicting and responding to flash flooding requires accurate spatial and temporal representation of rainfall rates. The polarimetric upgrade of all US radars has led to optimism about more accurate rainfall rate estimation from the NEXRAD network of WSR-88D radars in the US. Previous work has proposed different algorithms to do so, but significant uncertainties remain, especially for extreme short-term rainfall rates that control flash floods in urban settings. We will examine the relationship between radar rainfall estimates and gage rainfall rates for a catalog of 30 storms in St. Louis during the period of polarimetric radar measurements, 2012-2016. The storms are selected to provide a large sample of extreme rainfall measurements at the 15-minute to 3-hour time scale. A network of 100 rain gages and a lack of orographic or coastal effects make St. Louis an interesting location to study these relationships. A better understanding of the relationships between polarimetric radar measurements and gage rainfall rates will aid in refining polarimetric radar rainfall algorithms, in turn helping hydrometeorologists predict flash floods and other hazards associated with severe rainfall. Given the fact that St. Louis contains some of the flashiest watersheds in the United States (Smith and Smith, 2015), it is an especially important urban area in which to have accurate, real-time rainfall data. Smith, Brianne K, and James A Smith. "The Flashiest Watersheds in the Contiguous United States." American Meteorological Society (2015): 2365-2381. Web.

  5. Polarimetric purity and the concept of degree of polarization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gil, José J.; Norrman, Andreas; Friberg, Ari T.; Setälä, Tero

    2018-02-01

    The concept of degree of polarization for electromagnetic waves, in its general three-dimensional version, is revisited in the light of the implications of the recent findings on the structure of polarimetric purity and of the existence of nonregular states of polarization [J. J. Gil et al., Phys Rev. A 95, 053856 (2017), 10.1103/PhysRevA.95.053856]. From the analysis of the characteristic decomposition of a polarization matrix R into an incoherent convex combination of (1) a pure state Rp, (2) a middle state Rm given by an equiprobable mixture of two eigenstates of R, and (3) a fully unpolarized state Ru -3 D, it is found that, in general, Rm exhibits nonzero circular and linear degrees of polarization. Therefore, the degrees of linear and circular polarization of R cannot always be assigned to the single totally polarized component Rp. It is shown that the parameter P3 D proposed formerly by Samson [J. C. Samson, Geophys. J. R. Astron. Soc. 34, 403 (1973), 10.1111/j.1365-246X.1973.tb02404.x] takes into account, in a proper and objective form, all the contributions to polarimetric purity, namely, the contributions to the linear and circular degrees of polarization of R as well as to the stability of the plane containing its polarization ellipse. Consequently, P3 D constitutes a natural representative of the degree of polarimetric purity. Some implications for the common convention for the concept of two-dimensional degree of polarization are also analyzed and discussed.

  6. Determination of polarimetric parameters of honey by near-infrared transflectance spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    García-Alvarez, M; Ceresuela, S; Huidobro, J F; Hermida, M; Rodríguez-Otero, J L

    2002-01-30

    NIR transflectance spectroscopy was used to determine polarimetric parameters (direct polarization, polarization after inversion, specific rotation in dry matter, and polarization due to nonmonosaccharides) and sucrose in honey. In total, 156 honey samples were collected during 1992 (45 samples), 1995 (56 samples), and 1996 (55 samples). Samples were analyzed by NIR spectroscopy and polarimetric methods. Calibration (118 samples) and validation (38 samples) sets were made up; honeys from the three years were included in both sets. Calibrations were performed by modified partial least-squares regression and scatter correction by standard normal variation and detrend methods. For direct polarization, polarization after inversion, specific rotation in dry matter, and polarization due to nonmonosaccharides, good statistics (bias, SEV, and R(2)) were obtained for the validation set, and no statistically (p = 0.05) significant differences were found between instrumental and polarimetric methods for these parameters. Statistical data for sucrose were not as good as those of the other parameters. Therefore, NIR spectroscopy is not an effective method for quantitative analysis of sucrose in these honey samples. However, NIR spectroscopy may be an acceptable method for semiquantitative evaluation of sucrose for honeys, such as those in our study, containing up to 3% of sucrose. Further work is necessary to validate the uncertainty at higher levels.

  7. Field observations using an AOTF polarimetric imaging spectrometer

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cheng, Li-Jen; Hamilton, Mike; Mahoney, Colin; Reyes, George

    1993-01-01

    This paper reports preliminary results of recent field observations using a prototype acousto-optic tunable filter (AOTF) polarimetric imaging spectrometer. The data illustrate application potentials for geoscience. The operation principle of this instrument is different from that of current airborne multispectral imaging instruments, such as AVIRIS. The AOTF instrument takes two orthogonally polarized images at a desired wavelength at one time, whereas AVIRIS takes a spectrum over a predetermined wavelength range at one pixel at a time and the image is constructed later. AVIRIS does not have any polarization measuring capability. The AOTF instrument could be a complement tool to AVIRIS. Polarization measurement is a desired capability for many applications in remote sensing. It is well know that natural light is often polarized due to various scattering phenomena in the atmosphere. Also, scattered light from canopies is reported to have a polarized component. To characterize objects of interest correctly requires a remote sensing imaging spectrometer capable of measuring object signal and background radiation in both intensity and polarization so that the characteristics of the object can be determined. The AORF instrument has the capability to do so. The AOTF instrument has other unique properties. For example, it can provide spectral images immediately after the observation. The instrument can also allow observations to be tailored in real time to perform the desired experiments and to collect only required data. Consequently, the performance in each mission can be increased with minimal resources. The prototype instrument was completed in the beginning of this year. A number of outdoor field experiments were performed with the objective to evaluate the capability of this new technology for remote sensing applications and to determine issues for further improvements.

  8. Polarimetric radar and aircraft observations of saggy bright bands during MC3E

    DOE PAGES

    Matthew R. Kumjian; Giangrande, Scott E.; Mishra, Subashree; ...

    2016-03-19

    Polarimetric radar observations increasingly are used to understand cloud microphysical processes, which is critical for improving their representation in cloud and climate models. In particular, there has been recent focus on improving representations of ice collection processes (e.g., aggregation, riming), as these influence precipitation rate, heating profiles, and ultimately cloud life cycles. However, distinguishing these processes using conventional polarimetric radar observations is difficult, as they produce similar fingerprints. This necessitates improved analysis techniques and integration of complementary data sources. Furthermore, the Midlatitude Continental Convective Clouds Experiment (MC3E) provided such an opportunity.

  9. Invariant polarimetric contrast parameters of light with Gaussian fluctuations in three dimensions.

    PubMed

    Réfrégier, Philippe; Roche, Muriel; Goudail, François

    2006-01-01

    We propose a rigorous definition of the minimal set of parameters that characterize the difference between two partially polarized states of light whose electric fields vary in three dimensions with Gaussian fluctuations. Although two such states are a priori defined by eighteen parameters, we demonstrate that the performance of processing tasks such as detection, localization, or segmentation of spatial or temporal polarization variations is uniquely determined by three scalar functions of these parameters. These functions define a "polarimetric contrast" that simplifies the analysis and the specification of processing techniques on polarimetric signals and images. This result can also be used to analyze the definition of the degree of polarization of a three-dimensional state of light with Gaussian fluctuations in comparison, with respect to its polarimetric contrast parameters, with a totally depolarized light. We show that these contrast parameters are a simple function of the degrees of polarization previously proposed by Barakat [Opt. Acta 30, 1171 (1983)] and Setälä et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 123902 (2002)]. Finally, we analyze the dimension of the set of contrast parameters in different particular situations.

  10. Joint retrieval of aerosol and water-leaving radiance from multispectral, multiangular and polarimetric measurements over ocean

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Feng; Dubovik, Oleg; Zhai, Peng-Wang; Diner, David J.; Kalashnikova, Olga V.; Seidel, Felix C.; Litvinov, Pavel; Bovchaliuk, Andrii; Garay, Michael J.; van Harten, Gerard; Davis, Anthony B.

    2016-07-01

    An optimization approach has been developed for simultaneous retrieval of aerosol properties and normalized water-leaving radiance (nLw) from multispectral, multiangular, and polarimetric observations over ocean. The main features of the method are (1) use of a simplified bio-optical model to estimate nLw, followed by an empirical refinement within a specified range to improve its accuracy; (2) improved algorithm convergence and stability by applying constraints on the spatial smoothness of aerosol loading and Chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentration across neighboring image patches and spectral constraints on aerosol optical properties and nLw across relevant bands; and (3) enhanced Jacobian calculation by modeling and storing the radiative transfer (RT) in aerosol/Rayleigh mixed layer, pure Rayleigh-scattering layers, and ocean medium separately, then coupling them to calculate the field at the sensor. This approach avoids unnecessary and time-consuming recalculations of RT in unperturbed layers in Jacobian evaluations. The Markov chain method is used to model RT in the aerosol/Rayleigh mixed layer and the doubling method is used for the uniform layers of the atmosphere-ocean system. Our optimization approach has been tested using radiance and polarization measurements acquired by the Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI) over the AERONET USC_SeaPRISM ocean site (6 February 2013) and near the AERONET La Jolla site (14 January 2013), which, respectively, reported relatively high and low aerosol loadings. Validation of the results is achieved through comparisons to AERONET aerosol and ocean color products. For comparison, the USC_SeaPRISM retrieval is also performed by use of the Generalized Retrieval of Aerosol and Surface Properties algorithm (Dubovik et al., 2011). Uncertainties of aerosol and nLw retrievals due to random and systematic instrument errors are analyzed by truth-in/truth-out tests with three Chl a concentrations, five aerosol loadings

  11. PolSAR-Ap: Exploitation of Fully Polarimetric SAR Data for Sea Oil Slick Monitoring

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Migliaccio, M.; Nunziata, F.

    2013-08-01

    In this study, some of the most up-to-dated polarimetric approaches for sea oil slick observation are reviewed and their performance is discussed using actual C-band RadarSAT-2 SAR data where both oil slicks, related to the Deepwater Horizon accident, and oil seeps are present.Results demonstrate the unique benefits of polarimetric SAR data in: a) characterizing the scattering mechanism of sea surface with and without surfactants; b) providing information on the damping properties of the surfactant.

  12. Polarimetric Glucose Sensing Using Brewster Reflection off of Eye Lens: Theoretical Analysis

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Boeckle, Stefan; Rovati, Luigi; Ansari, Rafat R.

    2002-01-01

    An important task of in vivo polarimetric glucose sensing is to find an appropriate way to optically access the aqueous humor of the human eye. In this paper two different approaches are analyzed theoretically and applied to the eye model of Le Grand. First approach is the tangential path of Cote, et al. (G.L. Cot6, M.D. Fox, and R.B. Northrop: Noninvasive Optical Polarimetric Glucose Sensing Using a True Phase Measurement Technique. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, vol. 39, no. 7, pp. 752-756, 1992.) and the second is a new scheme of this paper of applying Brewster reflection off the eye lens.

  13. Wide-Angle Polarimetric Camera for Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Choi, Y. J.; Kim, S.; Kang, K. I.

    2016-12-01

    A polarimetry data contains valuable information about the lunar surface such as the grain size and porosity of the regolith. However, a polarimetry toward the Moon in its orbit has not been performed. We plan to perform the polarimetry in lunar orbit through Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO), which will be launched around 2018/2019 as the first Korean lunar mission. Wide-Angle Polarimetric Camera (PolCam) is selected as one of the onboard instrument for KPLO. The science objectives are ; (1) To obtain the polarization data of the whole lunar surface at wavelengths of 430nm and 650nm for phase angle range from 0° to 120° with a spatial resolution of 80 m. (2) To obtain the reflectance ratios at 320 nm and 430 nm for the whole lunar surface with a spatial resolution of 80m. We will summarize recent results of lunar surface from ground-based polarimetric observations and will briefly introduce the science rationals and operation concept of PolCam.

  14. Unveiling Deeply Embedded Sources by Near-Infrared Polarimetric Imaging

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yao, Yongqiang; Ishii, Miki; Nagata, Tetsuya; Nakaya, Hidehiko; Sato, Shuji

    2000-10-01

    Near-infrared polarimetric images are presented for six molecular outflow sources: IRAS 20050+2720, IRAS 20126+4104, IRAS 20188+3928, S233, AFGL 5180, and AFGL 6366S. All the regions are found to exhibit reflection nebulae and to be associated with massive and clustered star formation. By inspecting polarimetric patterns in the nebulae, we have identified six deeply embedded sources (DESs) which illuminate circumstellar nebulosity but are not detectable in wavelengths shorter than 2 μm. While the DES in IRAS 20050 coincides with an infrared source in a previous, longer wavelength observation and the one in IRAS 20126 with a hot molecular core, the nature of the other newly discovered DESs is not known. From the compilation of the observations of DESs over a large wavelength range, we suspect that the DESs possess characteristics similar to hot molecular cores and are likely to be in the pre-ultracompact H II region phase of massive star formation.

  15. Generation of topographic terrain models utilizing synthetic aperture radar and surface level data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Imhoff, Marc L. (Inventor)

    1991-01-01

    Topographical terrain models are generated by digitally delineating the boundary of the region under investigation from the data obtained from an airborne synthetic aperture radar image and surface elevation data concurrently acquired either from an airborne instrument or at ground level. A set of coregistered boundary maps thus generated are then digitally combined in three dimensional space with the acquired surface elevation data by means of image processing software stored in a digital computer. The method is particularly applicable for generating terrain models of flooded regions covered entirely or in part by foliage.

  16. Retrieval of Aerosol Microphysical Properties Based on the Optimal Estimation Method: Information Content Analysis for Satellite Polarimetric Remote Sensing Measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hou, W. Z.; Li, Z. Q.; Zheng, F. X.; Qie, L. L.

    2018-04-01

    This paper evaluates the information content for the retrieval of key aerosol microphysical and surface properties for multispectral single-viewing satellite polarimetric measurements cantered at 410, 443, 555, 670, 865, 1610 and 2250 nm over bright land. To conduct the information content analysis, the synthetic data are simulated by the Unified Linearized Vector Radiative Transfer Model (UNLVTM) with the intensity and polarization together over bare soil surface for various scenarios. Following the optimal estimation theory, a principal component analysis method is employed to reconstruct the multispectral surface reflectance from 410 nm to 2250 nm, and then integrated with a linear one-parametric BPDF model to represent the contribution of polarized surface reflectance, thus further to decouple the surface-atmosphere contribution from the TOA measurements. Focusing on two different aerosol models with the aerosol optical depth equal to 0.8 at 550 nm, the total DFS and DFS component of each retrieval aerosol and surface parameter are analysed. The DFS results show that the key aerosol microphysical properties, such as the fine- and coarse-mode columnar volume concentration, the effective radius and the real part of complex refractive index at 550 nm, could be well retrieved with the surface parameters simultaneously over bare soil surface type. The findings of this study can provide the guidance to the inversion algorithm development over bright surface land by taking full use of the single-viewing satellite polarimetric measurements.

  17. Developing Lightning Prediction Tools for the CCAFS Dual-Polarimetric Radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Petersen, W. A.; Carey, L. D.; Deierling, W.; Johnson, E.; Bateman, M.

    2009-01-01

    NASA Marshall Space Flight Center and the University of Alabama Huntsville are collaborating with the 45th Weather Squadron (45WS) to develop improved lightning prediction capabilities for the new C-band dual-polarimetric weather radar being acquired for use by 45WS and launch weather forecasters at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS). In particular, these algorithms will focus on lightning onset, cessation and combined lightning-radar applications for convective winds assessment. Research using radar reflectivity (Z) data for prediction of lightning onset has been extensively discussed in the literature and subsequently applied by launch weather forecasters as it pertains to lightning nowcasting. Currently the forecasters apply a relatively straight forward but effective temperature-Z threshold algorithm for assessing the likelihood of lightning onset in a given storm. In addition, a layered VIL above the freezing level product is used as automated guidance for the onset of lightning. Only limited research and field work has been conducted on lightning cessation using Z and vertically-integrated Z for determining cessation. Though not used operationally vertically-integrated Z (basis for VIL) has recently shown promise as a tool for use in nowcasting lightning cessation. The work discussed herein leverages and expands upon these and similar reflectivity-threshold approaches via the application/addition of over two decades of polarimetric radar research focused on distinct multi-parameter radar signatures of ice/mixed-phase initiation and ice-crystal orientation in highly electrified convective clouds. Specifically, our approach is based on numerous previous studies that have observed repeatable patterns in the behavior of the vertical hydrometeor column as it relates to the temporal evolution of differential reflectivity and depolarization (manifested in either LDR or p(sub hv)), development of in-situ mixed and ice phase microphysics, electric fields, and

  18. Polarimetric measures of selected variable stars

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Elias, N. M., II; Koch, R. H.; Pfeiffer, R. J.

    2008-10-01

    Aims: The purpose of this paper is to summarize and interpret unpublished optical polarimetry for numerous program stars that were observed over the past decades at the Flower and Cook Observatory (FCO), University of Pennsylvania. We also make the individual calibrated measures available for long-term comparisons with new data. Methods: We employ three techniques to search for intrinsic variability within each dataset. First, when the observations for a given star and filter are numerous enough and when a period has been determined previously via photometry or spectroscopy, the polarimetric measures are plotted versus phase. If a statistically significant pattern appears, we attribute it to intrinsic variability. Second, we compare means of the FCO data to means from other workers. If they are statistically different, we conclude that the object exhibits long-term intrinsic variability. Third, we calculate the standard deviation for each program star and filter and compare it to the standard deviation estimated from comparable polarimetric standards. If the standard deviation of the program star is at least three times the value estimated from the polarimetric standards, the former is considered intrinsically variable. All of these statements are strengthened when variability appears in multiple filters. Results: We confirm the existence of an electron-scattering cloud at L1 in the β Per system, and find that LY Aur and HR 8281 possess scattering envelopes. Intrinsic polarization was detected for Nova Cas 1993 as early as day +3. We detected polarization variability near the primary eclipse of 32 Cyg. There is marginal evidence for polarization variability of the β Cepheid type star γ Peg. The other objects of this class exhibited no variability. All but one of the β Cepheid objects (ES Vul) fall on a tight linear relationship between linear polarization and E(B-V), in spite of the fact that the stars lay along different lines of sight. This dependence falls

  19. MCM Polarimetric Radiometers for Planar Arrays

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kangaslahti, Pekka; Dawson, Douglas; Gaier, Todd

    2007-01-01

    A polarimetric radiometer that operates at a frequency of 40 GHz has been designed and built as a prototype of multiple identical units that could be arranged in a planar array for scientific measurements. Such an array is planned for use in studying the cosmic microwave background (CMB). All of the subsystems and components of this polarimetric radiometer are integrated into a single multi-chip module (MCM) of substantially planar geometry. In comparison with traditional designs of polarimetric radiometers, the MCM design is expected to greatly reduce the cost per unit in an array of many such units. The design of the unit is dictated partly by a requirement, in the planned CMB application, to measure the Stokes parameters I, Q, and U of the CMB radiation with high sensitivity. (A complete definition of the Stokes parameters would exceed the scope of this article. In necessarily oversimplified terms, I is a measure of total intensity of radiation, while Q and U are measures of the relationships between the horizontally and vertically polarized components of radiation.) Because the sensitivity of a single polarimeter cannot be increased significantly, the only way to satisfy the high-sensitivity requirement is to make a large array of polarimeters that operate in parallel. The MCM includes contact pins that can be plugged into receptacles on a standard printed-circuit board (PCB). All of the required microwave functionality is implemented within the MCM; any required supporting non-microwave ("back-end") electronic functionality, including the provision of DC bias and control signals, can be implemented by standard PCB techniques. On the way from a microwave antenna to the MCM, the incoming microwave signal passes through an orthomode transducer (OMT), which splits the radiation into an h + i(nu) beam and an h - i(nu) beam (where, using complex-number notation, h denotes the horizontal component, nu denotes the vertical component, and +/-i denotes a +/-90deg phase

  20. Investigation of hydrometeor classification uncertainties through the POLARRIS polarimetric radar simulator

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dolan, B.; Rutledge, S. A.; Barnum, J. I.; Matsui, T.; Tao, W. K.; Iguchi, T.

    2017-12-01

    POLarimetric Radar Retrieval and Instrument Simulator (POLARRIS) is a framework that has been developed to simulate radar observations from cloud resolving model (CRM) output and subject model data and observations to the same retrievals, analysis and visualization. This framework not only enables validation of bulk microphysical model simulated properties, but also offers an opportunity to study the uncertainties associated with retrievals such as hydrometeor classification (HID). For the CSU HID, membership beta functions (MBFs) are built using a set of simulations with realistic microphysical assumptions about axis ratio, density, canting angles, size distributions for each of ten hydrometeor species. These assumptions are tested using POLARRIS to understand their influence on the resulting simulated polarimetric data and final HID classification. Several of these parameters (density, size distributions) are set by the model microphysics, and therefore the specific assumptions of axis ratio and canting angle are carefully studied. Through these sensitivity studies, we hope to be able to provide uncertainties in retrieved polarimetric variables and HID as applied to CRM output. HID retrievals assign a classification to each point by determining the highest score, thereby identifying the dominant hydrometeor type within a volume. However, in nature, there is rarely just one a single hydrometeor type at a particular point. Models allow for mixing ratios of different hydrometeors within a grid point. We use the mixing ratios from CRM output in concert with the HID scores and classifications to understand how the HID algorithm can provide information about mixtures within a volume, as well as calculate a confidence in the classifications. We leverage the POLARRIS framework to additionally probe radar wavelength differences toward the possibility of a multi-wavelength HID which could utilize the strengths of different wavelengths to improve HID classifications. With

  1. Polarimetric Scattering Database for Non-spherical Ice Particles at Microwave Wavelengths

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Aydin, Kultegin; Verlinde, Johannes; Clothiaux, Eugene

    A database containing polarimetric single-scattering properties of various types of ice particles at millimeter to centimeter wavelengths is presented. This database is complementary to earlier ones in that it contains complete (polarimetric) scattering property information for each ice particle - 44 plates, 30 columns, 405 branched planar crystals, 660 aggregates, and 640 conical graupel - and direction of incident radiation but is limited to four frequencies (W-, Ka-, Ku- and X-bands), does not include temperature dependencies of the single-scattering properties and does not include scattering properties averaged over randomly oriented ice particles. Rules for constructing the morphologies of ice particlesmore » from one database to the next often differ; consequently, analyses that incorporate all of the different databases will contain the most variability, while illuminating important differences between them.« less

  2. Change detection of polarimetric SAR images based on the KummerU Distribution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Quan; Zou, Pengfei; Li, Zhen; Zhang, Ping

    2014-11-01

    In the society of PolSAR image segmentation, change detection and classification, the classical Wishart distribution has been used for a long time, but it especially suit to low-resolution SAR image, because in traditional sensors, only a small number of scatterers are present in each resolution cell. With the improving of SAR systems these years, the classical statistical models can therefore be reconsidered for high resolution and polarimetric information contained in the images acquired by these advanced systems. In this study, SAR image segmentation algorithm based on level-set method, added with distance regularized level-set evolution (DRLSE) is performed using Envisat/ASAR single-polarization data and Radarsat-2 polarimetric images, respectively. KummerU heterogeneous clutter model is used in the later to overcome the homogeneous hypothesis at high resolution cell. An enhanced distance regularized level-set evolution (DRLSE-E) is also applied in the later, to ensure accurate computation and stable level-set evolution. Finally, change detection based on four polarimetric Radarsat-2 time series images is carried out at Genhe area of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, NorthEastern of China, where a heavy flood disaster occurred during the summer of 2013, result shows the recommend segmentation method can detect the change of watershed effectively.

  3. (abstract) Variations in Polarimetric Backscatter of Saline Ice Grown Under Diurnal Thermal Cycling Condition

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Yueh, S. H.; Kong, J. A.; Hsu, C. C.; Ding, K. H.

    1995-01-01

    An experiment was carried out in January 1994 at the Geophysical Research Facility in the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. To investigate effects on polarimetric scattering signatures of sea ice growth under diurnal temperature variations, an ice sheet was grown for 2.5 days for the thickness of 10 cm and a polarimetric radar operating at C-band was used to obtain backscattering data in conjunction with ice-characterization measurements. The ice sheet was grown in the late morning of January 19, 1994. The initial growth rate was slow due to high insolation and temperature. As the air temperature dropped during the night, the growth rate increased significantly. The air temperature changed drastically from about -10(deg)C to -35(deg)C between day and night. The temperature cycle was repeated during the next day and the growth rate varied in the same manner. The surface of the ice was partially covered by frost flowers and the areal coverage increased as the ice became thicker. Throughout the ice growth duration of 2.5 days, polarimetric backscatter data were collected at roughly every centimeter of ice growth. For each set of radar measurements of saline ice, a set of calibration measurements was carried out with trihedrial corner reflectors and a metallic sphere. Measured polarimetric backscattering coefficients of the ice sheet reveal a strong correlation between radar data and temperature variations. As the temperature increased (decreased), the backscatter increased (decreased) correspondingly. From the ice-characterization data, temperatures of the air, at the ice-air interface, and in the ice layer had the same variation trend. Another interesting experimental observation is that the salinity measured as a function of ice depth from a sample of 10-cm thich ice indicated that the salinity variations had a similar cycle as the temperature; i.e., the salinity profile recorded the history of the temperature variations. Characterization data of the

  4. Oil source-fingerprinting in support of polarimetric radar mapping of Macondo-252 oil in Gulf Coast marshes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ramsey, Elijah W.; Meyer, Buffy M.; Rangoonwala, Amina; Overton, Edward; Jones, Cathleen E.; Bannister, Terri

    2014-01-01

    Polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) data exhibited dramatic, spatially extensive changes from June 2009 to June 2010 in Barataria Bay, Louisiana. To determine whether these changes were associated with the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill, twenty-nine sediment samples were collected in 2011 from shoreline and nearshore–interior coastal marsh locations where oil was not observed visually or with optical sensors during the spill. Oil source-fingerprinting and polytopic vector analysis were used to link DWH oil to PolSAR changes. Our results prove that DWH oil extended beyond shorelines and confirm the association between presence of DWH oil and PolSAR change. These results show that the DWH oil spill probably affected much more of the southeastern Louisiana marshland than originally concluded from ground and aerial surveys and verify that PolSAR is a powerful tool for tracking oil intrusion into marshes with high probability even where contamination is not visible from above the canopy.

  5. Replacing missing data between airborne SAR coherent image pairs

    DOE PAGES

    Musgrove, Cameron H.; West, James C.

    2017-07-31

    For synthetic aperture radar systems, missing data samples can cause severe image distortion. When multiple, coherent data collections exist and the missing data samples do not overlap between collections, there exists the possibility of replacing data samples between collections. For airborne radar, the known and unknown motion of the aircraft prevents direct data sample replacement to repair image features. Finally, this paper presents a method to calculate the necessary phase corrections to enable data sample replacement using only the collected radar data.

  6. Replacing missing data between airborne SAR coherent image pairs

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Musgrove, Cameron H.; West, James C.

    For synthetic aperture radar systems, missing data samples can cause severe image distortion. When multiple, coherent data collections exist and the missing data samples do not overlap between collections, there exists the possibility of replacing data samples between collections. For airborne radar, the known and unknown motion of the aircraft prevents direct data sample replacement to repair image features. Finally, this paper presents a method to calculate the necessary phase corrections to enable data sample replacement using only the collected radar data.

  7. Calibration and Validation of Airborne InSAR Geometric Model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chunming, Han; huadong, Guo; Xijuan, Yue; Changyong, Dou; Mingming, Song; Yanbing, Zhang

    2014-03-01

    The image registration or geo-coding is a very important step for many applications of airborne interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), especially for those involving Digital Surface Model (DSM) generation, which requires an accurate knowledge of the geometry of the InSAR system. While the trajectory and attitude instabilities of the aircraft introduce severe distortions in three dimensional (3-D) geometric model. The 3-D geometrical model of an airborne SAR image depends on the SAR processor itself. Working at squinted model, i.e., with an offset angle (squint angle) of the radar beam from broadside direction, the aircraft motion instabilities may produce distortions in airborne InSAR geometric relationship, which, if not properly being compensated for during SAR imaging, may damage the image registration. The determination of locations of the SAR image depends on the irradiated topography and the exact knowledge of all signal delays: range delay and chirp delay (being adjusted by the radar operator) and internal delays which are unknown a priori. Hence, in order to obtain reliable results, these parameters must be properly calibrated. An Airborne InSAR mapping system has been developed by the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth (RADI), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) to acquire three-dimensional geo-spatial data with high resolution and accuracy. To test the performance of the InSAR system, the Validation/Calibration (Val/Cal) campaign has carried out in Sichun province, south-west China, whose results will be reported in this paper.

  8. Ku band airborne radar altimeter observations of marginal sea ice during the 1984 Marginal Ice Zone Experiment

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Drinkwater, Mark R.

    1991-01-01

    Pulse-limited, airborne radar data taken in June and July 1984 with a 13.8-GHz altimeter over the Fram Strait marginal ice zone are analyzed with the aid of large-format aerial photography, airborne synthetic aperture radar data, and surface observations. Variations in the radar return pulse waveforms are quantified and correlated with ice properties recorded during the Marginal Ice Zone Experiment. Results indicate that the wide-beam altimeter is a flexible instrument, capable of identifying the ice edge with a high degree of accuracy, calculating the ice concentration, and discriminating a number of different ice classes. This suggests that microwave radar altimeters have a sensitivity to sea ice which has not yet been fully exploited. When fused with SSM/I, AVHRR and ERS-1 synthetic aperture radar imagery, future ERS-1 altimeter data are expected to provide some missing pieces to the sea ice geophysics puzzle.

  9. A fully polarimetric scattering model for a coniferous forest

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Karam, M. A.; Fung, A. K.; Lopes, A.; Mougin, E.

    1991-01-01

    For an elliptically polarized plane wave exciting a coniferous forested canopy a fully polarimetric scattering model has been developed to account for the size and orientation distributions of each forest constituent. A canopy is divided into three layers over a rough interface. The upper two layers represent the crown with its constituents (leaves, stems, and branches). The lower layer stands for the trunks and the rough interface is the canopy-ground interface. For a plane wave exciting the canopy, the explicit expressions for the bistatic scattering coefficient associated with each scattering mechanism are given. For an elliptically polarized incidence wave, the present model can be recast in a form suitable for polarimetric wave synthesis. The model validation is justified by comparing the measured and the calculated values of the backscattering coefficients for a linearly polarized incident wave. The comparison is made over a wide range of frequencies and incident angles. Numerical simulations are conducted to calculate the radar polarization signature of the canopy for different incident frequencies and angles.

  10. A high definition Mueller polarimetric endoscope for tissue characterisation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Qi, Ji; Elson, Daniel S.

    2016-05-01

    The contrast mechanism of medical endoscopy is mainly based on metrics of optical intensity and wavelength. As another fundamental property of light, polarization can not only reveal tissue scattering and absorption information from a different perspective, but can also provide insight into directional tissue birefringence properties to monitor pathological changes in collagen and elastin. Here we demonstrate a low cost wide field high definition Mueller polarimetric endoscope with minimal alterations to a rigid endoscope. We show that this novel endoscopic imaging modality is able to provide a number of image contrast mechanisms besides traditional unpolarized radiation intensity, including linear depolarization, circular depolarization, cross-polarization, directional birefringence and dichroism. This enhances tissue features of interest, and additionally reveals tissue micro-structure and composition, which is of central importance for tissue diagnosis and image guidance for surgery. The potential applications of the Mueller polarimetric endoscope include wide field early epithelial cancer diagnosis, surgical margin detection and energy-based tissue fusion monitoring, and could further benefit a wide range of endoscopic investigations through intra-operative guidance.

  11. IMPROVED SEARCH OF PRINCIPAL COMPONENT ANALYSIS DATABASES FOR SPECTRO-POLARIMETRIC INVERSION

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Casini, R.; Lites, B. W.; Ramos, A. Asensio

    2013-08-20

    We describe a simple technique for the acceleration of spectro-polarimetric inversions based on principal component analysis (PCA) of Stokes profiles. This technique involves the indexing of the database models based on the sign of the projections (PCA coefficients) of the first few relevant orders of principal components of the four Stokes parameters. In this way, each model in the database can be attributed a distinctive binary number of 2{sup 4n} bits, where n is the number of PCA orders used for the indexing. Each of these binary numbers (indices) identifies a group of ''compatible'' models for the inversion of amore » given set of observed Stokes profiles sharing the same index. The complete set of the binary numbers so constructed evidently determines a partition of the database. The search of the database for the PCA inversion of spectro-polarimetric data can profit greatly from this indexing. In practical cases it becomes possible to approach the ideal acceleration factor of 2{sup 4n} as compared to the systematic search of a non-indexed database for a traditional PCA inversion. This indexing method relies on the existence of a physical meaning in the sign of the PCA coefficients of a model. For this reason, the presence of model ambiguities and of spectro-polarimetric noise in the observations limits in practice the number n of relevant PCA orders that can be used for the indexing.« less

  12. Classification of Forest Regrowth Stage using Polarimetric Decomposition and Foliage Projective Cover

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Clewley, D.; Lucas, R.; Bunting, P.; Moghaddam, M.

    2012-12-01

    Within Queensland, Australia extensive clearing of vegetation for agriculture has occurred within the Brigalow Belt Bioregion (BBB), reducing forests dominated by Acacia harpophylla (brigalow) to 10 % of their former extent. Where cleared land is left abandoned or unmanaged regeneration is rapid, Regenerating vegetation represents a more efficient and cost effective method for carbon sequestration than direct planting and offers a number of benefits over plantation forest, particularly in terms of provision of habitat for native fauna. To effectively protect regenerating vegetation, maps of the distribution of forests at different stages of regeneration are required. Whilst mapping approaches have traditionally focused on optical data, the high canopy cover of brigalow regrowth in all but the very early stages limits discrimination of forests at different stages of growth. The combination of optical data, namely Landsat derived Foliage Projective Cover (FPC) and Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS) Phased Array L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) backscatter data have previously been investigated for mapping regrowth. This study therefore aimed to investigate the potential of the alpha-Entropy (α/H) decomposition (S Cloude and E Pottier, "An entropy based classification scheme for land applications of polarimetric SAR," 1997, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 68-78) applied to polarimetric ALOS PALSAR backscatter for mapping regrowth stage combined with FPC data to account for canopy variations. The study focused on the Tara Downs subregion, located in the Western Darling Downs, within the south of the BBB. PALSAR data were acquired over the study site in fully-polarimetric mode (incidence angle mid swath ~ 26 degrees). From these data α/H layers were generated and stacked with FPC data. Considering only those areas known to contain brigalow prior to clearing and with an FPC > 9 %, k-means clustering was applied, with

  13. Integration of a synthetic vision system with airborne laser range scanner-based terrain referenced navigation for precision approach guidance

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Uijt de Haag, Maarten; Campbell, Jacob; van Graas, Frank

    2005-05-01

    Synthetic Vision Systems (SVS) provide pilots with a virtual visual depiction of the external environment. When using SVS for aircraft precision approach guidance systems accurate positioning relative to the runway with a high level of integrity is required. Precision approach guidance systems in use today require ground-based electronic navigation components with at least one installation at each airport, and in many cases multiple installations to service approaches to all qualifying runways. A terrain-referenced approach guidance system is envisioned to provide precision guidance to an aircraft without the use of ground-based electronic navigation components installed at the airport. This autonomy makes it a good candidate for integration with an SVS. At the Ohio University Avionics Engineering Center (AEC), work has been underway in the development of such a terrain referenced navigation system. When used in conjunction with an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and a high accuracy/resolution terrain database, this terrain referenced navigation system can provide navigation and guidance information to the pilot on a SVS or conventional instruments. The terrain referenced navigation system, under development at AEC, operates on similar principles as other terrain navigation systems: a ground sensing sensor (in this case an airborne laser scanner) gathers range measurements to the terrain; this data is then matched in some fashion with an onboard terrain database to find the most likely position solution and used to update an inertial sensor-based navigator. AEC's system design differs from today's common terrain navigators in its use of a high resolution terrain database (~1 meter post spacing) in conjunction with an airborne laser scanner which is capable of providing tens of thousands independent terrain elevation measurements per second with centimeter-level accuracies. When combined with data from an inertial navigator the high resolution terrain database and

  14. Design of an Airborne L-Band Cross-Track Scanning Scatterometer

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hilliard, Lawrence M. (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    In this report, we describe the design of an airborne L-band cross-track scanning scatterometer suitable for airborne operation aboard the NASA P-3 aircraft. The scatterometer is being designed for joint operation with existing L-band radiometers developed by NASA for soil moisture and ocean salinity remote sensing. In addition, design tradeoffs for a space-based radar system have been considered, with particular attention given to antenna architectures suitable for sharing the antenna between the radar and radiometer. During this study, we investigated a number of imaging techniques, including the use of real and synthetic aperture processing in both the along track and cross-track dimensions. The architecture selected will permit a variety of beamforming algorithms to be implemented, although real aperture processing, with hardware beamforming, provides better sidelobe suppression than synthetic array processing and superior signal-to-noise performance. In our discussions with the staff of NASA GSFC, we arrived at an architecture that employs complete transmit/receive modules for each subarray. Amplitude and phase control at each of the transmit modules will allow a low-sidelobe transmit pattern to be generated over scan angles of +/- 50 degrees. Each receiver module will include all electronics necessary to downconvert the received signal to an IF offset of 30 MHz where it will be digitized for further processing.

  15. A Novel Strategy of Ambiguity Correction for the Improved Faraday Rotation Estimator in Linearly Full-Polarimetric SAR Data.

    PubMed

    Li, Jinhui; Ji, Yifei; Zhang, Yongsheng; Zhang, Qilei; Huang, Haifeng; Dong, Zhen

    2018-04-10

    Spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) missions operating at low frequencies, such as L-band or P-band, are significantly influenced by the ionosphere. As one of the serious ionosphere effects, Faraday rotation (FR) is a remarkable distortion source for the polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) application. Various published FR estimators along with an improved one have been introduced to solve this issue, all of which are implemented by processing a set of PolSAR real data. The improved estimator exhibits optimal robustness based on performance analysis, especially in term of the system noise. However, all published estimators, including the improved estimator, suffer from a potential FR angle (FRA) ambiguity. A novel strategy of the ambiguity correction for those FR estimators is proposed and shown as a flow process, which is divided into pixel-level and image-level correction. The former is not yet recognized and thus is considered in particular. Finally, the validation experiments show a prominent performance of the proposed strategy.

  16. Despeckling Polsar Images Based on Relative Total Variation Model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jiang, C.; He, X. F.; Yang, L. J.; Jiang, J.; Wang, D. Y.; Yuan, Y.

    2018-04-01

    Relatively total variation (RTV) algorithm, which can effectively decompose structure information and texture in image, is employed in extracting main structures of the image. However, applying the RTV directly to polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) image filtering will not preserve polarimetric information. A new RTV approach based on the complex Wishart distribution is proposed considering the polarimetric properties of PolSAR. The proposed polarization RTV (PolRTV) algorithm can be used for PolSAR image filtering. The L-band Airborne SAR (AIRSAR) San Francisco data is used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in speckle suppression, structural information preservation, and polarimetric property preservation.

  17. Fourth Airborne Geoscience Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1991-01-01

    The focus of the workshop was on how the airborne community can assist in achieving the goals of the Global Change Research Program. The many activities that employ airborne platforms and sensors were discussed: platforms and instrument development; airborne oceanography; lidar research; SAR measurements; Doppler radar; laser measurements; cloud physics; airborne experiments; airborne microwave measurements; and airborne data collection.

  18. Airborne Science personnel Walter Klein and David Bushman at the Mission Manager's console onboard NASA's DC-8 during the AirSAR 2004 campaign

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2004-03-03

    Airborne Science personnel Walter Klein and David Bushman at the Mission Manager's console onboard NASA's DC-8 during the AirSAR 2004 campaign. AirSAR 2004 is a three-week expedition by an international team of scientists that will use an all-weather imaging tool, called the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR), in a mission ranging from the tropical rain forests of Central America to frigid Antarctica.

  19. H I anisotropies associated with radio-polarimetric filaments . Steep power spectra associated with cold gas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalberla, P. M. W.; Kerp, J.; Haud, U.; Haverkorn, M.

    2017-10-01

    Context. LOFAR detected toward 3C 196 linear polarization structures which were found subsequently to be closely correlated with cold filamentary H I structures. The derived direction-dependent H I power spectra revealed marked anisotropies for narrow ranges in velocity, sharing the orientation of the magnetic field as expected for magneto-hydrodynamical (MHD) turbulence. Aims: Using the Galactic portion of the Effelsberg-Bonn H I Survey (EBHIS) we continue our study of such anisotropies in the H I distribution in direction of two WSRT fields, Horologium and Auriga; both are well known for their prominent radio-polarimetric depolarization canals. At 349 MHz the observed pattern in total intensity is insignificant but polarized intensity and polarization angle show prominent ubiquitous structures with so far unknown origin. Methods: Apodizing the H I survey data by applying a rotational symmetric 50% Tukey window, we derive average and position angle dependent power spectra. We fit power laws and characterize anisotropies in the power distribution. We used a Gaussian analysis to determine relative abundances for the cold and warm neutral medium. Results: For the analyzed radio-polarimetric targets significant anisotropies are detected in the H I power spectra; their position angles are aligned to the prominent depolarization canals, initially detected by WSRT. H I anisotropies are associated with steep power spectra. Steep power spectra, associated with cold gas, are detected also in other fields. Conclusions: Radio-polarimetric depolarization canals are associated with filamentary H I structures that belong to the cold neutral medium (CNM). Anisotropies in the CNM are in this case linked to a steepening of the power-spectrum spectral index, indicating that phase transitions in a turbulent medium occur on all scales. Filamentary H I structures, driven by thermal instabilities, and radio-polarimetric filaments are associated with each other. The magneto-ionic medium

  20. Development Of Polarimetric Decomposition Techniques For Indian Forest Resource Assessment Using Radar Imaging Satellite (Risat-1) Images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sridhar, J.

    2015-12-01

    The focus of this work is to examine polarimetric decomposition techniques primarily focussed on Pauli decomposition and Sphere Di-Plane Helix (SDH) decomposition for forest resource assessment. The data processing methods adopted are Pre-processing (Geometric correction and Radiometric calibration), Speckle Reduction, Image Decomposition and Image Classification. Initially to classify forest regions, unsupervised classification was applied to determine different unknown classes. It was observed K-means clustering method gave better results in comparison with ISO Data method.Using the algorithm developed for Radar Tools, the code for decomposition and classification techniques were applied in Interactive Data Language (IDL) and was applied to RISAT-1 image of Mysore-Mandya region of Karnataka, India. This region is chosen for studying forest vegetation and consists of agricultural lands, water and hilly regions. Polarimetric SAR data possess a high potential for classification of earth surface.After applying the decomposition techniques, classification was done by selecting region of interests andpost-classification the over-all accuracy was observed to be higher in the SDH decomposed image, as it operates on individual pixels on a coherent basis and utilises the complete intrinsic coherent nature of polarimetric SAR data. Thereby, making SDH decomposition particularly suited for analysis of high-resolution SAR data. The Pauli Decomposition represents all the polarimetric information in a single SAR image however interpretation of the resulting image is difficult. The SDH decomposition technique seems to produce better results and interpretation as compared to Pauli Decomposition however more quantification and further analysis are being done in this area of research. The comparison of Polarimetric decomposition techniques and evolutionary classification techniques will be the scope of this work.

  1. Hybrid space-airborne bistatic SAR geometric resolutions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Moccia, Antonio; Renga, Alfredo

    2009-09-01

    Performance analysis of Bistatic Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) characterized by arbitrary geometric configurations is usually complex and time-consuming since system impulse response has to be evaluated by bistatic SAR processing. This approach does not allow derivation of general equations regulating the behaviour of image resolutions with varying the observation geometry. It is well known that for an arbitrary configuration of bistatic SAR there are not perpendicular range and azimuth directions, but the capability to produce an image is not prevented as it depends only on the possibility to generate image pixels from time delay and Doppler measurements. However, even if separately range and Doppler resolutions are good, bistatic SAR geometries can exist in which imaging capabilities are very poor when range and Doppler directions become locally parallel. The present paper aims to derive analytical tools for calculating the geometric resolutions of arbitrary configuration of bistatic SAR. The method has been applied to a hybrid bistatic Synthetic Aperture Radar formed by a spaceborne illuminator and a receiving-only airborne forward-looking Synthetic Aperture Radar (F-SAR). It can take advantage of the spaceborne illuminator to dodge the limitations of monostatic FSAR. Basic modeling and best illumination conditions have been detailed in the paper.

  2. Assessment of Polarimetric SAR Interferometry for Improving Ship Classification based on Simulated Data

    PubMed Central

    Margarit, Gerard; Mallorqui, Jordi J.

    2008-01-01

    This paper uses a complete and realistic SAR simulation processing chain, GRECOSAR, to study the potentialities of Polarimetric SAR Interferometry (POLInSAR) in the development of new classification methods for ships. Its high processing efficiency and scenario flexibility have allowed to develop exhaustive scattering studies. The results have revealed, first, vessels' geometries can be described by specific combinations of Permanent Polarimetric Scatterers (PePS) and, second, each type of vessel could be characterized by a particular spatial and polarimetric distribution of PePS. Such properties have been recently exploited to propose a new Vessel Classification Algorithm (VCA) working with POLInSAR data, which, according to several simulation tests, may provide promising performance in real scenarios. Along the paper, explanation of the main steps summarizing the whole research activity carried out with ships and GRECOSAR are provided as well as examples of the main results and VCA validation tests. Special attention will be devoted to the new improvements achieved, which are related to simulations processing a new and highly realistic sea surface model. The paper will show that, for POLInSAR data with fine resolution, VCA can help to classify ships with notable robustness under diverse and adverse observation conditions. PMID:27873954

  3. Application of vector analysis on study of illuminated area and Doppler characteristics of airborne pulse radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Haijiang; Yang, Ling

    2014-12-01

    In this paper, the application of vector analysis tool in the illuminated area and the Doppler frequency distribution research for the airborne pulse radar is studied. An important feature of vector analysis is that it can closely combine the geometric ideas with algebraic calculations. Through coordinate transform, the relationship between the frame of radar antenna and the ground, under aircraft motion attitude, is derived. Under the time-space analysis, the overlap area between the footprint of radar beam and the pulse-illuminated zone is obtained. Furthermore, the Doppler frequency expression is successfully deduced. In addition, the Doppler frequency distribution is plotted finally. Using the time-space analysis results, some important parameters of a specified airborne radar system are obtained. Simultaneously, the results are applied to correct the phase error brought by attitude change in airborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging.

  4. A polarimetric scattering database for non-spherical ice particles at microwave wavelengths

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Yinghui; Jiang, Zhiyuan; Aydin, Kultegin; Verlinde, Johannes; Clothiaux, Eugene E.; Botta, Giovanni

    2016-10-01

    The atmospheric science community has entered a period in which electromagnetic scattering properties at microwave frequencies of realistically constructed ice particles are necessary for making progress on a number of fronts. One front includes retrieval of ice-particle properties and signatures from ground-based, airborne, and satellite-based radar and radiometer observations. Another front is evaluation of model microphysics by application of forward operators to their outputs and comparison to observations during case study periods. Yet a third front is data assimilation, where again forward operators are applied to databases of ice-particle scattering properties and the results compared to observations, with their differences leading to corrections of the model state. Over the past decade investigators have developed databases of ice-particle scattering properties at microwave frequencies and made them openly available. Motivated by and complementing these earlier efforts, a database containing polarimetric single-scattering properties of various types of ice particles at millimeter to centimeter wavelengths is presented. While the database presented here contains only single-scattering properties of ice particles in a fixed orientation, ice-particle scattering properties are computed for many different directions of the radiation incident on them. These results are useful for understanding the dependence of ice-particle scattering properties on ice-particle orientation with respect to the incident radiation. For ice particles that are small compared to the wavelength, the number of incident directions of the radiation is sufficient to compute reasonable estimates of their (randomly) orientation-averaged scattering properties. This database is complementary to earlier ones in that it contains complete (polarimetric) scattering property information for each ice particle - 44 plates, 30 columns, 405 branched planar crystals, 660 aggregates, and 640 conical

  5. Robust fusion-based processing for military polarimetric imaging systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hickman, Duncan L.; Smith, Moira I.; Kim, Kyung Su; Choi, Hyun-Jin

    2017-05-01

    Polarisation information within a scene can be exploited in military systems to give enhanced automatic target detection and recognition (ATD/R) performance. However, the performance gain achieved is highly dependent on factors such as the geometry, viewing conditions, and the surface finish of the target. Such performance sensitivities are highly undesirable in many tactical military systems where operational conditions can vary significantly and rapidly during a mission. Within this paper, a range of processing architectures and fusion methods is considered in terms of their practical viability and operational robustness for systems requiring ATD/R. It is shown that polarisation information can give useful performance gains but, to retained system robustness, the introduction of polarimetric processing should be done in such a way as to not compromise other discriminatory scene information in the spectral and spatial domains. The analysis concludes that polarimetric data can be effectively integrated with conventional intensity-based ATD/R by either adapting the ATD/R processing function based on the scene polarisation or else by detection-level fusion. Both of these approaches avoid the introduction of processing bottlenecks and limit the impact of processing on system latency.

  6. Measurement of impulse current using polarimetric fiber optic sensor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ginter, Mariusz

    2017-08-01

    In the paper the polarimetric current sensing solution used for measurements of high amplitude currents and short durations is presented. This type of sensor does not introduce additional resistance and inductance into the circuit, which is a desirable phenomenon in this type of measurement. The magneto element is a fiber optic coil made of spun fiber optic. The fiber in which the core is twisted around its axis is characterized by a small effect of interfering magnitudes, ie mechanical vibrations and pressure changes on the polarimeter. The presented polarimetric current sensor is completely fiber optic. Experimental results of a proposed sensor construction solution operating at 1550 nm and methods of elimination of influence values on the fiber optic current sensor were presented. The sensor was used to measure the impulse current. The generated current pulses are characterized by a duration of 23μs and amplitudes ranging from 1 to 3.5 kA. The currents in the discharge circuit are shown. The measurement uncertainty of the amplitude of the electric current in the range of measured impulses was determined and estimated to be no more than 2%.

  7. Scientist's Idealism Vs. User's Realism for Orthorectification of Full Radarsat-2/Compact RCM Polarimetric Data with DSM

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Toutin, Thierry; Wang, Huili; Charbonneau, Francois; Schmitt, Carla

    2013-08-01

    This paper presented two methods for the orthorectification of full/compact polarimetric SAR data: the polarimetric processing is performed in the image space (scientist's idealism) or in the ground space (user's realism) before or after the geometric processing, respectively. Radarsat-2 (R2) fine-quad and simulated very high-resolution RCM data acquired with different look angles over a hilly relief study site were processed using accurate lidar digital surface model. Quantitative evaluations between the two methods as a function of different geometric and radiometric parameters were performed to evaluate the impact during the orthorectification. The results demonstrated that the ground-space method can be safely applied to polarimetric R2 SAR data with an exception with the steep look angles and steep terrain slopes. On the other hand, the ground-space method cannot be applied to simulated compact RCM data due to 17dB noise floor and oversampling.

  8. Programmable liquid crystal waveplate polarization gratings as elements for polarimetric and interference applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Moreno, I.; Davis, J. A.

    2010-06-01

    We review the use of a parallel aligned nematic liquid crystal spatial light modulator as a very useful and flexible device for polarimetric and interferometric applications. The device acts as a programmable pixelated waveplate, and the encoding of a linear grating permits its use as a polarization beam splitter. When a grating with a reduced period is encoded, the diffracted beams are spatially separated and the device can be used for polarimetric analysis. On the contrary when a large period grating is displayed, the beams are not spatially separated, and they are useful to realize a common path interferometric system with polarization sensitivity. The flexibility offered by the programmability of the display allows non-conventional uses, including the analysis of light beams with structured spatial polarizations.

  9. Recent Advances in Radar Polarimetry and Polarimetric SAR Interferometry

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2005-02-01

    Hensley, H. A. Zebker, F. H. Webb, and E. Fielding, 1996, "Surface deformation and coherence measurements of Kilauea Volcano , Hawaii from SIR-C radar...topography, tectonic surface deformation, bulging and subsidence (earthquakes, volcanoes , geo-thermal fields and artesian irrigation, ice fields), glacial...J.J. and Y-J. Kim, 2000, "The relationship between radar polarimetric and interferometric phase," Presented at IGARSS�, Honolulu, Hawaii , July

  10. Near-Simultaneous Spectroscopic and Broadband Polarimetric Observations of Be Stars

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ghosh, K.; Iyengar, K. V. K.; Ramsey, B. D.; Austin, R. A.

    1999-01-01

    Near simultaneous optical spectroscopic (on four nights) and broadband linear continuum (B, V, R, and I bands) polarimetric (on seven nights) observations of 29 Be stars were carried out during 1993 November-December. The program Be stars displayed wavelength dependence of intrinsic polarizations with no frequency dependence of polarimetric position angles. Some of the Be stars displayed long-term polarization variability. The Be and Be-shell stars could not be distinguished from one another solely on the basis of their polarization values. Full widths at half-maximum of the H.alpha profiles and the intrinsic linear continuum polarizations are closely correlated with the projected rotational velocities of the program stars. Photospheric-absorption-corrected equivalent widths of H.alpha profiles [W(alpha)] and the radii of H.alpha-emitting or -absorbing envelopes (R(sub e) or R(sub a)) are nonlinearly correlated with the intrinsic continuum polarizations of these stars. However, W(alpha) and R(sub e) are linearly correlated. With large uncertainties, there is a trend of spectral dependence of polarization. Detailed discussion of these results is presented in this paper.

  11. Comparison with CLPX II airborne data using DMRT model

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Xu, X.; Liang, D.; Andreadis, K.M.; Tsang, L.; Josberger, E.G.

    2009-01-01

    In this paper, we considered a physical-based model which use numerical solution of Maxwell Equations in three-dimensional simulations and apply into Dense Media Radiative Theory (DMRT). The model is validated in two specific dataset from the second Cold Land Processes Experiment (CLPX II) at Alaska and Colorado. The data were all obtain by the Ku-band (13.95GHz) observations using airborne imaging polarimetric scatterometer (POLSCAT). Snow is a densely packed media. To take into account the collective scattering and incoherent scattering, analytical Quasi-Crystalline Approximation (QCA) and Numerical Maxwell Equation Method of 3-D simulation (NMM3D) are used to calculate the extinction coefficient and phase matrix. DMRT equations were solved by iterative solution up to 2nd order for the case of small optical thickness and full multiple scattering solution by decomposing the diffuse intensities into Fourier series was used when optical thickness exceed unity. It was shown that the model predictions agree with the field experiment not only co-polarization but also cross-polarization. For Alaska region, the input snow structure data was obtain by the in situ ground observations, while for Colorado region, we combined the VIC model to get the snow profile. ??2009 IEEE.

  12. PEPSI: the Potsdam Echelle Polarimetric and Spectroscopic Instrument for the LBT

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Strassmeier, K. G.; Woche, M.; Ilyin, I.; Popow, E.; Bauer, S.-M.; Dionies, F.; Fechner, T.; Weber, M.; Hofmann, A.; Storm, J.; Materne, R.; Bittner, W.; Bartus, J.; Granzer, T.; Denker, C.; Carroll, T.; Kopf, M.; DiVarano, I.; Beckert, E.; Lesser, M.

    2008-07-01

    We present the status of PEPSI, the bench-mounted fibre-fed and stabilized "Potsdam Echelle Polarimetric and Spectroscopic Instrument" for the 2×8.4m Large Binocular Telescope in southern Arizona. PEPSI is under construction at AIP and is scheduled for first light in 2009/10. Its ultra-high-resolution mode will deliver an unprecedented spectral resolution of approximately R=310,000 at high efficiency throughout the entire optical/red wavelength range 390-1050nm without the need for adaptive optics. Besides its polarimetric Stokes IQUV mode, the capability to cover the entire optical range in three exposures at resolutions of 40,000, 130,000 and 310,000 will surpass all existing facilities in terms of light-gathering-power times spectral-coverage product. A solar feed will make use of the spectrograph also during day time. As such, we hope that PEPSI will be the most powerful spectrometer of its kind for the years to come.

  13. A new clustering algorithm applicable to multispectral and polarimetric SAR images

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wong, Yiu-Fai; Posner, Edward C.

    1993-01-01

    We describe an application of a scale-space clustering algorithm to the classification of a multispectral and polarimetric SAR image of an agricultural site. After the initial polarimetric and radiometric calibration and noise cancellation, we extracted a 12-dimensional feature vector for each pixel from the scattering matrix. The clustering algorithm was able to partition a set of unlabeled feature vectors from 13 selected sites, each site corresponding to a distinct crop, into 13 clusters without any supervision. The cluster parameters were then used to classify the whole image. The classification map is much less noisy and more accurate than those obtained by hierarchical rules. Starting with every point as a cluster, the algorithm works by melting the system to produce a tree of clusters in the scale space. It can cluster data in any multidimensional space and is insensitive to variability in cluster densities, sizes and ellipsoidal shapes. This algorithm, more powerful than existing ones, may be useful for remote sensing for land use.

  14. Linear polarizer local characterizations by polarimetric imaging for applications to polarimetric sensors for torque measurement for hybrid cars

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Georges, F.; Remouche, M.; Meyrueis, P.

    2011-06-01

    Usually manufacturer's specifications do not deal with the ability of linear sheet polarizers to have a constant transmittance function over their geometric area. These parameters are fundamental for developing low cost polarimetric sensors(for instance rotation, torque, displacement) specifically for hybrid car (thermic + electricity power). It is then necessary to specially characterize commercial polarizers sheets to find if they are adapted to this kind of applications. In this paper, we present measuring methods and bench developed for this purpose, and some preliminary characterization results. We state conclusions for effective applications to hybrid car gearbox control and monitoring.

  15. Ex vivo Mueller polarimetric imaging of the uterine cervix: a first statistical evaluation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rehbinder, Jean; Haddad, Huda; Deby, Stanislas; Teig, Benjamin; Nazac, André; Novikova, Tatiana; Pierangelo, Angelo; Moreau, François

    2016-07-01

    Early detection through screening plays a major role in reducing the impact of cervical cancer on patients. When detected before the invasive stage, precancerous lesions can be eliminated with very limited surgery. Polarimetric imaging is a potential alternative to the standard screening methods currently used. In a previous proof-of-concept study, significant contrasts have been found in polarimetric images acquired for healthy and precancerous regions of excised cervical tissue. To quantify the ability of the technique to differentiate between healthy and precancerous tissue, polarimetric images of seventeen cervical conization specimens (cone-shaped or cylindrical wedges from the uterine cervix) are compared with results from histopathological diagnoses, which is considered to be the "gold standard." The sensitivity and specificity of the technique are calculated for images acquired at wavelengths of 450, 550, and 600 nm, aiming to differentiate between high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN 2-3) and healthy squamous epithelium. To do so, a sliding threshold for the scalar retardance parameter was used for the sample zones, as labeled after histological diagnosis. An optimized value of ˜83% is achieved for both sensitivity and specificity for images acquired at 450 nm and for a threshold scalar retardance value of 10.6 deg. This study paves the way for an application of polarimetry in the clinic.

  16. Polarimetric Decomposition Analysis of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Slick Using L-Band UAVSAR Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jones, Cathleen; Minchew, Brent; Holt, Benjamin

    2011-01-01

    We report here an analysis of the polarization dependence of L-band radar backscatter from the main slick of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, with specific attention to the utility of polarimetric decomposition analysis for discrimination of oil from clean water and identification of variations in the oil characteristics. For this study we used data collected with the UAVSAR instrument from opposing look directions directly over the main oil slick. We find that both the Cloude-Pottier and Shannon entropy polarimetric decomposition methods offer promise for oil discrimination, with the Shannon entropy method yielding the same information as contained in the Cloude-Pottier entropy and averaged in tensity parameters, but with significantly less computational complexity

  17. Airborne precursor missions in support of SIR-C/X-SAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Evans, D.; Oettl, H.; Pampaloni, P.

    1991-01-01

    The NASA DC-8 and DLR E-SAR airborne imaging radars have been deployed over several sites in Europe and the U.S. in support of SIR-C/X-SAR (Shuttle Imaging Radar-C/X-Synthetic Aperture Radar) science team investigations. To date, data have been acquired in support of studies of alpine glaciers, forests, geology, oceanography, and calibration. An experimental campaign with airborne sensors will take place in Europe in June to July 1991 which will allow multitemporal surveys of several Europeans sites. Current plans are for calibration and ecology experiments to be undertaken in Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom. Coordinated multitemporal aircraft and ground campaigns are planned in support of hydrology experiments in Italy, the United Kingdom, and Austria. Data will also be acquired in support of oceanogrqhy in the Gulf of Genova, North Atlantic, Straits of Messina and the North Sea. Geology sites will include Campi Flegrei and Vesuvio, Italy.

  18. Polarimetric LIDAR with FRI sampling for target characterization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wijerathna, Erandi; Creusere, Charles D.; Voelz, David; Castorena, Juan

    2017-09-01

    Polarimetric LIDAR is a significant tool for current remote sensing applications. In addition, measurement of the full waveform of the LIDAR echo provides improved ranging and target discrimination, although, data storage volume in this approach can be problematic. In the work presented here, we investigated the practical issues related to the implementation of a full waveform LIDAR system to identify polarization characteristics of multiple targets within the footprint of the illumination beam. This work was carried out on a laboratory LIDAR testbed that features a flexible arrangement of targets and the ability to change the target polarization characteristics. Targets with different retardance characteristics were illuminated with a linearly polarized laser beam and the return pulse intensities were analyzed by rotating a linear analyzer polarizer in front of a high-speed detector. Additionally, we explored the applicability and the limitations of applying a sparse sampling approach based on Finite Rate of Innovations (FRI) to compress and recover the characteristic parameters of the pulses reflected from the targets. The pulse parameter values extracted by the FRI analysis were accurate and we successfully distinguished the polarimetric characteristics and the range of multiple targets at different depths within the same beam footprint. We also demonstrated the recovery of an unknown target retardance value from the echoes by applying a Mueller matrix system model.

  19. Evaluation of AirMSPI photopolarimetric retrievals of smoke properties with in-situ observations collected during the ImPACT-PM field campaign

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalashnikova, O. V.; Garay, M. J.; Xu, F.; Seidel, F.; Diner, D. J.; Seinfeld, J.; Bates, K. H.; Kong, W.; Kenseth, C.; Cappa, C. D.

    2017-12-01

    We introduce and evaluate an approach for obtaining closure between in situ and polarimetric remote sensing observations of smoke properties obtained during the collocated CIRPAS Twin Otter and ER-2 aircraft measurements of the Lebec fire event on July 8, 2016. We investigate the utility of multi-angle, spectropolarimetric remote sensing imagery to evaluate the relative contribution of organics, non-organic and black carbon particles to smoke particulate composition. The remote sensing data were collected during the Imaging Polarimetric and Characterization of Tropospheric Particular Matter (ImPACT-PM) field campaign by the Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI), which flew on NASA's high-altitude ER-2 aircraft. The ImPACT-PM field campaign was a joint JPL/Caltech effort to combine measurements from the Terra Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR), AirMSPI, in situ airborne measurements, and a chemical transport model to validate remote sensing retrievals of different types of airborne particulate matter with a particular emphasis on carbonaceous aerosols. The in-situ aerosol data were collected with a suite of Caltech instruments on board the CIRPAS Twin Otter aircraft and included the Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS), the Differential Mobility Analyzer (DMA), and the Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP-2). The CIRPAS Twin Otter aircraft was also equipped with the Particle Soot Absorption Photometer (PSAP), nephelometer, a particle counter, and meteorological sensors. We found that the multi-angle polarimetric observations are capable of fire particulate emission monitoring by particle type as inferred from the in-situ airborne measurements. Modeling of retrieval sensitivities show that the characterization of black carbon is the most challenging. The work aims at evaluating multi-angle, spectropolarimetric capabilities for particulate matter characterization in support of the Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) satellite investigation

  20. UAV-based L-band SAR with precision flight path control

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Madsen, Soren N.; Hensley, Scott; Wheeler, Kevin; Sadowy, Gregory A.; Miller, Tim; Muellerschoen, Ron; Lou, Yunling; Rosen, Paul A.

    2005-01-01

    NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is currently implementing a reconfigurable polarimetric L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), specifically designed to acquire airborne repeat track interferometric (RTI) SAR data, also know as differential interferometric measurements. Differential interferometry can provide key displacement measurements, important for the scientific studies of Earthquakes and volcanoes1. Using precision real-time GPS and a sensor controlled flight management system, the system will be able to fly predefined paths with great precision. The radar will be designed to operate on a UAV (Unmanned Arial Vehicle) but will initially be demonstrated on a minimally piloted vehicle (MPV), such as the Proteus build by Scaled Composites. The application requires control of the flight path to within a 10 m tube to support repeat track and formation flying measurements. The design is fully polarimetric with an 80 MHz bandwidth (2 m range resolution) and 16 km range swath. The antenna is an electronically steered array to assure that the actual antenna pointing can be controlled independent of the wind direction and speed. The system will nominally operate at 45,000 ft. The program started out as a Instrument Incubator Project (IIP) funded by NASA Earth Science and Technology Office (ESTO).

  1. UAV-Based L-Band SAR with Precision Flight Path Control

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Madsen, Soren N.; Hensley, Scott; Wheeler, Kevin; Sadowy, Greg; Miller, Tim; Muellerschoen, Ron; Lou, Yunling; Rosen, Paul

    2004-01-01

    NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is currently implementing a reconfigurable polarimetric L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), specifically designed to acquire airborne repeat track interferometric (RTI) SAR data, also know as differential interferometric measurements. Differential interferometry can provide key displacement measurements, important for the scientific studies of Earthquakes and volcanoes. Using precision real-time GPS and a sensor controlled flight management system, the system will be able to fly predefined paths with great precision. The radar will be designed to operate on a UAV (Unmanned Arial Vehicle) but will initially be demonstrated on a minimally piloted vehicle (MPV), such as the Proteus build by Scaled Composites. The application requires control of the flight path to within a 10 meter tube to support repeat track and formation flying measurements. The design is fully polarimetric with an 80 MHz bandwidth (2 meter range resolution) and 16 kilometer range swath. The antenna is an electronically steered array to assure that the actual antenna pointing can be controlled independent of the wind direction and speed. The system will nominally operate at 45,000 ft. The program started out as a Instrument Incubator Project (IIP) funded by NASA Earth Science and Technology Office (ESTO).

  2. Determining Snow Depth Using Airborne Multi-Pass Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-09-01

    relatively low resolution 10m DEM of the survey area was obtained from the USDA NAIP and then geocorrected to match the SAR image area. Centered on...Propulsion Laboratory LiDAR Light Detection and Ranging METAR Meteorological reporting observations medivac Medical Evacuation NASA National...Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SIR-C/X- SAR) mission was a joint National Aeronautical and Space Administration ( NASA

  3. Surface Water Detection Using Fused Synthetic Aperture Radar, Airborne LiDAR and Optical Imagery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Braun, A.; Irwin, K.; Beaulne, D.; Fotopoulos, G.; Lougheed, S. C.

    2016-12-01

    Each remote sensing technique has its unique set of strengths and weaknesses, but by combining techniques the classification accuracy can be increased. The goal of this project is to underline the strengths and weaknesses of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), LiDAR and optical imagery data and highlight the opportunities where integration of the three data types can increase the accuracy of identifying water in a principally natural landscape. The study area is located at the Queen's University Biological Station, Ontario, Canada. TerraSAR-X (TSX) data was acquired between April and July 2016, consisting of four single polarization (HH) staring spotlight mode backscatter intensity images. Grey-level thresholding is used to extract surface water bodies, before identifying and masking zones of radar shadow and layover by using LiDAR elevation models to estimate the canopy height and applying simple geometry algorithms. The airborne LiDAR survey was conducted in June 2014, resulting in a discrete return dataset with a density of 1 point/m2. Radiometric calibration to correct for range and incidence angle is applied, before classifying the points as water or land based on corrected intensity, elevation, roughness, and intensity density. Panchromatic and multispectral (4-band) imagery from Quickbird was collected in September 2005 at spatial resolutions of 0.6m and 2.5m respectively. Pixel-based classification is applied to identify and distinguish water bodies from land. A classification system which inputs SAR-, LiDAR- and optically-derived water presence models in raster formats is developed to exploit the strengths and weaknesses of each technique. The total percentage of water detected in the sample area for SAR backscatter, LiDAR intensity, and optical imagery was 27%, 19% and 18% respectively. The output matrix of the classification system indicates that in over 72% of the study area all three methods agree on the classification. Analysis was specifically targeted

  4. Airborne wireless communication systems, airborne communication methods, and communication methods

    DOEpatents

    Deaton, Juan D [Menan, ID; Schmitt, Michael J [Idaho Falls, ID; Jones, Warren F [Idaho Falls, ID

    2011-12-13

    An airborne wireless communication system includes circuitry configured to access information describing a configuration of a terrestrial wireless communication base station that has become disabled. The terrestrial base station is configured to implement wireless communication between wireless devices located within a geographical area and a network when the terrestrial base station is not disabled. The circuitry is further configured, based on the information, to configure the airborne station to have the configuration of the terrestrial base station. An airborne communication method includes answering a 911 call from a terrestrial cellular wireless phone using an airborne wireless communication system.

  5. Phase of Target Scattering for Wetland Characterization using Polarimetric C-Band SAR

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Touzi, R; Deschamps, Mireille C; Rother, Gernot

    2009-09-01

    Wetlands continue to be under threat, and there is a major need for mapping and monitoring wetlands for better management and protection of these sensitive areas. Only a few studies have been published on wetland characterization using polarimetric synthetic aperture radars (SARs). The most successful results have been obtained using the phase difference between HH and VV polarizations, phi{sub HH} - phi{sub VV}, which has shown promise for separating flooded wetland classes. Recently, we have introduced a new decomposition, the Touzi decomposition, which describes target scattering type in terms of a complex entity, the symmetric scattering type. Huynen's target helicitymore » is used to assess the symmetric nature of target scattering. In this paper, the new complex-scattering-type parameters, the magnitude alphas and phase Phi{sub alpha} s, are investigated for wetland characterization. The use of the dominant-scattering-type phase Phi{sub alpha} s makes it possible to discriminate shrub bogs from poor (sedge or shrub) fens. These two classes cannot be separated using phi{sub HH} - phi{sub VV}, or the radiometric scattering information provided by alphas, the Cloude alpha, the entropy H, and the multipolarization HH-HV-VV channels. phi{sub alpha} s, which cannot detect deep (45 cm below the peat surface) water flow in a bog, is more sensitive to the shallower (10-20-cm) fen beneath water, and this makes possible the separation of poor fens from shrub bogs. Phi{sub alpha} s also permits the discrimination of conifer-dominated treed bog from upland deciduous forest under leafy conditions. Target helicity information is exploited to introduce a new parameter, the target asymmetry. The latter is shown very promising for detection of forest changes between leafy and no-leaf conditions. The analysis of low-entropy marsh scattering showed that both the scattering-type magnitude and phas- - e alphas and Phi{sub alpha} s, respectively, as well as the maximum

  6. A polarimetric survey of symbiotic stars

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schulte-Ladbeck, R. E.; Aspin, C.; Magalhaes, A. M.; Schwarz, H. E.

    1990-01-01

    Optical and near-infrared polarization observations of 24 symbiotic stars, 14 observed with polarimetry for the first time are presented. In combination with published data, it is found that about 50 percent of the symbiotics observed polarimetrically show evidence for intrinsic polarization. The results are discussed in the light of previous observations, and comments are made on the temporal variability and wavelength dependence of the polarization. Dust scattering is identified as the dominant mechanism producing polarization in symbiotic stars. While it cannot be excluded that some symbiotic systems are completely engulfed in their dust shells, the data indicate that the H-alpha emission line may originate from outside of the dust-scattering envelopes in some systems.

  7. The first international workshop on "Advancement of POLarimetric Observations: calibration and improved aerosol retrievals": APOLO-2017

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dubovik, Oleg; Li, Zhengqiang; Mishchenko, Michael I.

    2018-06-01

    The international workshop on "Advancement of POLarimetric Observations: calibration and improved aerosol retrievals-2017" (APOLO-2017) took place in Hefei, China on 24 - 27 October 2017. This was the inaugural meeting of a planned series of workshops on satellite polarimetry aimed at addressing the rapidly growing interest of the scientific community in polarimetric remote-sensing observations from space. The workshop was held at the Anhui Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Hefei, widely known for 15 years of experience in the development of research polarimetry sensors and for hosting the building in parallel of several orbital polarimeters.

  8. Examining Scattering Mechanisms within Bubbled Freshwater Lake Ice using a Time-Series of RADARSAT-2 (C-band) and UW-Scat (X-, Ku-band) Polarimetric Observations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gunn, Grant; Duguay, Claude; Atwood, Don

    2017-04-01

    This study identifies the dominant scattering mechanism for C-, X- and Ku-band for bubbled freshwater lake ice in the Hudson Bay Lowlands near Churchill, Canada, using a winter time series of fully polarimetric ground-based (X- and Ku-band, UW-Scat) scatterometer and spaceborne (C-band) synthetic aperture radar (SAR, Radarsat-2) observations collected coincidentally to in-situ snow and ice measurements. Scatterometer observations identify two dominant backscatter sources from the ice cover: the snow-ice, and ice-water interface. Using in-situ measurements as ground-truth, a winter time series of scatterometer and satellite acquisitions show increases in backscatter from the ice-water interface prior to the timing of tubular bubble development in the ice cover. This timing indicates that scattering in the ice is independent of double-bounce scatter caused by tubular bubble inclusions. Concurrently, the co-polarized phase difference of interactions at the ice-water interface from both scatterometer and SAR observations are centred at 0° throughout the time series, indicating a scattering regime other than double bounce. A Yamaguchi three-component decomposition of SAR observations is presented for C-band acquisitions indicating a dominant single-bounce scattering mechanism regime, which is hypothesized to be a result of an ice-water interface that presents a rough surface or a surface composed of preferentially oriented facets. This study is the first to present a winter time series of coincident ground-based and spaceborne fully polarimetric active microwave observations for bubbled freshwater lake ice.

  9. Modeling L-band synthetic aperture radar observations through dielectric changes in soil moisture and vegetation over shrublands

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    L-band airborne synthetic aperture radar observations were made over California shrublands to better understand the effects by soil and vegetation parameters on backscatter. Temporal changes in radar backscattering coefficient (s0) of up to 3 dB were highly correlated to surface soil moisture but no...

  10. Airborne Windshear Detection and Warning Systems. Fifth and Final Combined Manufacturers' and Technologists' Conference, part 1

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Delnore, Victor E. (Compiler)

    1994-01-01

    The Fifth (and Final) Combined Manufacturers' and Technologists' Airborne Windshear Review Meeting was hosted jointly by the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in Hampton, Virginia, on September 28-30, 1993. The purpose of the meeting was to report on the highly successful windshear experiments conducted by government, academic institutions, and industry; to transfer the results to regulators, manufacturers, and users; and to set initiatives for future aeronautics technology research. The formal sessions covered recent developments in windshear flight testing; windshear modeling, flight management, and ground-based systems; airborne windshear detection systems; certification and regulatory issues; development and applications of sensors for wake vortex detection; and synthetic and enhanced vision systems.

  11. Radar scattering from desert terrains, Pisgah/Lavic Region, California: Implications for Magellan

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Plaut, J. J.; Arvidson, R. E.; Wall, S.

    1989-01-01

    A major component of the 1988 Mojave Field Experiment involved the simultaneous acquisition of quad-polarization multifrequency airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imaging radar data and ground measurements thought to be relevant to the radar scattering behavior of a variety of desert surfaces. In preparation for the Magellan mission to Venus, the experiment was designed to explore the ability of SAR to distinguish types of geological surfaces, and the effects of varying incidence angles on the appearance of such surfaces. The airborne SAR system acquired images at approx. 10 m resolution, at 3 incidence angles (30, 40, 50 degs) and at 3 wavelengths (P:68 cm, L:24 cm, C:5.6 cm). The polarimetric capabilities of the instrument allow the simulation of any combination of transmit and receive polarizations during data reduction. Calibrated trihedral corner reflectors were deployed within each scene to permit absolute radiometric calibration of the image data. Initial analyses of this comprehensive radar data set is reported, with emphasis on implications for interpretation of Magellan data.

  12. Full polarimetric millimetre wave radar for stand-off security screening

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Blackhurst, Eddie; Salmon, Neil; Southgate, Matthew

    2017-10-01

    The development and measurements are described of a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) mono-static millimetre wave full polarimetric radar, operating at k-band (18 to 26 GHz). The system has been designed to explore the feasibility of using full polarimetry for the detection of concealed weapons, and person borne improvised explosive devices (PBIED). The philosophy of this scheme is a means to extract the maximum information content from a target which is normally in the single spatial pixel (sometimes sub-pixel) configuration in stand-off (tens of metres) and crowd surveillance scenarios. The radar comprises a vector network analyser (VNA), an orthomode transducer and a conical horn antenna. A calibration strategy is discussed and demonstrated using a variety of known calibration targets with known reflective properties, including a flat metal plate, dihedral reflector, metal sphere, helix and dipole. The orthomode transducer is based on a high performance linear polarizer of the turnstile type with isolation better than - 35dB between orthogonal polarisations. The calibration enables the polarimetric Sinclair scattering matrix to be measured at each frequency for coherent polarimetry, and this can be extended using multiple measurements via the Kennaugh matrix to investigate incoherent full polarimetry.

  13. A near-infrared, optical, and ultraviolet polarimetric and timing investigation of complex equatorial dusty structures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Marin, F.; Rojas Lobos, P. A.; Hameury, J. M.; Goosmann, R. W.

    2018-05-01

    Context. From stars to active galactic nuclei, many astrophysical systems are surrounded by an equatorial distribution of dusty material that is, in a number of cases, spatially unresolved even with cutting edge facilities. Aims: In this paper, we investigate if and how one can determine the unresolved and heterogeneous morphology of dust distribution around a central bright source using time-resolved polarimetric observations. Methods: We used polarized radiative transfer simulations to study a sample of circumnuclear dusty morphologies. We explored a grid of geometrically variable models that are uniform, fragmented, and density stratified in the near-infrared, optical, and ultraviolet bands, and we present their distinctive time-dependent polarimetric signatures. Results: As expected, varying the structure of the obscuring equatorial disk has a deep impact on the inclination-dependent flux, polarization degree and angle, and time lags we observe. We find that stratified media are distinguishable by time-resolved polarimetric observations, and that the expected polarization is much higher in the infrared band than in the ultraviolet. However, because of the physical scales imposed by dust sublimation, the average time lags of months to years between the total and polarized fluxes are important; these time lags lengthens the observational campaigns necessary to break more sophisticated, and therefore also more degenerated, models. In the ultraviolet band, time lags are slightly shorter than in the infrared or optical bands, and, coupled to lower diluting starlight fluxes, time-resolved polarimetry in the UV appears more promising for future campaigns. Conclusions: Equatorial dusty disks differ in terms of inclination-dependent photometric, polarimetric, and timing observables, but only the coupling of these different markers can lead to inclination-independent constraints on the unresolved structures. Even though it is complex and time consuming, polarized

  14. Remote sensing of Earth terrain

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kong, Jin AU; Shin, Robert T.; Nghiem, Son V.; Yueh, Herng-Aung; Han, Hsiu C.; Lim, Harold H.; Arnold, David V.

    1990-01-01

    Remote sensing of earth terrain is examined. The layered random medium model is used to investigate the fully polarimetric scattering of electromagnetic waves from vegetation. The model is used to interpret the measured data for vegetation fields such as rice, wheat, or soybean over water or soil. Accurate calibration of polarimetric radar systems is essential for the polarimetric remote sensing of earth terrain. A polarimetric calibration algorithm using three arbitrary in-scene reflectors is developed. In the interpretation of active and passive microwave remote sensing data from the earth terrain, the random medium model was shown to be quite successful. A multivariate K-distribution is proposed to model the statistics of fully polarimetric radar returns from earth terrain. In the terrain cover classification using the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images, the applications of the K-distribution model will provide better performance than the conventional Gaussian classifiers. The layered random medium model is used to study the polarimetric response of sea ice. Supervised and unsupervised classification procedures are also developed and applied to synthetic aperture radar polarimetric images in order to identify their various earth terrain components for more than two classes. These classification procedures were applied to San Francisco Bay and Traverse City SAR images.

  15. Surface water classification and monitoring using polarimetric synthetic aperture radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Irwin, Katherine Elizabeth

    Surface water classification using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is an established practice for monitoring flood hazards due to the high temporal and spatial resolution it provides. Surface water change is a dynamic process that varies both spatially and temporally, and can occur on various scales resulting in significant impacts on affected areas. Small-scale flooding hazards, caused by beaver dam failure, is an example of surface water change, which can impact nearby infrastructure and ecosystems. Assessing these hazards is essential to transportation and infrastructure maintenance. With current satellite missions operating in multiple polarizations, spatio-temporal resolutions, and frequencies, a comprehensive comparison between SAR products for surface water monitoring is necessary. In this thesis, surface water extent models derived from high resolution single-polarization TerraSAR-X (TSX) data, medium resolution dual-polarization TSX data and low resolution quad-polarization RADARSAT-2 (RS-2) data are compared. There exists a compromise between acquiring SAR data with a high resolution or high information content. Multi-polarization data provides additional phase and intensity information, which makes it possible to better classify areas of flooded vegetation and wetlands. These locations are often where fluctuations in surface water occur and are essential for understanding dynamic underlying processes. However, often multi-polarized data is acquired at a low resolution, which cannot image these zones effectively. High spatial resolution, single-polarization TSX data provides the best model of open water. However, these single-polarization observations have limited information content and are affected by shadow and layover errors. This often hinders the classification of other land cover types. The dual-polarization TSX data allows for the classification of flooded vegetation, but classification is less accurate compared to the quad-polarization RS-2 data

  16. TELAER: a multi-mode/multi-antenna interferometric airborne SAR system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Perna, Stefano; Amaral, Tiago; Berardino, Paolo; Esposito, Carmen; Jackson, Giuseppe; Pauciullo, Antonio; Vaz Junior, Eurico; Wimmer, Christian; Lanari, Riccardo

    2014-05-01

    The present contribution is aimed at showing the capabilities of the TELAER airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) system recently upgraded to the interferometric mode [1]. TELAER is an Italian airborne X-Band SAR system, mounted onboard a LearJet 35A aircraft. Originally equipped with a single TX/RX antenna, it now operates in single-pass interferometric mode thanks to a system upgrading [1] funded by the Italian National Research Council (CNR), via the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research (MIUR), in the framework of a cooperation between CNR and the Italian Agency for Agriculture Subsidy Payments (AGEA). In the frame of such cooperation, CNR has entrusted the Institute for Electromagnetic Sensing of the Environment (IREA) for managing all the activities, included the final flight tests, related to the system upgrading. According to such an upgrading, two additional receiving X-band antennas have been installed in order to allow, simultaneously, single-pass Across-Track and Along-Track interferometry [1]. More specifically, the three antennas are now installed in such a way to produce three different across-track baselines and two different along-track baselines. Moreover, in the frame of the same system upgrading, it has been mounted onboard the Learjet an accurate embedded Global Navigation Satellite System and Inertial Measurement Unit equipment. This allows precise measurement of the tracks described by the SAR antennas during the flight, in order to accurately implement Motion Compensation (MOCO) algorithms [2] during the image formation (focusing) step. It is worth remarking that the TELAER system upgraded to the interferometric mode is very flexible, since the user can set different operational modes characterized by different geometric resolutions and range swaths. In particular, it is possible to reach up to 0.5 m of resolution with a range swath of 2km; conversely, it is possible to enlarge the range swath up to 10 km at expenses of

  17. A post-Rosetta understanding of polarimetric observations of comets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Levasseur-Regourd, A. Chantal; Ciarletti, Valérie; Hadamcik, Edith; Lasue, Jérémie; Mannel, Thurid

    2017-04-01

    Numerous polarimetric observations of solar light scattered by dust in cometary comae have been obtained by various teams, providing phase angle and wavelength dependences for many comets and revealing different classes of comets [e.g., 1]. Besides, numerical and experimental simulations have suggested interpretations for such observations. The Rosetta long duration rendezvous with comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (thereafter 67P/C-G) now allows us to compare our understanding of the polarimetric properties of cometary dust with the ground-truth provided by the Rosetta mission, at least for two typical results. First, some comets present a highly-polarized positive branch, the most conspicuous case being that of new comet C/1995 O1 Hale-Bopp [2], while other comets suffering a partial fragmentation or a total disruption, such as C/1995 S4 LINEAR [3], present a significant increase in polarization. We will discuss these observations in the context of evidence for changes between the porosity (and possibly the dust/ice ratio) of the subsurface and of the interior of 67P/C-G, a periodic Jupiter Family Comet, as derived from analyses [4] of the CONSERT bi-static radar measurements on board Rosetta and Philae. Secondly, numerical simulations of the phase and wavelength dependence of polarimetric observations of some comets (extensively observed on a wide range of wavelengths and phase angles) have suggested the presence of fractal, likely-porous aggregates and of compact particles within their comae [e.g., 5]. We will review such results in the context of evidence for porous and compact aggregates of submicron-sized grains in the inner coma of 67P/C-G [6], as given by 3D images (with a resolution down to tens of nanometers) of the MIDAS atomic force microscope on board Rosetta. References: [1] Kiselev et al., 2015, In Polarization of stars and planetary systems, CUP 379-404. [2] Levasseur-Regourd & Hadamcik, 2003, JQSRT 79-80, 903-910. [3] Hadamcik & Levasseur

  18. Evaluation and display of polarimetric image data using long-wave cooled microgrid focal plane arrays

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bowers, David L.; Boger, James K.; Wellems, L. David; Black, Wiley T.; Ortega, Steve E.; Ratliff, Bradley M.; Fetrow, Matthew P.; Hubbs, John E.; Tyo, J. Scott

    2006-05-01

    Recent developments for Long Wave InfraRed (LWIR) imaging polarimeters include incorporating a microgrid polarizer array onto the focal plane array (FPA). Inherent advantages over typical polarimeters include packaging and instantaneous acquisition of thermal and polarimetric information. This allows for real time video of thermal and polarimetric products. The microgrid approach has inherent polarization measurement error due to the spatial sampling of a non-uniform scene, residual pixel to pixel variations in the gain corrected responsivity and in the noise equivalent input (NEI), and variations in the pixel to pixel micro-polarizer performance. The Degree of Linear Polarization (DoLP) is highly sensitive to these parameters and is consequently used as a metric to explore instrument sensitivities. Image processing and fusion techniques are used to take advantage of the inherent thermal and polarimetric sensing capability of this FPA, providing additional scene information in real time. Optimal operating conditions are employed to improve FPA uniformity and sensitivity. Data from two DRS Infrared Technologies, L.P. (DRS) microgrid polarizer HgCdTe FPAs are presented. One FPA resides in a liquid nitrogen (LN2) pour filled dewar with a 80°K nominal operating temperature. The other FPA resides in a cryogenic (cryo) dewar with a 60° K nominal operating temperature.

  19. Multispectral Mueller polarimetric imaging detecting residual cancer and cancer regression after neoadjuvant treatment for colorectal carcinomas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pierangelo, Angelo; Manhas, Sandeep; Benali, Abdelali; Fallet, Clément; Totobenazara, Jean-Laurent; Antonelli, Maria-Rosaria; Novikova, Tatiana; Gayet, Brice; De Martino, Antonello; Validire, Pierre

    2013-04-01

    This work is devoted to a first exploration of Mueller polarimetric imaging for the detection of residual cancer after neoadjuvant treatment for the rectum. Three samples of colorectal carcinomas treated by radiochemotherapy together with one untreated sample are analyzed ex vivo before fixation in formalin by using a multispectral Mueller polarimetric imaging system operated from 500 to 700 nm. The Mueller images, analyzed using the Lu-Chipmann decomposition, show negligible diattenuation and retardation. The nonirradiated rectum exhibits a variation of depolarization with cancer evolution stage. At all wavelengths on irradiated samples, the contrast between the footprint of the initial tumor and surrounding healthy tissue is found to be much smaller for complete tumor regression than when a residual tumor is present, even at volume fractions of the order of 5%. This high sensitivity is attributed to the modification of stromal collagen induced by the cancer. The depolarization contrast between treated cancer and healthy tissue is found to increase monotonously with the volume fraction of residual cancer in the red part of the spectrum. Polarimetric imaging is a promising technique for detecting short-time small residual cancers, which is valuable information for pathological diagnosis and patient management by clinicians.

  20. Integration of AIRSAR and AVIRIS data for Trail Canyon alluvial fan, Death Valley, California

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kierein-Young, Kathryn S.

    1995-01-01

    Combining quantitative geophysical information extracted from the optical and microwave wavelengths provides complementary information about both the surface mineralogy and morphology. This study combines inversion results from two remote sensing instruments, a polarimetric synthetic aperture radar, AIRSAR, and an imaging spectrometer, AVIRIS, for Trail Canyon alluvial fan in Death Valley, California. The NASA/JPL Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) is a quad-polarization, three frequency instrument. AIRSAR collects data at C-band = 5.66 cm, L-band = 23.98 cm, and P-band = 68.13 cm. The data are processed to four-looks and have a spatial resolution of 10 m and a swath width of 12 km. The AIRSAR data used in this study were collected as part of the Geologic Remote Sensing Field Experiment (GRSFE) over Death Valley on 9/14/89. The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) is a NASA/JPL instrument that flies in an ER-2 aircraft at an altitude of 20 km. AVIRIS uses four spectrometers to collect data in 224 spectral channels from 0.4 micrometer to 2.45 micrometer. The width of each spectral band is approximately 10 nm. AVIRIS collects data with a swath width of 11 km and a pixel size of 20 m. The AVIRIS data used in this study were collected over Death Valley on 5/31/92.

  1. On the equivalence of the dual-wavelength and polarimetric equations for estimation of the raindrop size distribution

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Meneghini, Robert; Liao, Liang

    2006-01-01

    In writing the integral equations for the median mass diameter and particle concentration, or comparable parameters of the raindrop size distribution, it is apparent that when attenuation effects are included, the forms of the equations for polarimetric and dual wavelength radars are identical. In both sets of equations, differences in the backscattering and extinction cross sections appear: in the polarimetric equations, the differences are taken with respect polarization at a fixed frequency while for the dual wavelength equations, the differences are taken with respect to wavelength at a fixed polarization. Because the forms of the equations are the same, the ways in which they can be solved are similar as well. To avoid instabilities in the forward recursion procedure, the equations can be expressed in the form of a final-value. Solving the equations in this way traditionally has required estimates of the path attenuations to the final gate: either the attenuations at horizontal and vertical polarizations at the same frequency or attenuations at two frequencies with the same polarization. This has been done for dual-frequency (air/spaceborne case) and polarimetric radars by the respective use of the surface reference technique and the differential phase shift. An alternative to solving the constrained version of the equations is an iterative procedure recently proposed in which independent estimates of path attenuation are not required. Although the procedure has limitations, it appears to be quite useful. Simulations of the retrievals help clarify the relationship between the constrained and unconstrained approaches and their application to the polarimetric and dual-wavelength equations.

  2. Sub-Seasonal Variability of Tropical Rainfall Observed by TRMM and Ground-based Polarimetric Radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dolan, Brenda; Rutledge, Steven; Lang, Timothy; Cifelli, Robert; Nesbitt, Stephen

    2010-05-01

    Studies of tropical precipitation characteristics from the TRMM-LBA and NAME field campaigns using ground-based polarimetric S-band data have revealed significant differences in microphysical processes occurring in the various meteorological regimes sampled in those projects. In TRMM-LMA (January-February 1999 in Brazil; a TRMM ground validation experiment), variability is driven by prevailing low-level winds. During periods of low-level easterlies, deeper and more intense convection is observed, while during periods of low-level westerlies, weaker convection embedded in widespread stratiform precipitation is common. In the NAME region (North American Monsoon Experiment, summer 2004 along the west coast of Mexico), strong terrain variability drives differences in precipitation, with larger drops and larger ice mass aloft associated with convection occurring over the coastal plain compared to convection over the higher terrain of the Sierra Madre Occidental, or adjacent coastal waters. Comparisons with the TRMM precipitation radar (PR) indicate that such sub-seasonal variability in these two regions are not well characterized by the TRMM PR reflectivity and rainfall statistics. TRMM PR reflectivity profiles in the LBA region are somewhat lower than S-Pol values, particularly in the more intense easterly regime convection. In NAME, mean reflectivities are even more divergent, with TRMM profiles below those of S-Pol. In both regions, the TRMM PR does not capture rain rates above 80 mm hr-1 despite much higher rain rates estimated from the S-Pol polarimetric data, and rain rates are generally lower for a given reflectivity from TRMM PR compared to S-Pol. These differences between TRMM PR and S-Pol may arise from the inability of Z-R relationships to capture the full variability of microphysical conditions or may highlight problems with TRMM retrievals over land. In addition to the TRMM-LBA and NAME regions, analysis of sub-seasonal precipitation variability and

  3. Tomographic Imaging of a Forested Area By Airborne Multi-Baseline P-Band SAR.

    PubMed

    Frey, Othmar; Morsdorf, Felix; Meier, Erich

    2008-09-24

    In recent years, various attempts have been undertaken to obtain information about the structure of forested areas from multi-baseline synthetic aperture radar data. Tomographic processing of such data has been demonstrated for airborne L-band data but the quality of the focused tomographic images is limited by several factors. In particular, the common Fourierbased focusing methods are susceptible to irregular and sparse sampling, two problems, that are unavoidable in case of multi-pass, multi-baseline SAR data acquired by an airborne system. In this paper, a tomographic focusing method based on the time-domain back-projection algorithm is proposed, which maintains the geometric relationship between the original sensor positions and the imaged target and is therefore able to cope with irregular sampling without introducing any approximations with respect to the geometry. The tomographic focusing quality is assessed by analysing the impulse response of simulated point targets and an in-scene corner reflector. And, in particular, several tomographic slices of a volume representing a forested area are given. The respective P-band tomographic data set consisting of eleven flight tracks has been acquired by the airborne E-SAR sensor of the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

  4. Determining index of refraction from polarimetric hyperspectral radiance measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Martin, Jacob A.; Gross, Kevin C.

    2015-09-01

    Polarimetric hyperspectral imaging (P-HSI) combines two of the most common remote sensing modalities. This work leverages the combination of these techniques to improve material classification. Classifying and identifying materials requires parameters which are invariant to changing viewing conditions, and most often a material's reflectivity or emissivity is used. Measuring these most often requires assumptions be made about the material and atmospheric conditions. Combining both polarimetric and hyperspectral imaging, we propose a method to remotely estimate the index of refraction of a material. In general, this is an underdetermined problem because both the real and imaginary components of index of refraction are unknown at every spectral point. By modeling the spectral variation of the index of refraction using a few parameters, however, the problem can be made overdetermined. A number of different functions can be used to describe this spectral variation, and some are discussed here. Reducing the number of spectral parameters to fit allows us to add parameters which estimate atmospheric downwelling radiance and transmittance. Additionally, the object temperature is added as a fit parameter. The set of these parameters that best replicate the measured data is then found using a bounded Nelder-Mead simplex search algorithm. Other search algorithms are also examined and discussed. Results show that this technique has promise but also some limitations, which are the subject of ongoing work.

  5. Detecting Small-Scale topographic Changes and Relict Geomorphic Features on Barrier Islands using SAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gibeaut, James C.; Gutierrez, Roberto; Slatton, K. Clint; Crawford, Melba M.

    1996-01-01

    The shapes and elevations of barrier islands may change dramatically over a short period of time such as during a storm. Even between storms, sediment is constantly shifting to and from these islands and between different areas of the islands at varying rates and in varying amounts. Coastal scientists and engineers, however, are currently unable to measure these changes occurring over an entire barrier island at once. This three-year project, which is funded by NASA and jointly conducted by the Bureau of Economic Geology and the Center for Space Research at The University of Texas at Austin, is designed to overcome this problem by developing the use of interferometry from airborne synthetic aperture radar (AIRSAR) to detect changes in coastal topography. Surrogate measures of topography observed in fully polarimetric AIRSAR are also being investigated.

  6. Microphysics in West African squall line with an Xband polarimetric radar and an Hydrometeor Identification Scheme: comparison with in situ measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cazenave, F.; Gosset, M.; Kacou, M.; Alcoba, M.; Fontaine, E.

    2015-12-01

    A better knowledge on the microphysics of tropical continental convective systems is needed in order to improve quantitative precipitation measurements in the Tropics. Satellite passive microwave estimation of tropical rainfall could be improved with a better parameterization of the icy hydrometeors in the Bayesian RAIN estimation algorithm (BRAIN, Viltard et al., 2006) used over continental tropics. To address this important issue specific campaigns that combine aircraft based in situ microphysics probing and polarimetric radar have been organized as part of the CNES/ISRO satellite mission Megha-Tropiques. The first microphysics validation campaign was set up in Niamey in August 2010. The field deployment included the AMMA-CATH 56 rain gages, 3 disdrometers, 2 meteorological radars including the C-band MIT and the Xport X-band dual polarisation radar, and a 4 weeks campaign with the instrumented Falcon 20 from the french operator for environmental research aircrafts equipped with several microphysics probes and the 94Ghz cloud radar RASTA. The objective is to combine scales and methods to converge towards a parameterization of the ice size, mass and density laws inside continental Mesoscale Convective System (MCS). The Particle IDentification algorithm (PID) developed by the Colorado State University (CSU) adapted to the band X by B. Dolan (Dolan et al. 2009) is used to classify seven kind of particles: drizzle or light rain, moderate to heavy rain, wet and dry graupel, wet and dry aggregates and ice crystals. On a limited number of systems, the airborne microphysics sensors provide a detailed in situ reference on the Particle Size Distribution (PSD) that can be compared with the radar PID in the radar pixels located along the flight trajectory. An original approach has been developed for the radar - in situ comparison: it consists in simulating synthetic radar variables from the microphysics probe information and compare the 2 data sets in a common 'radar space

  7. Airborne Windshear Detection and Warning Systems. Fifth and Final Combined Manufacturers' and Technologists' Conference, part 2

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Delnore, Victor E. (Compiler)

    1994-01-01

    The Fifth Combined Manufacturers' and Technologists' Airborne Windshear Review Meeting was hosted by the NASA Langley Research Center and the Federal Aviation Administration in Hampton, Virginia, on September 28-30, 1993. The purpose was to report on the highly successful windshear experiments conducted by government, academic institutions, and industry; to transfer the results to regulators, manufacturers, and users; and to set initiatives for future aeronautics technology research. The formal sessions covered recent developments in windshear flight testing, windshear modeling, flight management, and ground-based systems, airborne windshear detection systems, certification and regulatory issues, and development and applications of sensors for wake vortices and for synthetic and enhanced vision systems. This report was compiled to record and make available the technology updates and materials from the conference.

  8. (abstract) A Polarimetric Model for Effects of Brine Infiltrated Snow Cover and Frost Flowers on Sea Ice Backscatter

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nghiem, S. V.; Kwok, R.; Yueh, S. H.

    1995-01-01

    A polarimetric scattering model is developed to study effects of snow cover and frost flowers with brine infiltration on thin sea ice. Leads containing thin sea ice in the Artic icepack are important to heat exchange with the atmosphere and salt flux into the upper ocean. Surface characteristics of thin sea ice in leads are dominated by the formation of frost flowers with high salinity. In many cases, the thin sea ice layer is covered by snow, which wicks up brine from sea ice due to capillary force. Snow and frost flowers have a significant impact on polarimetric signatures of thin ice, which needs to be studied for accessing the retrieval of geophysical parameters such as ice thickness. Frost flowers or snow layer is modeled with a heterogeneous mixture consisting of randomly oriented ellipsoids and brine infiltration in an air background. Ice crystals are characterized with three different axial lengths to depict the nonspherical shape. Under the covering multispecies medium, the columinar sea-ice layer is an inhomogeneous anisotropic medium composed of ellipsoidal brine inclusions preferentially oriented in the vertical direction in an ice background. The underlying medium is homogeneous sea water. This configuration is described with layered inhomogeneous media containing multiple species of scatterers. The species are allowed to have different size, shape, and permittivity. The strong permittivity fluctuation theory is extended to account for the multispecies in the derivation of effective permittivities with distributions of scatterer orientations characterized by Eulerian rotation angles. Polarimetric backscattering coefficients are obtained consistently with the same physical description used in the effective permittivity calculation. The mulitspecies model allows the inclusion of high-permittivity species to study effects of brine infiltrated snow cover and frost flowers on thin ice. The results suggest that the frost cover with a rough interface

  9. A Common Calibration Source Framework for Fully-Polarimetric and Interferometric Radiometers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kim, Edward J.; Davis, Brynmor; Piepmeier, Jeff; Zukor, Dorothy J. (Technical Monitor)

    2000-01-01

    Two types of microwave radiometry--synthetic thinned array radiometry (STAR) and fully-polarimetric (FP) radiometry--have received increasing attention during the last several years. STAR radiometers offer a technological solution to achieving high spatial resolution imaging from orbit without requiring a filled aperture or a moving antenna, and FP radiometers measure extra polarization state information upon which entirely new or more robust geophysical retrieval algorithms can be based. Radiometer configurations used for both STAR and FP instruments share one fundamental feature that distinguishes them from more 'standard' radiometers, namely, they measure correlations between pairs of microwave signals. The calibration requirements for correlation radiometers are broader than those for standard radiometers. Quantities of interest include total powers, complex correlation coefficients, various offsets, and possible nonlinearities. A candidate for an ideal calibration source would be one that injects test signals with precisely controllable correlation coefficients and absolute powers simultaneously into a pair of receivers, permitting all of these calibration quantities to be measured. The complex nature of correlation radiometer calibration, coupled with certain inherent similarities between STAR and FP instruments, suggests significant leverage in addressing both problems together. Recognizing this, a project was recently begun at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center to develop a compact low-power subsystem for spaceflight STAR or FP receiver calibration. We present a common theoretical framework for the design of signals for a controlled correlation calibration source. A statistical model is described, along with temporal and spectral constraints on such signals. Finally, a method for realizing these signals is demonstrated using a Matlab-based implementation.

  10. Polarimetric scattering model for estimation of above ground biomass of multilayer vegetation using ALOS-PALSAR quad-pol data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sai Bharadwaj, P.; Kumar, Shashi; Kushwaha, S. P. S.; Bijker, Wietske

    Forests are important biomes covering a major part of the vegetation on the Earth, and as such account for seventy percent of the carbon present in living beings. The value of a forest's above ground biomass (AGB) is considered as an important parameter for the estimation of global carbon content. In the present study, the quad-pol ALOS-PALSAR data was used for the estimation of AGB for the Dudhwa National Park, India. For this purpose, polarimetric decomposition components and an Extended Water Cloud Model (EWCM) were used. The PolSAR data orientation angle shifts were compensated for before the polarimetric decomposition. The scattering components obtained from the polarimetric decomposition were used in the Water Cloud Model (WCM). The WCM was extended for higher order interactions like double bounce scattering. The parameters of the EWCM were retrieved using the field measurements and the decomposition components. Finally, the relationship between the estimated AGB and measured AGB was assessed. The coefficient of determination (R2) and root mean square error (RMSE) were 0.4341 and 119 t/ha respectively.

  11. Comparison Between Spectral, Spatial and Polarimetric Classification of Urban and Periurban Landcover Using Temporal Sentinel - 1 Images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roychowdhury, K.

    2016-06-01

    Landcover is the easiest detectable indicator of human interventions on land. Urban and peri-urban areas present a complex combination of landcover, which makes classification challenging. This paper assesses the different methods of classifying landcover using dual polarimetric Sentinel-1 data collected during monsoon (July) and winter (December) months of 2015. Four broad landcover classes such as built up areas, water bodies and wetlands, vegetation and open spaces of Kolkata and its surrounding regions were identified. Polarimetric analyses were conducted on Single Look Complex (SLC) data of the region while ground range detected (GRD) data were used for spectral and spatial classification. Unsupervised classification by means of K-Means clustering used backscatter values and was able to identify homogenous landcovers over the study area. The results produced an overall accuracy of less than 50% for both the seasons. Higher classification accuracy (around 70%) was achieved by adding texture variables as inputs along with the backscatter values. However, the accuracy of classification increased significantly with polarimetric analyses. The overall accuracy was around 80% in Wishart H-A-Alpha unsupervised classification. The method was useful in identifying urban areas due to their double-bounce scattering and vegetated areas, which have more random scattering. Normalized Difference Built-up index (NDBI) and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) obtained from Landsat 8 data over the study area were used to verify vegetation and urban classes. The study compares the accuracies of different methods of classifying landcover using medium resolution SAR data in a complex urban area and suggests that polarimetric analyses present the most accurate results for urban and suburban areas.

  12. Research on visible and near infrared spectral-polarimetric properties of soil polluted by crude oil

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shen, Hui-yan; Zhou, Pu-cheng; Pan, Bang-long

    2017-10-01

    Hydrocarbon contaminated soil can impose detrimental effects on forest health and quality of agricultural products. To manage such consequences, oil leak indicators should be detected quickly by monitoring systems. Remote sensing is one of the most suitable techniques for monitoring systems, especially for areas which are uninhabitable and difficulty to access. The most available physical quantities in optical remote sensing domain are the intensity and spectral information obtained by visible or infrared sensors. However, besides the intensity and wavelength, polarization is another primary physical quantity associated with an optical field. During the course of reflecting light-wave, the surface of soil polluted by crude oil will cause polarimetric properties which are related to the nature of itself. Thus, detection of the spectralpolarimetric properties for soil polluted by crude oil has become a new remote sensing monitoring method. In this paper, the multi-angle spectral-polarimetric instrument was used to obtain multi-angle visible and near infrared spectralpolarimetric characteristic data of soil polluted by crude oil. And then, the change rule between polarimetric properties with different affecting factors, such as viewing zenith angle, incidence zenith angle of the light source, relative azimuth angle, waveband of the detector as well as different grain size of soil were discussed, so as to provide a scientific basis for the research on polarization remote sensing for soil polluted by crude oil.

  13. Aligner/Bonder for Fabrication of Nanoscale Spectral and Polarimetric Sensors

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2008-11-26

    SPECTRAL AND POLARIMETRIC SENSORS 5. FUNDING NUMBERS FA9550-07-1-0478 6. AUTHOR( S ) Prof. Sanjay Krishna (PI) 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME( S ) AND...NUMBER Number 1 1 9. SPONSORING / MONITORING AGENCY NAME( S ) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10. SPONSORING /MONITORING AGENCY REPORT NUMBER Dr. Donald Silversmith...AFOSR Program Manager 703 588 1780 II. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES The views, opinions and/or findings contained in this report are those of the author( s

  14. Polarimetric Imaging Of Protoplanetary Disks From The Optical To Sub-Mm

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    De Boer, Jos; Ménard, F.; Pinte, C.; van der Plas, G.; Snik, F.

    2017-10-01

    To learn how planets form from the smallest building blocks within protoplanetary disks, we first need to know how dust grains grow from micron to mm sizes. Polarimetry across the spectrum has proven to be sensitive to grain properties like dust size distribution and composition and thus can be used to characterize the scattering grains. However, polarization measured with radio interferometric arrays is rarely studied in concert with optical polarimetry. Our team has successfully calibrated the NIR polarimetric imaging mode of VLT/SPHERE, hence upgrading the instrument from a high-contrast imager to a robust tool for quantitative characterization. In this presentation, we will discuss which lessons can be learned by comparing polarimetry in the optical and sub-mm and explore for which science cases both techniques can complement each other. When we combine the polarimetric capabilities of the most advanced optical high-contrast imagers (e.g., Gemini GPI or VLT SPHERE) with that of ALMA we will be able to study the spatial distribution of an extensive range of different grains, which allows us to take an essential step towards a deeper understanding of planet formation.

  15. An Accurate Co-registration Method for Airborne Repeat-pass InSAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dong, X. T.; Zhao, Y. H.; Yue, X. J.; Han, C. M.

    2017-10-01

    Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) technology plays a significant role in topographic mapping and surface deformation detection. Comparing with spaceborne repeat-pass InSAR, airborne repeat-pass InSAR solves the problems of long revisit time and low-resolution images. Due to the advantages of flexible, accurate, and fast obtaining abundant information, airborne repeat-pass InSAR is significant in deformation monitoring of shallow ground. In order to getting precise ground elevation information and interferometric coherence of deformation monitoring from master and slave images, accurate co-registration must be promised. Because of side looking, repeat observing path and long baseline, there are very different initial slant ranges and flight heights between repeat flight paths. The differences of initial slant ranges and flight height lead to the pixels, located identical coordinates on master and slave images, correspond to different size of ground resolution cells. The mismatching phenomenon performs very obvious on the long slant range parts of master image and slave image. In order to resolving the different sizes of pixels and getting accurate co-registration results, a new method is proposed based on Range-Doppler (RD) imaging model. VV-Polarization C-band airborne repeat-pass InSAR images were used in experiment. The experiment result shows that the proposed method leads to superior co-registration accuracy.

  16. Total Lightning Observations within Electrified Snowfall using Polarimetric Radar, LMA, and NLDN Measurements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schultz, Christopher J.; Carey, Lawerence D.; Brunning, Eric C.; Blakeslee, Richard

    2013-01-01

    Four electrified snowfall cases are examined using total lightning measurements from lightning mapping arrays (LMAs), and the National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN) from Huntsville, AL and Washington D.C. In each of these events, electrical activity was in conjunction with heavy snowfall rates, sometimes exceeding 5-8 cm hr-1. A combination of LMA, and NLDN data also indicate that many of these flashes initiated from tall communications towers and traveled over large horizontal distances. During events near Huntsville, AL, the Advanced Radar for Meteorological and Operational Research (ARMOR) C-band polarimetric radar was collecting range height indicators (RHIs) through regions of heavy snowfall. The combination of ARMOR polarimetric radar and VHF LMA observations suggested contiguous layer changes in height between sloping aggregate-dominated layers and horizontally-oriented crystals. These layers may have provided ideal conditions for the development of extensive regions of charge and resultant horizontal propagation of the lightning flashes over large distances.

  17. A New Ka-Band Scanning Radar Facility: Polarimetric and Doppler Spectra Measurements of Snow Events

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Oue, M.; Kollias, P.; Luke, E. P.; Mead, J.

    2017-12-01

    Polarimetric radar analyses offer the capability of identification of ice hydrometeor species as well as their spatial distributions. In addition to polarimetric parameter observations, Doppler spectra measurements offer unique insights into ice particle properties according to particle fall velocities. In particular, millimeter-wavelength radar Doppler spectra can reveal supercooled liquid cloud droplets embedded in ice precipitation clouds. A Ka-band scanning polarimetric radar, named KASPR, was installed in an observation facility at Stony Brook University, located 22 km west of the KOKX NEXRAD radar at Upton, NY. The KASPR can measure Doppler spectra and full polarimetric variables, including radar reflectivity, differential reflectivity (ZDR), differential phase (φDP), specific differential phase (KDP), correlation coefficient (ρhv), and linear depolarization ratio (LDR). The facility also includes a micro-rain radar and a microwave radiometer capable of measuring reflectivity profiles and integrated liquid water path, respectively. The instruments collected initial datasets during two snowstorm events and two snow shower events in March 2017. The radar scan strategy was a combination of PPI scans at 4 elevation angles (10, 20, 45, and 60°) and RHI scans in polarimetry mode, and zenith pointing with Doppler spectra collection. During the snowstorm events the radar observed relatively larger ZDR (1-1.5 dB) and enhanced KDP (1-2 ° km-1) at heights corresponding to a plate/dendrite crystal growth regime. The Doppler spectra showed that slower-falling particles (< 0.5 m s-1) coexisted with faster-falling particles (> 1 m s-1). The weakly increased ZDR could be produced by large, faster falling particles such as quasi-spherical aggregates, while the enhanced KDP could be produced by highly-oriented oblate, slowly-falling particles. Below 2 km altitude, measurements of dual wavelength ratio (DWR) based on Ka and S-band reflectivities from the KASPR and NEXRAD

  18. Generalized Calibration of the Polarimetric Albedo Scale of Asteroids

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lupishko, D. F.

    2018-03-01

    Six different calibrations of the polarimetric albedo scale of asteroids have been published so far. Each of them contains its particular random and systematic errors and yields its values of geometric albedo. On the one hand, this complicates their analysis and comparison; on the other hand, it becomes more and more difficult to decide which of the proposed calibrations should be used. Moreover, in recent years, new databases on the albedo of asteroids obtained from the radiometric surveys of the sky with the orbital space facilities (the InfraRed Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), the Japanese astronomical satellite AKARI (which means "light"), the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), and the Near-Earth Object Wide-field Survey Explorer (NEOWISE)) have appeared; and the database on the diameters and albedos of asteroids obtained from their occultations of stars has substantially increased. Here, we critically review the currently available calibrations and propose a new generalized calibration derived from the interrelations between the slope h and the albedo and between P min and the albedo. This calibration is based on all of the available series of the asteroid albedos and the most complete data on the polarization parameters of asteroids. The generalized calibration yields the values of the polarimetric albedo of asteroids in the system unified with the radiometric albedos and the albedos obtained from occultations of stars by asteroids. This, in turn, removes the difficulties in their comparison, joint analysis, etc.

  19. Effect of Medium Symmetries in Limiting the Number of Parameters Estimated with Polarimetric Interferometry

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moghaddam, Mahta

    2000-01-01

    The addition of interferometric backscattering pairs to the conventional polarimetric SAR data over forests and other vegetated areas increases the dimensionality of the data space, in principle enabling the estimation of a larger number of vegetation parameters. Without regard to the sensitivity of these data to vegetation scattering parameters, this paper poses the question: Will increasing the data channels as such result in a one-to-one increase in the number of parameters that can be estimated, or do vegetation and data properties inherently limit that number otherwise? In this paper, the complete polarimetric interferometric covariance matrix is considered and various symmetry properties of the scattering medium are used to study whether any of the correlation pairs can be eliminated. The number of independent pairs has direct consequences in their utility in parameter estimation schemes, since the maximum number of parameters that can be estimated cannot exceed the number of unique measurements. The independent components of the polarimetric interferometric SAR (POL/INSAR) data are derived for media with reflection, rotation, and azimuth symmetries, which are often encountered in vegetated surfaces. Similar derivations have been carried out before for simple polarimetry, i.e., zero baseline. This paper extends those to the interferometric case of general nonzero baselines. It is shown that depending on the type of symmetries present, the number of independent available measurements that can be used to estimate medium parameters will vary. In particular, whereas in the general case there are 27 mathematically independent measurements possible from a polarimetric interferometer, this number can be reduced to 15, 9, and 6 if the medium has reflection, rotation, or azimuthal symmetries, respectively. The results can be used in several ways in the interpretation of SAR data and the development of parameter estimation schemes, which will be discussed at the

  20. MAIA pathfinder: Imaging Polarimetric Assessment and Characterization of Tropospheric Particulate Matter (ImPACT-PM) field campaign

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalashnikova, O. V.; Seidel, F. C.; Xu, F.; Garay, M. J.; Wu, L.; Bruegge, C. J.; van Harten, G.; Val, S.; Diner, D. J.; Seinfeld, J.; Bates, K. H.; Cappa, C. D.; Bradley, C. L.; Kupinski, M.; Clements, C. B.; Camacho, C.; Yorks, J. E.

    2016-12-01

    The Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) instrument, which was recently selected under NASA's third Earth Venture Instrument call, will improve aerosol particle type sensitivity through the atmospheric column as well as at the surface through the use of multiangular, multispectral, and polarimetric observations. MAIA will provide new information that enables estimates of speciated (size- and particle type classifications) surface particulate matter (PM) from space over major cities around the globe, and enable improved associations between particulate air pollution and human health. As a pathfinder to MAIA, the ImPACT-PM field campaign was a joint JPL/Caltech effort to combine measurements from MISR and AirMSPI with in situ airborne measurements and a chemical transport model to validate remote sensing retrievals of different types of airborne particulate matter. We will present highlights of the successfully completed ImPACT-PM field campaign which took place in the California Central Valley on July 5-8, 2016. We had two NASA ER-2/ CIRPAS Twin Otter collocated flights coincident with Terra/MISR overpasses on Tuesday and Thursday July 5 and 7; and two ER-2/Twin Otter collocations over local fires on Friday, July 8th. The AirMSPI, AirSPEX, and CPL instruments were integrated on the ER-2, and Caltech aerosol/cloud in-situ instruments were integrated on the CIRPAS Twin Otter aircraft in addition to the normal Twin Otter payload. We also deployed the JPL/University of Arizona GroundMSPI instrument and a ground-based lidar from San José State University at the Fresno California Air Resources Board super-site. While the overall aerosol and PM levels were low at this time, we were able to see a gradient of pollution in specially processed MISR high-resolution 4.4 km resolution aerosol data on both days. We will present initial results of AirMSPI WRF-Chem-constrained retrievals in comparison with EPA Speciation Trends Network stations in Fresno and Bakersfield, and with

  1. Synthetic aperture radar images of ocean waves, theories of imaging physics and experimental tests

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vesecky, J. F.; Durden, S. L.; Smith, M. P.; Napolitano, D. A.

    1984-01-01

    The physical mechanism for the synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imaging of ocean waves is investigated through the use of analytical models. The models are tested by comparison with data sets from the SEASAT mission and airborne SAR's. Dominant ocean wavelengths from SAR estimates are biased towards longer wavelengths. The quasispecular scattering mechanism agrees with experimental data. The Doppler shift for ship wakes is that of the mean sea surface.

  2. A Novel Azimuth Super-Resolution Method by Synthesizing Azimuth Bandwidth of Multiple Tracks of Airborne Stripmap SAR Data

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Yan; Li, Jingwen; Sun, Bing; Yang, Jian

    2016-01-01

    Azimuth resolution of airborne stripmap synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is restricted by the azimuth antenna size. Conventionally, a higher azimuth resolution should be achieved by employing alternate modes that steer the beam in azimuth to enlarge the synthetic antenna aperture. However, if a data set of a certain region, consisting of multiple tracks of airborne stripmap SAR data, is available, the azimuth resolution of specific small region of interest (ROI) can be conveniently improved by a novel azimuth super-resolution method as introduced by this paper. The proposed azimuth super-resolution method synthesize the azimuth bandwidth of the data selected from multiple discontinuous tracks and contributes to a magnifier-like function with which the ROI can be further zoomed in with a higher azimuth resolution than that of the original stripmap images. Detailed derivation of the azimuth super-resolution method, including the steps of two-dimensional dechirping, residual video phase (RVP) removal, data stitching and data correction, is provided. The restrictions of the proposed method are also discussed. Lastly, the presented approach is evaluated via both the single- and multi-target computer simulations. PMID:27304959

  3. Extraction of Late Summer Sea Ice Properties from Polarimetric SAR Features in C- and X-Band

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fors, Ane S.; Brekke, Camilla; Gerland, Sebastian; Doulgeris, Anthony P.; Eltoft, Torbjørn

    2015-04-01

    In this study we examine the potential use of six polarimetric features for interpretation of late summer sea ice types. Five high-resolution C and X-band scenes were recorded in the Fram Strait covering fast first-year and old sea ice. In addition sea ice thickness, surface roughness and melt pond fraction were collected during a helicopter flight at the study area. From the SAR scenes, six polarimetric features were extracted. Along sections of the track of the helicopter flight, the mean of the SAR features were compared to mean values of the properties measured during the helicopter flight. The results reveal relations between several of the SAR features and the geophysical properties measured in C-band, and weak relations in X-band.

  4. Passive polarimetric imagery-based material classification robust to illumination source position and viewpoint.

    PubMed

    Thilak Krishna, Thilakam Vimal; Creusere, Charles D; Voelz, David G

    2011-01-01

    Polarization, a property of light that conveys information about the transverse electric field orientation, complements other attributes of electromagnetic radiation such as intensity and frequency. Using multiple passive polarimetric images, we develop an iterative, model-based approach to estimate the complex index of refraction and apply it to target classification.

  5. Validation of Spaceborne Radar Surface Water Mapping with Optical sUAS Images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li-Chee-Ming, J.; Murnaghan, K.; Sherman, D.; Poncos, V.; Brisco, B.; Armenakis, C.

    2015-08-01

    The Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (CCRS) has over 40 years of experience with airborne and spaceborne sensors and is now starting to use small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS) to validate products from large coverage area sensors and create new methodologies for very high resolution products. Wetlands have several functions including water storage and retention which can reduce flooding and provide continuous flow for hydroelectric generation and irrigation for agriculture. Synthetic Aperture Radar is well suited as a tool for monitoring surface water by supplying acquisitions irrespective of cloud cover or time of day. Wetlands can be subdivided into three classes: open water, flooded vegetation and upland which can vary seasonally with time and water level changes. RADARSAT-2 data from the Wide-Ultra Fine, Spotlight and Fine Quad-Pol modes has been used to map the open water in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Alberta using intensity thresholding. We also use spotlight modes for higher resolution and the fully polarimetric mode (FQ) for polarimetric decomposition. Validation of these products will be done using a low altitude flying sUAS to generate optical georeferenced images. This project provides methodologies which could be used for flood mapping as well as ecological monitoring.

  6. Extreme Rainfall from Hurricane Harvey (2017): Intercomparisons of WRF Simulations and Polarimetric Radar Fields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, L.; Smith, J. A.; Liu, M.; Baeck, M. L.; Chaney, M. M.; Su, Y.

    2017-12-01

    Hurricane Harvey made landfall on 25 August 2017 and produced more than a meter of rain during a four-day period over eastern Texas, making it the wettest tropical cyclone on record in the United States. Extreme rainfall from Harvey was predominantly related to the dynamics and structure of outer rain bands. In this study, we provide details of the extreme rainfall produced by Hurricane Harvey. The principal research questions that motivate this study are: (1) what are the key microphysical properties of extreme rainfall from landfalling tropical cyclones and (2) what are the capabilities and deficiencies of existing bulk microphysics parameterizations from the physical models in capturing them. Our analyses are centered on intercomparisons of high-resolution simulations using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model and polarimetric radar fields from KHGX (Houston, Texas) WSR-88D. The WRF simulations accurately capture the track and intensity of Hurricane Harvey. Multi-rainband structure and its key evolution features are also well represented in the simulations. Two microphysics parameterizations (WSM6 and WDM6) are tested in this study. Radar reflectivity and differential reflectivity fields simulated by the WRF model are compared with polarimetric radar observations. An important feature for the extreme rainfall from Hurricane Harvey is the sharp boundary of spatial rainfall accumulation along the coast (with torrential rainfall distributed over Houston and its surrounding inland areas). We will examine the role of land-sea contrasts in dictating storm structure and evolution from both WRF simulations and polarimetric radar fields. Implications for improving hurricane rainfall forecasts and estimates will be provided.

  7. Polarimetric survey of main-belt asteroids. IV. New results from the first epoch of the CASLEO survey

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gil-Hutton, R.; Cellino, A.; Bendjoya, Ph.

    2014-09-01

    Aims: We present results of a polarimetric survey of main-belt asteroids at Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito (CASLEO), San Juan, Argentina. The aims of this survey are to increase the database of asteroid polarimetry, to estimate diversity in polarimetric properties of asteroids that belong to different taxonomic classes, and to search for objects that exhibit anomalous polarimetric properties. Methods: The data were obtained using the Torino and CASPROF polarimeters at the 2.15m telescope. The Torino polarimeter is an instrument that allows simultaneous measurement of polarization in five different bands, and the CASPROF polarimeter is a two-hole aperture polarimeter with rapid modulation. Results: The survey began in 1995, and until 2012 data on a large sample of asteroids were obtained. We here present and analyze the unpublished results for 129 asteroids of different taxonomic types, 56 which were polarimetrically observed for the first time. We find that the asteroids (402) Chloe and (729) Watsonia are Barbarians, and asteroid (269) Justitia shows a phase - polarization curve that seems to have a small inversion angle. Data obtained in UBVRI colors allow us to sketch an analysis of the wavelength dependence of the degree of linear polarization for 31 asteroids, in spite of some large error bars in some cases. Based on observations carried out at the Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito, operated under agreement between the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de la República Argentina and the National Universities of La Plata, Córdoba, and San Juan.Table 1 is only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/569/A122

  8. Synthetic Biology and Human Health: Potential Applications for Spaceflight

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Karouia, Fathi; Carr, Christopher; Cai, Yizhi; Chen, Y.; Grenon, Marlene; Larios-Sanz, Maia; Jones, Jeffrey A.; Santos, Orlando

    2011-01-01

    Human space travelers experience a unique environment that affects homeostasis and physiologic adaptation. Spaceflight-related changes have been reported in the musculo-skeletal, cardiovascular, neurovestibular, endocrine, and immune systems. The spacecraft environment further subjects the traveler to noise and gravitational forces, as well as airborne chemical, microbiological contaminants, and radiation exposure. As humans prepare for longer duration missions effective countermeasures must be developed, verified, and implemented to ensure mission success. Over the past ten years, synthetic biology has opened new avenues for research and development in areas such as biological control, biomaterials, sustainable energy production, bioremediation, and biomedical therapies. The latter in particular is of great interest to the implementation of long-duration human spaceflight capabilities. This article discusses the effects of spaceflight on humans, and reviews current capabilities and potential needs associated with the health of the astronauts where synthetic biology could play an important role in the pursuit of space exploration.

  9. Measurement of Attenuation with Airborne and Ground-Based Radar in Convective Storms Over Land Its Microphysical Implications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tian, Lin; Heymsfield, G. M.; Srivastava, R. C.; O'C.Starr, D. (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    Observations by the airborne X-band Doppler radar (EDOP) and the NCAR S-band polarimetric (S-Pol) radar from two field experiments are used to evaluate the surface reference technique (SRT) for measuring the path integrated attenuation (PIA) and to study attenuation in deep convective storms. The EDOP, flying at an altitude of 20 km, uses a nadir beam and a forward pointing beam. It is found that over land, the surface scattering cross-section is highly variable at nadir incidence but relatively stable at forward incidence. It is concluded that measurement by the forward beam provides a viable technique for measuring PIA using the SRT. Vertical profiles of peak attenuation coefficient are derived in two deep convective storms by the dual-wavelength method. Using the measured Doppler velocity, the reflectivities at the two wavelengths, the differential reflectivity and the estimated attenuation coefficients, it is shown that: supercooled drops and (dry) ice particles probably co-existed above the melting level in regions of updraft, that water-coated partially melted ice particles probably contributed to high attenuation below the melting level.

  10. Airborne imaging spectrometers developed in China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Jianyu; Xue, Yongqi

    1998-08-01

    Airborne imaging spectral technology, principle means in airborne remote sensing, has been developed rapidly both in the world and in China recently. This paper describes Modular Airborne Imaging Spectrometer (MAIS), Operational Modular Airborne Imaging Spectrometer (OMAIS) and Pushbroom Hyperspectral Imagery (PHI) that have been developed or are being developed in Airborne Remote Sensing Lab of Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics, CAS.

  11. Airborne Tactical Crossload Planner

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2017-12-01

    set out in the Airborne Standard Operating Procedure (ASOP). 14. SUBJECT TERMS crossload, airborne, optimization, integer linear programming ...they land to their respective sub-mission locations. In this thesis, we formulate and implement an integer linear program called the Tactical...to meet any desired crossload objectives. xiv We demonstrate TCP with two real-world tactical problems from recent airborne operations: one by the

  12. Three-Dimensional Road Network by Fusion of Polarimetric and Interferometric SAR Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gamba, P.; Houshmand, B.

    1998-01-01

    In this paper a fuzzy classification procedure is applied to polarimetric radar measurements, and street pixels are detected. These data are successively grouped into consistent roads by means of a dynamic programming approach based on the fuzzy membership function values. Further fusion of the 2D road network extracted and 3D TOPSAR measurements provides a powerful way to analyze urban infrastructures.

  13. New polarimetric and spectroscopic evidence of anomalous enrichment in spinel-bearing calcium-aluminium-rich inclusions among L-type asteroids

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Devogèle, M.; Tanga, P.; Cellino, A.; Bendjoya, Ph.; Rivet, J.-P.; Surdej, J.; Vernet, D.; Sunshine, J. M.; Bus, S. J.; Abe, L.; Bagnulo, S.; Borisov, G.; Campins, H.; Carry, B.; Licandro, J.; McLean, W.; Pinilla-Alonso, N.

    2018-04-01

    Asteroids can be classified into several groups based on their spectral reflectance. Among these groups, the one belonging to the L-class in the taxonomic classification based on visible and near-infrared spectra exhibit several peculiar properties. First, their near-infrared spectrum is characterized by a strong absorption band interpreted as the diagnostic of a high content of the FeO bearing spinel mineral. This mineral is one of the main constituents of Calcium-Aluminum-rich Inclusions (CAI) the oldest mineral compounds found in the solar system. In polarimetry, they possess an uncommonly large value of the inversion angle incompatible with all known asteroid belonging to other taxonomical classes. Asteroids found to possess such a high inversion angle are commonly called Barbarians based on the first asteroid on which this property was first identified, (234) Barbara. In this paper we present the results of an extensive campaign of polarimetric and spectroscopic observations of L-class objects. We have derived phase-polarization curves for a sample of 7 Barbarians, finding a variety of inversion angles ranging between 25 and 30°. Spectral reflectance data exhibit variations in terms of spectral slope and absorption features in the near-infrared. We analyzed these data using a Hapke model to obtain some inferences about the relative abundance of CAI and other mineral compounds. By combining spectroscopic and polarimetric results, we find evidence that the polarimetric inversion angle is directly correlated with the presence of CAI, and the peculiar polarimetric properties of Barbarians are primarily a consequence of their anomalous composition.

  14. Precipitation microphysics characteristics of a Typhoon Matmo (2014) rainband after landfall over eastern China based on polarimetric radar observations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Mingjun; Zhao, Kun; Xue, Ming; Zhang, Guifu; Liu, Su; Wen, Long; Chen, Gang

    2016-10-01

    The evolution of microphysical characteristics of a rainband in Typhoon Matmo (2014) over eastern China, through its onset, developing, mature, and dissipating stages, is documented using observations from an S band polarimetric Doppler radar and a two-dimensional video disdrometer (2DVD). The drop size distributions observed by the 2DVD and retrieved from the polarimetric radar measurements indicate that the convection in the rainband generally contains smaller drops and higher number concentrations than the typical maritime type convection described in Bringi et al. (2003). The average mass-weighted mean diameter (Dm) of convective precipitation in the rainband is about 1.41 mm, and the average logarithmic normalized intercept (Nw) is 4.67 log10 mm-1 m-3. To further investigate the dominant microphysical processes, the evolution of the vertical structures of polarimetric variables is examined. Results show that complex ice processes are involved above the freezing level, while it is most likely that the accretion and/or coalescence processes dominate below the freezing level throughout the rainband life cycle. A combined examination of the polarimetric measurements and profiles of estimated vertical liquid and ice water contents indicates that the conversion of cloud water into rainwater through cloud water accretion by raindrops plays a dominant role in producing heavy rainfall. The high estimated precipitation efficiency of 50% also suggests that cloud water accretion is the dominant mechanism for producing heavy rainfall. This study represents the first time that radar and 2DVD observations are used together to characterize the microphysical characteristics and precipitation efficiency for typhoon rainbands in China.

  15. Relative astrometry of compact flaring structures in Sgr A* with polarimetric very long baseline interferometry

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Johnson, Michael D.; Doeleman, Sheperd S.; Fish, Vincent L.

    2014-10-20

    We demonstrate that polarimetric interferometry can be used to extract precise spatial information about compact polarized flares of Sgr A*. We show that, for a faint dynamical component, a single interferometric baseline suffices to determine both its polarization and projected displacement from the quiescent intensity centroid. A second baseline enables two-dimensional reconstruction of the displacement, and additional baselines can self-calibrate using the flare, enhancing synthesis imaging of the quiescent emission. We apply this technique to simulated 1.3 mm wavelength observations of a 'hot spot' embedded in a radiatively inefficient accretion disk around Sgr A*. Our results indicate that, even withmore » current sensitivities, polarimetric interferometry with the Event Horizon Telescope can achieve ∼5 μas relative astrometry of compact flaring structures near Sgr A* on timescales of minutes.« less

  16. Internal wave observations made with an airborne synthetic aperture imaging radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Elachi, C.; Apel, J. R.

    1976-01-01

    Synthetic aperture L-band radar flown aboard the NASA CV-990 has observed periodic striations on the ocean surface off the coast of Alaska which have been interpreted as tidally excited oceanic internal waves of less than 500 m length. These radar images are compared to photographic imagery of similar waves taken from Landsat 1. Both the radar and Landsat images reveal variations in reflectivity across each wave in a packet that range from low to high to normal. The variations point to the simultaneous existence of two mechanisms for the surface signatures of internal waves: roughening due to wave-current interactions, and smoothing due to slick formation.

  17. Retrieval of profile information from airborne multiaxis UV-visible skylight absorption measurements.

    PubMed

    Bruns, Marco; Buehler, Stefan A; Burrows, John P; Heue, Klaus-Peter; Platt, Ulrich; Pundt, Irene; Richter, Andreas; Rozanov, Alexej; Wagner, Thomas; Wang, Ping

    2004-08-01

    A recent development in ground-based remote sensing of atmospheric constituents by UV-visible absorption measurements of scattered light is the simultaneous use of several horizon viewing directions in addition to the traditional zenith-sky pointing. The different light paths through the atmosphere enable the vertical distribution of some atmospheric absorbers, such as NO2, BrO, or O3, to be retrieved. This approach has recently been implemented on an airborne platform. This novel instrument, the airborne multiaxis differential optical absorption spectrometer (AMAXDOAS), has been flown for the first time. In this study, the amount of profile information that can be retrieved from such measurements is investigated for the trace gas NO2. Sensitivity studies on synthetic data are performed for a variety of representative measurement conditions including two wavelengths, one in the UV and one in the visible, two different surface spectral reflectances, various lines of sight (LOSs), and for two different flight altitudes. The results demonstrate that the AMAXDOAS measurements contain useful profile information, mainly at flight altitude and below the aircraft. Depending on wavelength and LOS used, the vertical resolution of the retrieved profiles is as good as 2 km near flight altitude. Above 14 km the profile information content of AMAXDOAS measurements is sparse. Airborne multiaxis measurements are thus a promising tool for atmospheric studies in the troposphere and the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region.

  18. Vegetation canopy discrimination and biomass assessment using multipolarized airborne SAR

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ulaby, F. T.; Dobson, M. C.; Held, D. N.

    1985-01-01

    Multipolarized airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data were acquired over a largely agricultural test site near Macomb, Illinois, in conjunction with the Shuttle Imaging Radar (SIR-B) experiment in October 1984. The NASA/JPL L-band SAR operating at 1.225 GHz made a series of daily overflights with azimuth view angles both parallel and orthogonal to those of SIR-B. The SAR data was digitally recorded in the quadpolarization configuration. An extensive set of ground measurements were obtained throughout the test site and include biophysical and soil measurements of approximately 400 agricultural fields. Preliminary evaluation of some of the airborne SAR imagery indicates a great potential for crop discrimination and assessment of canopy condition. False color composites constructed from the combination of three linear polarizations (HH, VV, and HV) were found to be clearly superior to any single polarization for purposes of crop classification. In addition, an image constructed using the HH return to modulate intensity and the phase difference between HH and VV returns to modulate chroma indicates a clear capability for assessment of canopy height and/or biomass. In particular, corn fields heavily damaged by infestations of corn borer are readily distinguished from noninfested fields.

  19. Interference figures of polarimetric interferometry analysis of the human corneal stroma

    PubMed Central

    Mastropasqua, Rodolfo; Nubile, Mario; Salgari, Niccolò; Lanzini, Manuela; Calienno, Roberta; Mattei, Peter A.; Sborgia, Alessandra; Agnifili, Luca

    2017-01-01

    A rotating polarimetric 90°-cross linear-filter interferometry system was used to detect the morphological characteristics and features of interference patterns produced in in-vivo corneal stroma in healthy human corneas of 23 subjects. The characteristic corneal isogyres presenting with an evident cross-shaped pattern, grossly aligned with the fixation axis, were observed in all patients with centers within the pupillary dark area, impeding the exact determination of the center point. During the rotational scan in 78.3% of the eyes the cross-shaped pattern of the isogyre gradually separated to form two distinct hyperbolic arcs in opposite quadrants, reaching their maximal separation at 45 degrees with respect to angle of cross-shaped pattern formation. The corneal cross and hyperbolic-pattern repeated every 90° throughout the 360° rotational scan. While the interpretation of the isogyres presents particular difficulties, two summary parameters can be extracted for each cornea: the presence/orientation of a single or two dark areas in post-processed images and isochromes. However, the development of dedicated software for semi-quantitative analysis of these parameters and enantiomorphism may become available in the near future. The possible application of polarimetric interferometry in the field of both corneal pathologies and corneal surgery may be of great interest for clinical purposes. PMID:28570631

  20. Interference figures of polarimetric interferometry analysis of the human corneal stroma.

    PubMed

    Mastropasqua, Rodolfo; Nubile, Mario; Salgari, Niccolò; Lanzini, Manuela; Calienno, Roberta; Mattei, Peter A; Sborgia, Alessandra; Agnifili, Luca

    2017-01-01

    A rotating polarimetric 90°-cross linear-filter interferometry system was used to detect the morphological characteristics and features of interference patterns produced in in-vivo corneal stroma in healthy human corneas of 23 subjects. The characteristic corneal isogyres presenting with an evident cross-shaped pattern, grossly aligned with the fixation axis, were observed in all patients with centers within the pupillary dark area, impeding the exact determination of the center point. During the rotational scan in 78.3% of the eyes the cross-shaped pattern of the isogyre gradually separated to form two distinct hyperbolic arcs in opposite quadrants, reaching their maximal separation at 45 degrees with respect to angle of cross-shaped pattern formation. The corneal cross and hyperbolic-pattern repeated every 90° throughout the 360° rotational scan. While the interpretation of the isogyres presents particular difficulties, two summary parameters can be extracted for each cornea: the presence/orientation of a single or two dark areas in post-processed images and isochromes. However, the development of dedicated software for semi-quantitative analysis of these parameters and enantiomorphism may become available in the near future. The possible application of polarimetric interferometry in the field of both corneal pathologies and corneal surgery may be of great interest for clinical purposes.

  1. International Symposium on Airborne Geophysics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mogi, Toru; Ito, Hisatoshi; Kaieda, Hideshi; Kusunoki, Kenichiro; Saltus, Richard W.; Fitterman, David V.; Okuma, Shigeo; Nakatsuka, Tadashi

    2006-05-01

    Airborne geophysics can be defined as the measurement of Earth properties from sensors in the sky. The airborne measurement platform is usually a traditional fixed-wing airplane or helicopter, but could also include lighter-than-air craft, unmanned drones, or other specialty craft. The earliest history of airborne geophysics includes kite and hot-air balloon experiments. However, modern airborne geophysics dates from the mid-1940s when military submarine-hunting magnetometers were first used to map variations in the Earth's magnetic field. The current gamut of airborne geophysical techniques spans a broad range, including potential fields (both gravity and magnetics), electromagnetics (EM), radiometrics, spectral imaging, and thermal imaging.

  2. Microphysical Properties of Frozen Particles Inferred from Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Microwave Imager (GMI) Polarimetric Measurements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gong, Jie; Wu, Dongliang

    2017-01-01

    Scattering differences induced by frozen particle microphysical properties are investigated, using the vertically (V) and horizontally (H) polarized radiances from the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Microwave Imager (GMI) 89 and 166GHz channels. It is the first study on global frozen particle microphysical properties that uses the dual-frequency microwave polarimetric signals. From the ice cloud scenes identified by the 183.3 3GHz channel brightness temperature (TB), we find that the scatterings of frozen particles are highly polarized with V-H polarimetric differences (PD) being positive throughout the tropics and the winter hemisphere mid-latitude jet regions, including PDs from the GMI 89 and 166GHz TBs, as well as the PD at 640GHz from the ER-2 Compact Scanning Submillimeter-wave Imaging Radiometer (CoSSIR) during the TC4 campaign. Large polarization dominantly occurs mostly near convective outflow region (i.e., anvils or stratiform precipitation), while the polarization signal is small inside deep convective cores as well as at the remote cirrus region. Neglecting the polarimetric signal would result in as large as 30 error in ice water path retrievals. There is a universal bell-curve in the PD TB relationship, where the PD amplitude peaks at 10K for all three channels in the tropics and increases slightly with latitude. Moreover, the 166GHz PD tends to increase in the case where a melting layer is beneath the frozen particles aloft in the atmosphere, while 89GHz PD is less sensitive than 166GHz to the melting layer. This property creates a unique PD feature for the identification of the melting layer and stratiform rain with passive sensors. Horizontally oriented non-spherical frozen particles are thought to produce the observed PD because of different ice scattering properties in the V and H polarizations. On the other hand, changes in the ice microphysical habitats or orientation due to turbulence mixing can also lead to a reduced PD in the deep

  3. Optimal design of wide-view-angle waveplate used for polarimetric diagnosis of lithography system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gu, Honggang; Jiang, Hao; Zhang, Chuanwei; Chen, Xiuguo; Liu, Shiyuan

    2016-03-01

    The diagnosis and control of the polarization aberrations is one of the main concerns in a hyper numerical aperture (NA) lithography system. Waveplates are basic and indispensable optical components in the polarimetric diagnosis tools for the immersion lithography system. The retardance of a birefringent waveplate is highly sensitive to the incident angle of the light, which makes the conventional waveplate not suitable to be applied in the polarimetric diagnosis for the immersion lithography system with a hyper NA. In this paper, we propose a method for the optimal design of a wideview- angle waveplate by combining two positive waveplates made from magnesium fluoride (MgF2) and two negative waveplates made from sapphire using the simulated annealing algorithm. Theoretical derivations and numerical simulations are performed and the results demonstrate that the maximum variation in the retardance of the optimally designed wide-view-angle waveplate is less than +/- 0.35° for a wide-view-angle range of +/- 20°.

  4. Polarimetric and Multi-Doppler Radar Observations of Electrified and Unelectrified Wildfire Smoke Plumes

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lang, Timothy J.; Rutledge, Steven A.; Dolan, Brenda; Krehbiel, Paul; Rison, William; Lindsey, Daniel T.

    2013-01-01

    Pyrocumulus clouds above three Colorado wildfires (Hewlett Gulch, High Park, and Waldo Canyon; all occurred during summer 2012) electrified and produced small intracloud discharges whenever the smoke plumes grew to high altitudes (over 10 km above mean sea level, or MSL). This occurred during periods of rapid wildfire growth, as indicated by the shortwave infrared channel on a geostationary satellite, as well as by incident reports. In the Hewlett Gulch case, the fire growth led to increased updrafts within the plume, as inferred by multiple- Doppler radar syntheses, which led to the vertical development and subsequent electrification - a life cycle as short as 30 minutes. The lightning, detected by a threedimensional lightning mapping network, was favored in high-altitude regions (10 km MSL) containing modest reflectivities (25 dBZ and lower), 0 dB differential reflectivity, and reduced correlation coefficient (0.6-0.7). This indicated the likely presence of ice particles (crystals and aggregates, possibly rimed) mixed with ash. Though neither multiple-Doppler nor polarimetric observations were available during the electrification of the High Park and Waldo Canyon plumes, their NEXRAD observations showed reflectivity structures consistent with Hewlett Gulch. In addition, polarimetric and multiple-Doppler scanning of unelectrified High Park plumes indicated only irregularly shaped ash, and not ice, was present (i.e., reflectivities < 25 dBZ, differential reflectivity > 5 dB, correlation < 0.4), and there was no broaching of the 10 km altitude. Based on these results, the electrification likely was caused by ice-based processes that did not involve significant amounts of graupel. The results demonstrate the scientific value of multiple-Doppler and polarimetric radar observations of wildfire smoke plumes - including the ability to distinguish between regions of pure hydrometeors, regions of pure ash, and mixtures of both - and also suggest a possible new application

  5. Fifteen years of dual polarimetric observations of tropical convection: The CPOL data set.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Collis, Scott; Protat, Alain; Jackson, Robert; Helmus, Jonathan; Giangrande, Scott; Louf, Valentin; Lang, Timothy; May, Peter; Glasson, Ken; Atkinson, Brad; Whimpey, Michael; Keenan, Tom

    2017-04-01

    The use of polarization diversity to measure properties of hydrometeors is not new and was first mentioned by Seliga and Bringi from an engineering perspective in 1976 and by Hendry et al (again in 1976) from a measurement perspective shortly thereafter. In the forty years that have passed since these accomplishments there have been several key data-sets that have guided the development of retrieval science and the use of polarimetry in understanding the nature of precipitation. One such data set has been collected using the C-Band POLarimetric radar (Keenan et al, 1998), which collected 15 years of observations of break/buildup and monsoon season phenomena when it was sited 23km from Darwin, Australia. This presentation will report on the progress of a collaboration aimed at producing a quality controlled set of polarimetric measurements and microphysical retrievals for this 15-year data set. Techniques such as calibration offset, specific differential phase and attenuation retrieval and comparison with disdrometer measurements (via scattering calculations on collected drop size distributions) will be covered including contrasting several different open source approaches. Seliga, T.A., Bringi, V.N., 1976. Potential Use of Radar Differential Reflectivity Measurements at Orthogonal Polarizations for Measuring Precipitation. J. Appl. Meteor. 15, 69-76. doi:10.1175/1520-0450(1976)015<0069:PUORDR>2.0.CO;2 Hendry, A., McCormick, G.C., 1976. Radar observations of the alignment of precipitation particles by electrostatic fields in thunderstorms. Journal of Geophysical Research 81, 5353-5357. doi:10.1029/JC081i030p05353 Keenan, T., Glasson, K., Cummings, F., Bird, T.S., Keeler, J., Lutz, J., 1998. The BMRC/NCAR C-Band Polarimetric (C-POL) Radar System. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology 15, 871-886. doi:10.1175/1520-0426(1998)015<0871:TBNCBP>2.0.CO;2

  6. Total Lightning Observations within Electrified Snowfall using Polarimetric Radar LMA, and NWN Measurements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schultz, Christopher J.; Bruning, Eric C.; Carey, Lawrence D.; Blakeslee, Richard J.

    2013-01-01

    Tall structures play and important role in development of winter time lightning flashes.To what extent still needs to be assessed. Tower initiated flashes typically occur as banded structures pass near/overhead. Hi resolution RHI s from polarimetric radar show that the lightning has a tendency to propagate through layered structures within these snowstorms.

  7. Development and Testing of Operational Dual-Polarimetric Radar Based Lightning Initiation Forecast Techniques

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Woodard, Crystal; Carey, Lawrence D.; Petersen, Walter A.; Felix, Mariana; Roeder, William P.

    2011-01-01

    Lightning is one of Earth s natural dangers, destructive not only to life but also physical property. According to the National Weather Service, there are on average 58 lightning fatalities each year, with over 300 related injuries (NWS 2010). The ability to forecast lightning is critical to a host of activities ranging from space vehicle launch operations to recreational sporting events. For example a single lightning strike to a Space Shuttle could cause billions of dollars of damage and possible loss of life. While forecasting that provides longer lead times could provide sporting officials with more time to respond to possible threatening weather events, thus saving the lives of player and bystanders. Many researchers have developed and tested different methods and tools of first flash forecasting, however few have done so using dual-polarimetric radar variables and products on an operational basis. The purpose of this study is to improve algorithms for the short-term prediction of lightning initiation through development and testing of operational techniques that rely on parameters observed and diagnosed using C-band dual-polarimetric radar.

  8. Maximum Likelihood Shift Estimation Using High Resolution Polarimetric SAR Clutter Model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Harant, Olivier; Bombrun, Lionel; Vasile, Gabriel; Ferro-Famil, Laurent; Gay, Michel

    2011-03-01

    This paper deals with a Maximum Likelihood (ML) shift estimation method in the context of High Resolution (HR) Polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) clutter. Texture modeling is exposed and the generalized ML texture tracking method is extended to the merging of various sensors. Some results on displacement estimation on the Argentiere glacier in the Mont Blanc massif using dual-pol TerraSAR-X (TSX) and quad-pol RADARSAT-2 (RS2) sensors are finally discussed.

  9. An improved method for polarimetric image restoration in interferometry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pratley, Luke; Johnston-Hollitt, Melanie

    2016-11-01

    Interferometric radio astronomy data require the effects of limited coverage in the Fourier plane to be accounted for via a deconvolution process. For the last 40 years this process, known as `cleaning', has been performed almost exclusively on all Stokes parameters individually as if they were independent scalar images. However, here we demonstrate for the case of the linear polarization P, this approach fails to properly account for the complex vector nature resulting in a process which is dependent on the axes under which the deconvolution is performed. We present here an improved method, `Generalized Complex CLEAN', which properly accounts for the complex vector nature of polarized emission and is invariant under rotations of the deconvolution axes. We use two Australia Telescope Compact Array data sets to test standard and complex CLEAN versions of the Högbom and SDI (Steer-Dwedney-Ito) CLEAN algorithms. We show that in general the complex CLEAN version of each algorithm produces more accurate clean components with fewer spurious detections and lower computation cost due to reduced iterations than the current methods. In particular, we find that the complex SDI CLEAN produces the best results for diffuse polarized sources as compared with standard CLEAN algorithms and other complex CLEAN algorithms. Given the move to wide-field, high-resolution polarimetric imaging with future telescopes such as the Square Kilometre Array, we suggest that Generalized Complex CLEAN should be adopted as the deconvolution method for all future polarimetric surveys and in particular that the complex version of an SDI CLEAN should be used.

  10. Observations of Heavy Rainfall in a Post Wildland Fire Area Using X-Band Polarimetric Radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cifelli, R.; Matrosov, S. Y.; Gochis, D. J.; Kennedy, P.; Moody, J. A.

    2011-12-01

    Polarimetric X-band radar systems have been used increasingly over the last decade for rainfall measurements. Since X-band radar systems are generally less costly, more mobile, and have narrower beam widths (for same antenna sizes) than those operating at lower frequencies (e.g., C and S-bands), they can be used for the "gap-filling" purposes for the areas when high resolution rainfall measurements are needed and existing operational radars systems lack adequate coverage and/or resolution for accurate quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE). The main drawback of X-band systems is attenuation of radar signals, which is significantly stronger compared to frequencies used by "traditional" precipitation radars operating at lower frequencies. The use of different correction schemes based on polarimetric data can, to a certain degree, overcome this drawback when attenuation does not cause total signal extinction. This presentation will focus on examining the use of high-resolution data from the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) mobile X-band dual polarimetric radar for the purpose of estimating precipitation in a post-wildland fire area. The NOAA radar was deployed in the summer of 2011 to examine the impact of gap-fill radar on QPE and the resulting hydrologic response during heavy rain events in the Colorado Front Range in collaboration with colleagues from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), Colorado State University (CSU), and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). A network of rain gauges installed by NCAR, the Denver Urban Drainage Flood Control District (UDFCD), and the USGS are used to compare with the radar estimates. Supplemental data from NEXRAD and the CSU-CHILL dual polarimetric radar are also used to compare with the NOAA X-band and rain gauges. It will be shown that rainfall rates and accumulations estimated from specific differential phase measurements (KDP) at X-band are in good agreement with the measurements from the gauge

  11. Dr. Tom Mace, DFRC Director of Airborne Sciences, greets NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe as he enters the DC-8 aircraft during a stop-off on the AirSAR 2004 campaign

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2004-03-03

    Dr. Tom Mace, NASA DFRC Director of Airborne Sciences, greets NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe as he enters the DC-8 aircraft during a stop-off on the AirSAR 2004 Mesoamerica campaign. AirSAR 2004 Mesoamerica is a three-week expedition by an international team of scientists that will use an all-weather imaging tool, called the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR), in a mission ranging from the tropical rain forests of Central America to frigid Antarctica.

  12. Assessing health risks of synthetic vitreous fibers: an integrative approach.

    PubMed

    McClellan, R O

    1994-12-01

    This paper reviews a tiered approach to acquiring information from multiple experimental systems to understand and assess the potential human health risks of exposure to airborne synthetic fibers. The approach is grounded in the now widely accepted research-risk assessment-risk management paradigm. It involves the acquisition of information that will provide mechanistic linkages within the exposure-dose-response paradigm. It advocates the use of the inhalation route of exposure for developing relevant information for assessing human health risks and calls attention to serious problems encountered using nonphysiologic routes of administration to assess human health risks.

  13. Three axis vector atomic magnetometer utilizing polarimetric technique

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Pradhan, Swarupananda, E-mail: spradhan@barc.gov.in, E-mail: pradhans75@gmail.com

    2016-09-15

    The three axis vector magnetic field measurement based on the interaction of a single elliptically polarized light beam with an atomic system is described. The magnetic field direction dependent atomic responses are extracted by the polarimetric detection in combination with laser frequency modulation and magnetic field modulation techniques. The magnetometer geometry offers additional critical requirements like compact size and large dynamic range for space application. Further, the three axis magnetic field is measured using only the reflected signal (one polarization component) from the polarimeter and thus can be easily expanded to make spatial array of detectors and/or high sensitivity fieldmore » gradient measurement as required for biomedical application.« less

  14. A Fast Superpixel Segmentation Algorithm for PolSAR Images Based on Edge Refinement and Revised Wishart Distance

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Yue; Zou, Huanxin; Luo, Tiancheng; Qin, Xianxiang; Zhou, Shilin; Ji, Kefeng

    2016-01-01

    The superpixel segmentation algorithm, as a preprocessing technique, should show good performance in fast segmentation speed, accurate boundary adherence and homogeneous regularity. A fast superpixel segmentation algorithm by iterative edge refinement (IER) works well on optical images. However, it may generate poor superpixels for Polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) images due to the influence of strong speckle noise and many small-sized or slim regions. To solve these problems, we utilized a fast revised Wishart distance instead of Euclidean distance in the local relabeling of unstable pixels, and initialized unstable pixels as all the pixels substituted for the initial grid edge pixels in the initialization step. Then, postprocessing with the dissimilarity measure is employed to remove the generated small isolated regions as well as to preserve strong point targets. Finally, the superiority of the proposed algorithm is validated with extensive experiments on four simulated and two real-world PolSAR images from Experimental Synthetic Aperture Radar (ESAR) and Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) data sets, which demonstrate that the proposed method shows better performance with respect to several commonly used evaluation measures, even with about nine times higher computational efficiency, as well as fine boundary adherence and strong point targets preservation, compared with three state-of-the-art methods. PMID:27754385

  15. Photometric and polarimetric observations and model simulations of (216) Kleopatra

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Takahashi, S.; Shinokawa, K.; Yoshida, F.; Mukai, T.; Ip, W. H.; Kawabata, K.

    2004-10-01

    We performed photometric and polarimetric observations, on November 8 and 9, 1999, of an M-type main belt asteroid, (216) Kleopatra by using the HBS spectropolarimeter installed at Dodaira observatory, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). Photometric amplitude of lightcurve in the V band was 0.12 mag, and the averaged degree of polarization was -1.01±0.1%. It seems that the polarimetric data might also show a slight change in the degree of polarization ( ~0.2%) at the second minimum of the photometric lightcurve, but we could not confirm that the feature was real because of the large errors of data. With the assumption that the surface is uniform, we have carried out lightcurve simulations based on shape models by Ostro et al. (2000), Tanga et al. (2001) and Roche binary (Cellino et al., 1985). The results of simulations were compared to the configurations of lightcurves which had been obtained at different 4 geometric positions (1980, 1982, 1987 and 1999). The model by Cellino et al. (1985) reproduced almost all the data points without the 1987 observations within ~0.05 mag., which is the best result among the 3 models. The model by Tanga et al. (2001) well reproduced the lightcurves, but failed in reproducing the 1982 amplitude (difference Δdiff ~ 0 2 mag.). We also confirmed that the model by Ostro et al. (2000) could not explain the observed lightcurves.

  16. Polarimetric and Multi-Doppler Radar Observations of Sprite-producing Storms

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lang, TImothy J.; Lyons, Walter A.; Rutledge, Steven A.; Dolan, Brenda; Cummer, Steven A.; Krehbiel, Paul; Rison, William

    2014-01-01

    Sprites are caused by luminous electrical breakdown of the upper atmosphere, and frequently occur over large mesoscale precipitation systems. Two sprite-producing storms (on 8 and 25 June) were observed in Colorado during the summer of 2012. Unlike most past studies of sprites, these storms were observed by a polarimetric radar - the CSU-CHILL facility - which provided both PPI and RHI scans of the cases. Also available were multiple-Doppler syntheses from CSU-CHILL, local NEXRAD radars, and the CSU-Pawnee radar; as well as data from the Colorado Lightning Mapping Array (COLMA), high speed cameras, and other lightning-detection instrumentation. This unique dataset provided an unprecedented look at the detailed kinematic and microphysical structures of the thunderstorms as they produced sprites, including electrical alignment signatures in the immediate location of the charge layers neutralized by sprite-parent positive cloud-to-ground lightning strokes. One of the sprite-producing cases (25 June) featured an anomalous charge structure and may serve as a model for how sprites can be produced over convection rather than the more typical stratiform regions. Also to be presented will be evidence for advection of charge into a common stratiform precipitation region (on 8 June), which was then tapped by lightning originating from multiple different convective cores to produce sprites. Depending on the outcome of the 2013 convective season, polarimetric data from additional storms that produce sprites and other transient luminous events (TLEs) may be presented.

  17. Evaluation of meteorological airborne Doppler radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hildebrand, P. H.; Mueller, C. K.

    1984-01-01

    This paper will discuss the capabilities of airborne Doppler radar for atmospheric sciences research. The evaluation is based on airborne and ground based Doppler radar observations of convective storms. The capability of airborne Doppler radar to measure horizontal and vertical air motions is evaluated. Airborne Doppler radar is shown to be a viable tool for atmospheric sciences research.

  18. Webinar: Airborne Data Discovery and Analysis with Toolsets for Airborne Data (TAD)

    Atmospheric Science Data Center

    2016-10-18

    Webinar: Airborne Data Discovery and Analysis with Toolsets for Airborne Data (TAD) Wednesday, October 26, 2016 Join us on ... and flight data ranges are available. Registration is now open.  Access the full announcement   For TAD Information, ...

  19. Synthetic musk fragrances in Lake Michigan.

    PubMed

    Peck, Aaron M; Hornbuckle, Keri C

    2004-01-15

    Synthetic musk fragrances are added to a wide variety of personal care and household products and are present in treated wastewater effluent. Here we report for the first time ambient air and water measurements of six polycyclic musks (AHTN, HHCB, ATII, ADBI, AHMI, and DPMI) and two nitro musks (musk xylene and musk ketone) in North America. The compounds were measured in the air and water of Lake Michigan and in the air of urban Milwaukee, WI. All of the compounds except DPMI were detected. HHCB and AHTN were found in the highest concentrations in all samples. Airborne concentrations of HHCB and AHTN average 4.6 and 2.9 ng/m3, respectively, in Milwaukee and 1.1 and 0.49 ng/m3 over the lake. The average water concentration of HHCB and AHTN in Lake Michigan was 4.7 and 1.0 ng/L, respectively. A lake-wide annual mass budget shows that wastewater treatment plant discharge is the major source (3470 kg/yr) of the synthetic musks while atmospheric deposition contributes less than 1%. Volatilization and outflow through the Straits of Mackinac are major loss mechanisms (2085 and 516 kg/yr for volatilization and outflow, respectively). Concentrations of HHCB are about one-half the predicted steady-state water concentrations in Lake Michigan.

  20. An Iterative Learning Algorithm to Map Oil Palm Plantations from Synthetic Aperture Radar and Crowdsourcing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pinto, N.; Zhang, Z.; Perger, C.; Aguilar-Amuchastegui, N.; Almeyda Zambrano, A. M.; Broadbent, E. N.; Simard, M.; Banerjee, S.

    2017-12-01

    The oil palm Elaeis spp. grows exclusively in the tropics and provides 30% of the world's vegetable oil. While oil palm-derived biodiesel can reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuels, plantation establishment may be associated with peat fires and deforestation. The ability to monitor plantation establishment and their expansion over carbon-rich tropical forests is critical for quantifying the net impact of oil palm commodities on carbon fluxes. Our objective is to develop a robust methodology to map oil palm plantations in tropical biomes, based on Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) from Sentinel-1, ALOS/PALSAR2, and UAVSAR. The C- and L-band signal from these instruments are sensitive to vegetation parameters such as canopy volume, trunk shape, and trunk spatial arrangement, that are critical to differentiate crops from forests and native palms. Based on Bayesian statistics, the learning algorithm employed here adapts to growing knowledge as sites and trainning points are added. We will present an iterative approach wherein a model is initially built at the site with the most training points - in our case, Costa Rica. Model posteriors from Costa Rica, depicting polarimetric signatures of oil palm plantations, are then used as priors in a classification exercise taking place in South Kalimantan. Results are evaluated by local researchers using the LACO Wiki interface. All validation points, including missclassified sites, are used in an additional iteration to improve model results to >90% overall accuracy. We report on the impact of plantation age on polarimetric signatures, and we also compare model performance with and without L-band data.

  1. Processor architecture for airborne SAR systems

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Glass, C. M.

    1983-01-01

    Digital processors for spaceborne imaging radars and application of the technology developed for airborne SAR systems are considered. Transferring algorithms and implementation techniques from airborne to spaceborne SAR processors offers obvious advantages. The following topics are discussed: (1) a quantification of the differences in processing algorithms for airborne and spaceborne SARs; and (2) an overview of three processors for airborne SAR systems.

  2. The Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE) 2017 Airborne Campaign

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Miller, C. E.; Goetz, S. J.; Griffith, P. C.; Hoy, E.; Larson, E. K.; Hodkinson, D. J.; Hansen, C.; Woods, J.; Kasischke, E. S.; Margolis, H. A.

    2017-12-01

    The 2017 ABoVE Airborne Campaign (AAC) was one of the largest airborne experiments ever conducted by NASA's Earth Science Division. It involved nine aircraft in 17 deployments - more than 100 flights - between April and October and sampled over 4 million km2in Alaska and northwestern Canada. Many of these flights were coordinated with detailed, same-day ground-based measurements to link field-based, process-level studies with geospatial data products derived from satellite remote sensing. A major goal of the 2017 AAC was to collect data that spanned the critical intermediate space and time scales that are essential for a comprehensive understanding of scaling issues across the ABoVE Study Domain and extrapolation to the pan-Arctic. Additionally, the 2017 AAC provided unique opportunities to validate satellite and airborne remote sensing data for northern high latitude ecosystems, develop and advance fundamental remote sensing science, and explore scientific insights from innovative sensor combinations. The 2017 AAC science strategy coupled domain-wide sampling with L-band and P-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), imaging spectroscopy (AVIRIS-NG), full waveform lidar (LVIS) and atmospheric carbon dioxide and methane with more spatially and temporally focused studies using Ka-band SAR (Ka-SPAR) and solar induced chlorophyll fluorescence (CFIS). Additional measurements were coordinated with the NEON Airborne Observing Platform, the ASCENDS instrument development suite, and the ATOM EV-S2 investigation. Targets of interest included the array of field sites operated by the ABoVE Science Team as well as the intensive sites operated by the DOE NGEE-Arctic team on the Seward Peninsula and in Barrow, NSF's LTER sites at Toolik Lake (North Slope) and Bonanza Creek (Interior Alaska), the Canadian Cold Regions Hydrology sites in the Arctic tundra near Trail Valley Creek NT, the Government of the Northwest Territories Slave River/Slave Delta watershed time series and numerous

  3. Evolution of Photometric and Polarimetric Phase Curves of Fine-Grained Water Ice Particles due to Grain Sintering

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jost, B.; Cerubini, R.; Poch, O.; Pommerol, A.; Thomas, N.

    2018-06-01

    Laboratory photometric and polarimetric phase curves of micrometer-sized water ice particles to elucidate the effect of grain sintering on scattering properties relevant for the analysis of potential plume deposition sites on icy satellites.

  4. Airborne relay-based regional positioning system.

    PubMed

    Lee, Kyuman; Noh, Hongjun; Lim, Jaesung

    2015-05-28

    Ground-based pseudolite systems have some limitations, such as low vertical accuracy, multipath effects and near-far problems. These problems are not significant in airborne-based pseudolite systems. However, the monitoring of pseudolite positions is required because of the mobility of the platforms on which the pseudolites are mounted, and this causes performance degradation. To address these pseudolite system limitations, we propose an airborne relay-based regional positioning system that consists of a master station, reference stations, airborne relays and a user. In the proposed system, navigation signals are generated from the reference stations located on the ground and are relayed via the airborne relays. Unlike in conventional airborne-based systems, the user in the proposed system sequentially estimates both the locations of airborne relays and his/her own position. Therefore, a delay due to monitoring does not occur, and the accuracy is not affected by the movement of airborne relays. We conducted several simulations to evaluate the performance of the proposed system. Based on the simulation results, we demonstrated that the proposed system guarantees a higher accuracy than airborne-based pseudolite systems, and it is feasible despite the existence of clock offsets among reference stations.

  5. Airborne Relay-Based Regional Positioning System

    PubMed Central

    Lee, Kyuman; Noh, Hongjun; Lim, Jaesung

    2015-01-01

    Ground-based pseudolite systems have some limitations, such as low vertical accuracy, multipath effects and near-far problems. These problems are not significant in airborne-based pseudolite systems. However, the monitoring of pseudolite positions is required because of the mobility of the platforms on which the pseudolites are mounted, and this causes performance degradation. To address these pseudolite system limitations, we propose an airborne relay-based regional positioning system that consists of a master station, reference stations, airborne relays and a user. In the proposed system, navigation signals are generated from the reference stations located on the ground and are relayed via the airborne relays. Unlike in conventional airborne-based systems, the user in the proposed system sequentially estimates both the locations of airborne relays and his/her own position. Therefore, a delay due to monitoring does not occur, and the accuracy is not affected by the movement of airborne relays. We conducted several simulations to evaluate the performance of the proposed system. Based on the simulation results, we demonstrated that the proposed system guarantees a higher accuracy than airborne-based pseudolite systems, and it is feasible despite the existence of clock offsets among reference stations. PMID:26029953

  6. ESA airborne campaigns in support of Earth Explorers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Casal, Tania; Davidson, Malcolm; Schuettemeyer, Dirk; Perrera, Andrea; Bianchi, Remo

    2013-04-01

    In the framework of its Earth Observation Programmes the European Space Agency (ESA) carries out ground based and airborne campaigns to support geophysical algorithm development, calibration/validation, simulation of future spaceborne earth observation missions, and applications development related to land, oceans and atmosphere. ESA has been conducting airborne and ground measurements campaigns since 1981 by deploying a broad range of active and passive instrumentation in both the optical and microwave regions of the electromagnetic spectrum such as lidars, limb/nadir sounding interferometers/spectrometers, high-resolution spectral imagers, advanced synthetic aperture radars, altimeters and radiometers. These campaigns take place inside and outside Europe in collaboration with national research organisations in the ESA member states as well as with international organisations harmonising European campaign activities. ESA campaigns address all phases of a spaceborne missions, from the very beginning of the design phase during which exploratory or proof-of-concept campaigns are carried out to the post-launch exploitation phase for calibration and validation. We present four recent campaigns illustrating the objectives and implementation of such campaigns. Wavemill Proof Of Concept, an exploratory campaign to demonstrate feasibility of a future Earth Explorer (EE) mission, took place in October 2011 in the Liverpool Bay area in the UK. The main objectives, successfully achieved, were to test Astrium UKs new airborne X-band SAR instrument capability to obtain high resolution ocean current and topology retrievals. Results showed that new airborne instrument is able to retrieve ocean currents to an accuracy of ± 10 cms-1. The IceSAR2012 campaign was set up to support of ESA's EE Candidate 7,BIOMASS. Its main objective was to document P-band radiometric signatures over ice-sheets, by upgrading ESA's airborne POLARIS P-band radar ice sounder with SAR capability. Campaign

  7. AirMSPI Level 1B2 V005 New Data for NASA’s PODEX Campaign

    Atmospheric Science Data Center

    2017-08-03

    ... (ASDC) and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) announce the public release of Version 005 of the Airborne Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric ... for all spectral bands.  Wavelengths for which polarization information is available (470, 660, and 865 nm) also include the Stokes ...

  8. Mapping Forest Height in Gabon Using UAVSAR Multi-Baseline Polarimetric SAR Interferometry and Lidar Fusion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Simard, M.; Denbina, M. W.

    2017-12-01

    Using data collected by NASA's Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) and Land, Vegetation, and Ice Sensor (LVIS) lidar, we have estimated forest canopy height for a number of study areas in the country of Gabon using a new machine learning data fusion approach. Using multi-baseline polarimetric synthetic aperture radar interferometry (PolInSAR) data collected by UAVSAR, forest heights can be estimated using the random volume over ground model. In the case of multi-baseline UAVSAR data consisting of many repeat passes with spatially separated flight tracks, we can estimate different forest height values for each different image pair, or baseline. In order to choose the best forest height estimate for each pixel, the baselines must be selected or ranked, taking care to avoid baselines with unsuitable spatial separation, or severe temporal decorrelation effects. The current baseline selection algorithms in the literature use basic quality metrics derived from the PolInSAR data which are not necessarily indicative of the true height accuracy in all cases. We have developed a new data fusion technique which treats PolInSAR baseline selection as a supervised classification problem, where the classifier is trained using a sparse sampling of lidar data within the PolInSAR coverage area. The classifier uses a large variety of PolInSAR-derived features as input, including radar backscatter as well as features based on the PolInSAR coherence region shape and the PolInSAR complex coherences. The resulting data fusion method produces forest height estimates which are more accurate than a purely radar-based approach, while having a larger coverage area than the input lidar training data, combining some of the strengths of each sensor. The technique demonstrates the strong potential for forest canopy height and above-ground biomass mapping using fusion of PolInSAR with data from future spaceborne lidar missions such as the upcoming Global Ecosystems

  9. An Open Source Software and Web-GIS Based Platform for Airborne SAR Remote Sensing Data Management, Distribution and Sharing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Changyong, Dou; Huadong, Guo; Chunming, Han; Ming, Liu

    2014-03-01

    With more and more Earth observation data available to the community, how to manage and sharing these valuable remote sensing datasets is becoming an urgent issue to be solved. The web based Geographical Information Systems (GIS) technology provides a convenient way for the users in different locations to share and make use of the same dataset. In order to efficiently use the airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) remote sensing data acquired in the Airborne Remote Sensing Center of the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth (RADI), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), a Web-GIS based platform for airborne SAR data management, distribution and sharing was designed and developed. The major features of the system include map based navigation search interface, full resolution imagery shown overlaid the map, and all the software adopted in the platform are Open Source Software (OSS). The functions of the platform include browsing the imagery on the map navigation based interface, ordering and downloading data online, image dataset and user management, etc. At present, the system is under testing in RADI and will come to regular operation soon.

  10. Radar polarimetry - Analysis tools and applications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Evans, Diane L.; Farr, Tom G.; Van Zyl, Jakob J.; Zebker, Howard A.

    1988-01-01

    The authors have developed several techniques to analyze polarimetric radar data from the NASA/JPL airborne SAR for earth science applications. The techniques determine the heterogeneity of scatterers with subregions, optimize the return power from these areas, and identify probable scattering mechanisms for each pixel in a radar image. These techniques are applied to the discrimination and characterization of geologic surfaces and vegetation cover, and it is found that their utility varies depending on the terrain type. It is concluded that there are several classes of problems amenable to single-frequency polarimetric data analysis, including characterization of surface roughness and vegetation structure, and estimation of vegetation density. Polarimetric radar remote sensing can thus be a useful tool for monitoring a set of earth science parameters.

  11. A Weather Radar Simulator for the Evaluation of Polarimetric Phased Array Performance

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Byrd, Andrew D.; Ivic, Igor R.; Palmer, Robert D.

    A radar simulator capable of generating time series data for a polarimetric phased array weather radar has been designed and implemented. The received signals are composed from a high-resolution numerical prediction weather model. Thousands of scattering centers, each with an independent randomly generated Doppler spectrum, populate the field of view of the radar. The moments of the scattering center spectra are derived from the numerical weather model, and the scattering center positions are updated based on the three-dimensional wind field. In order to accurately emulate the effects of the system-induced cross-polar contamination, the array is modeled using a complete setmore » of dual-polarization radiation patterns. The simulator offers reconfigurable element patterns and positions as well as access to independent time series data for each element, resulting in easy implementation of any beamforming method. It also allows for arbitrary waveform designs and is able to model the effects of quantization on waveform performance. Simultaneous, alternating, quasi-simultaneous, and pulse-to-pulse phase coded modes of polarimetric signal transmission have been implemented. This framework allows for realistic emulation of the effects of cross-polar fields on weather observations, as well as the evaluation of possible techniques for the mitigation of those effects.« less

  12. Polarimetric Doppler spectrum of backscattered echoes from nonlinear sea surface damped by natural slicks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Pengju; Guo, Lixin

    2016-11-01

    Based on the Lombardini et al. model that can predict the hydrodynamic damping of rough sea surfaces in the presence of monomolecular slicks and the "choppy wave" model (CWM) that can describe the nonlinear interactions between ocean waves, the modeling of time-varying nonlinear sea surfaces damped by natural or organic sea slicks is presented in this paper. The polarimetric scattering model of second-order small-slope approximation (SSA-II) with tapered wave incidence is utilized for evaluating co- and cross-polarized backscattered echoes from clean and contaminated CWM nonlinear sea surfaces. The influence of natural sea slicks on Doppler shift and spectral bandwidth of radar sea echoes is investigated in detail by comparing the polarimetric Doppler spectra of contaminated sea surfaces with those of clean sea surfaces. A narrowing of Doppler spectra in the presence of oil slicks is observed for both co- and cross-polarization, which is qualitatively consistent with wave-tank measurements. Simulation results also show that the Doppler shifts in slicks can increase or decrease, depending on incidence angles and polarizations.

  13. Oil spill analysis by means of full polarimetric UAVSAR (L-band) and Radarsat-2 (C-band) products acquired during Deepwater Horizon Disaster

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Latini, Daniele; Del Frate, Fabio; Jones, Cathleen E.

    2014-10-01

    SAR instruments with polarimetric capabilities, high resolution and short revisit time can provide powerful support in oil spill monitoring and different techniques of analysis have been developed for this purpose [1][2]. An oil film on the sea surface results in darker areas in SAR images, but careful interpretation is required because dark spots can also be caused by natural phenomena. In view of the very low backscatter from slicks, the Noise Equivalent Sigma Zero (NESZ) is a primary sensor parameter to be considered when using a sensor for slick analysis. Among the existing full polarimetric sensors, the high resolution and very low NESZ values of UAVSAR (L-band) and RADARSAT-2 (C-band) make them preferable for oil spill analysis compared to the last generation SAR instruments. The Deepwater Horizon disaster that occurred in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 represents a unique and extensive test site where large amounts of SAR imagery and ground validation data are available. By applying the Cloude-Pottier decomposition method to full polarimetric UAVSAR (L-band) and RADARSAT-2 (C-band), it is possible to extract parameters that describe the scattering mechanism of the target. By comparing quasi-simultaneous acquisitions and exploiting the different penetration capabilities of the sensors, we investigate the potential of full polarimetric SAR to discriminate oil on the sea surface from look-alike phenomena covering the full range of backscattering values down to those at the instrument noise floor.

  14. Microphysical properties of frozen particles inferred from Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Microwave Imager (GMI) polarimetric measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gong, Jie; Wu, Dong L.

    2017-02-01

    Scattering differences induced by frozen particle microphysical properties are investigated, using the vertically (V) and horizontally (H) polarized radiances from the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Microwave Imager (GMI) 89 and 166 GHz channels. It is the first study on frozen particle microphysical properties on a global scale that uses the dual-frequency microwave polarimetric signals.From the ice cloud scenes identified by the 183.3 ± 3 GHz channel brightness temperature (Tb), we find that the scattering by frozen particles is highly polarized, with V-H polarimetric differences (PDs) being positive throughout the tropics and the winter hemisphere mid-latitude jet regions, including PDs from the GMI 89 and 166 GHz TBs, as well as the PD at 640 GHz from the ER-2 Compact Scanning Submillimeter-wave Imaging Radiometer (CoSSIR) during the TC4 campaign. Large polarization dominantly occurs mostly near convective outflow regions (i.e., anvils or stratiform precipitation), while the polarization signal is small inside deep convective cores as well as at the remote cirrus region. Neglecting the polarimetric signal would easily result in as large as 30 % error in ice water path retrievals. There is a universal bell curve in the PD-TBV relationship, where the PD amplitude peaks at ˜ 10 K for all three channels in the tropics and increases slightly with latitude (2-4 K). Moreover, the 166 GHz PD tends to increase in the case where a melting layer is beneath the frozen particles aloft in the atmosphere, while 89 GHz PD is less sensitive than 166 GHz to the melting layer. This property creates a unique PD feature for the identification of the melting layer and stratiform rain with passive sensors.Horizontally oriented non-spherical frozen particles are thought to produce the observed PD because of different ice scattering properties in the V and H polarizations. On the other hand, turbulent mixing within deep convective cores inevitably promotes the random

  15. A Comparison of Snow Depth on Sea Ice Retrievals Using Airborne Altimeters and an AMSR-E Simulator

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cavalieri, D. J.; Marksu, T.; Ivanoff, A.; Miller, J. A.; Brucker, L.; Sturm, M.; Maslanik, J. A.; Heinrichs, J. F.; Gasiewski, A.; Leuschen, C.; hide

    2011-01-01

    A comparison of snow depths on sea ice was made using airborne altimeters and an Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for the Earth Observing System (AMSR-E) simulator. The data were collected during the March 2006 National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Arctic field campaign utilizing the NASA P-3B aircraft. The campaign consisted of an initial series of coordinated surface and aircraft measurements over Elson Lagoon, Alaska and adjacent seas followed by a series of large-scale (100 km ? 50 km) coordinated aircraft and AMSR-E snow depth measurements over portions of the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. This paper focuses on the latter part of the campaign. The P-3B aircraft carried the University of Colorado Polarimetric Scanning Radiometer (PSR-A), the NASA Wallops Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) lidar altimeter, and the University of Kansas Delay-Doppler (D2P) radar altimeter. The PSR-A was used as an AMSR-E simulator, whereas the ATM and D2P altimeters were used in combination to provide an independent estimate of snow depth. Results of a comparison between the altimeter-derived snow depths and the equivalent AMSR-E snow depths using PSR-A brightness temperatures calibrated relative to AMSR-E are presented. Data collected over a frozen coastal polynya were used to intercalibrate the ATM and D2P altimeters before estimating an altimeter snow depth. Results show that the mean difference between the PSR and altimeter snow depths is -2.4 cm (PSR minus altimeter) with a standard deviation of 7.7 cm. The RMS difference is 8.0 cm. The overall correlation between the two snow depth data sets is 0.59.

  16. Polarimetric Thomson scattering for high Te fusion plasmas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Giudicotti, L.

    2017-11-01

    Polarimetric Thomson scattering (TS) is a technique for the analysis of TS spectra in which the electron temperature Te is determined from the depolarization of the scattered radiation, a relativistic effect noticeable only in very hot (Te >= 10 keV) fusion plasmas. It has been proposed as a complementary technique to supplement the conventional spectral analysis in the ITER CPTS (Core Plasma Thomson Scattering) system for measurements in high Te, low ne plasma conditions. In this paper we review the characteristics of the depolarized TS radiation with special emphasis to the conditions of the ITER CPTS system and we describe a possible implementation of this diagnostic method suitable to significantly improve the performances of the conventional TS spectral analysis in the high Te range.

  17. Novel Airborne Imaging Polarimeter Undergoes High-Altitude Flight Testing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Diner, David J.; Pingree, Paula J.; Chipman, Russell A.

    2015-01-01

    Optical and signal processing technologies for high-accuracy polarimetric imaging, aimed at studying the impact of atmospheric haze and clouds on Earth's climate, have been demonstrated on checkout flights aboard NASA's ER-2 aircraft.

  18. Exploring the Validity Range of the Polarimetric Two-Scale Two-Component Model for Soil Moisture Retrieval by Using AGRISAR Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Di Martino, Gerardo; Iodice, Antonio; Natale, Antonio; Riccio, Daniele; Ruello, Giuseppe

    2015-04-01

    The recently proposed polarimetric two-scale two- component model (PTSTCM) in principle allows us obtaining a reasonable estimation of the soil moisture even in moderately vegetated areas, where the volumetric scattering contribution is non-negligible, provided that the surface component is dominant and the double-bounce component is negligible. Here we test the PTSTCM validity range by applying it to polarimetric SAR data acquired on areas for which, at the same times of SAR acquisitions, ground measurements of soil moisture were performed. In particular, we employ the AGRISAR'06 database, which includes data from several fields covering a period that spans all the phases of vegetation growth.

  19. Integrated, Dual Orthogonal Antennas for Polarimetric Ground Penetrating Radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pauli, Mario; Wiesbeck, Werner

    2015-04-01

    Ground penetrating radar systems are mostly equipped with single polarized antennas, for example with single linear polarization or with circular polarization. The radiated waves are partly reflected at the ground surface and very often the penetrating waves are distorted in their polarization. The distortion depends on the ground homogeneity and the orientation of the antennas relative to the ground structure. The received signals from the reflecting objects may most times only be classified according to their coverage and intensity. This makes the recognition of the objects difficult or impossible. In airborne and spaceborne Remote Sensing the systems are meanwhile mostly equipped with front ends with dual orthogonal polarized antennas for a full polarimetric operation. The received signals, registered in 2x2 scattering matrices according to co- and cross polarization, are processed for the evaluation of all features of the targets. Ground penetrating radars could also profit from the scientific results of Remote Sensing. The classification of detected objects for their structure and orientation requires more information in the reflected signal than can be measured with a single polarization [1, 2]. In this paper dual linear, orthogonal polarized antennas with a common single, frequency independent phase center, are presented [3]. The relative bandwidth of these antennas can be 1:3, up to 1:4. The antenna is designed to work in the frequency range between 3 GHz and 11 GHz, but can be easily adapted to the GPR frequency range by scaling. The size of the antenna scaled for operation in typical GPR frequencies would approximately be 20 by 20 cm2. By the implementation in a dielectric carrier it could be reduced in size if required. The major problem for ultra wide band, dual polarized antennas is the frequency independent feed network, realizing the required phase shifts. For these antennas a network, which is frequency independent over a wide range, has been

  20. Evaluation and Comparison of the Processing Methods of Airborne Gravimetry Concerning the Errors Effects on Downward Continuation Results: Case Studies in Louisiana (USA) and the Tibetan Plateau (China).

    PubMed

    Zhao, Qilong; Strykowski, Gabriel; Li, Jiancheng; Pan, Xiong; Xu, Xinyu

    2017-05-25

    Gravity data gaps in mountainous areas are nowadays often filled in with the data from airborne gravity surveys. Because of the errors caused by the airborne gravimeter sensors, and because of rough flight conditions, such errors cannot be completely eliminated. The precision of the gravity disturbances generated by the airborne gravimetry is around 3-5 mgal. A major obstacle in using airborne gravimetry are the errors caused by the downward continuation. In order to improve the results the external high-accuracy gravity information e.g., from the surface data can be used for high frequency correction, while satellite information can be applying for low frequency correction. Surface data may be used to reduce the systematic errors, while regularization methods can reduce the random errors in downward continuation. Airborne gravity surveys are sometimes conducted in mountainous areas and the most extreme area of the world for this type of survey is the Tibetan Plateau. Since there are no high-accuracy surface gravity data available for this area, the above error minimization method involving the external gravity data cannot be used. We propose a semi-parametric downward continuation method in combination with regularization to suppress the systematic error effect and the random error effect in the Tibetan Plateau; i.e., without the use of the external high-accuracy gravity data. We use a Louisiana airborne gravity dataset from the USA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to demonstrate that the new method works effectively. Furthermore, and for the Tibetan Plateau we show that the numerical experiment is also successfully conducted using the synthetic Earth Gravitational Model 2008 (EGM08)-derived gravity data contaminated with the synthetic errors. The estimated systematic errors generated by the method are close to the simulated values. In addition, we study the relationship between the downward continuation altitudes and the error effect. The

  1. Evaluation and Comparison of the Processing Methods of Airborne Gravimetry Concerning the Errors Effects on Downward Continuation Results: Case Studies in Louisiana (USA) and the Tibetan Plateau (China)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, Q.

    2017-12-01

    Gravity data gaps in mountainous areas are nowadays often filled in with the data from airborne gravity surveys. Because of the errors caused by the airborne gravimeter sensors, and because of rough flight conditions, such errors cannot be completely eliminated. The precision of the gravity disturbances generated by the airborne gravimetry is around 3-5 mgal. A major obstacle in using airborne gravimetry are the errors caused by the downward continuation. In order to improve the results the external high-accuracy gravity information e.g., from the surface data can be used for high frequency correction, while satellite information can be applying for low frequency correction. Surface data may be used to reduce the systematic errors, while regularization methods can reduce the random errors in downward continuation. Airborne gravity surveys are sometimes conducted in mountainous areas and the most extreme area of the world for this type of survey is the Tibetan Plateau. Since there are no high-accuracy surface gravity data available for this area, the above error minimization method involving the external gravity data cannot be used. We propose a semi-parametric downward continuation method in combination with regularization to suppress the systematic error effect and the random error effect in the Tibetan Plateau; i.e., without the use of the external high-accuracy gravity data. We use a Louisiana airborne gravity dataset from the USA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to demonstrate that the new method works effectively. Furthermore, and for the Tibetan Plateau we show that the numerical experiment is also successfully conducted using the synthetic Earth Gravitational Model 2008 (EGM08)-derived gravity data contaminated with the synthetic errors. The estimated systematic errors generated by the method are close to the simulated values. In addition, we study the relationship between the downward continuation altitudes and the error effect. The

  2. Evaluation and Comparison of the Processing Methods of Airborne Gravimetry Concerning the Errors Effects on Downward Continuation Results: Case Studies in Louisiana (USA) and the Tibetan Plateau (China)

    PubMed Central

    Zhao, Qilong; Strykowski, Gabriel; Li, Jiancheng; Pan, Xiong; Xu, Xinyu

    2017-01-01

    Gravity data gaps in mountainous areas are nowadays often filled in with the data from airborne gravity surveys. Because of the errors caused by the airborne gravimeter sensors, and because of rough flight conditions, such errors cannot be completely eliminated. The precision of the gravity disturbances generated by the airborne gravimetry is around 3–5 mgal. A major obstacle in using airborne gravimetry are the errors caused by the downward continuation. In order to improve the results the external high-accuracy gravity information e.g., from the surface data can be used for high frequency correction, while satellite information can be applying for low frequency correction. Surface data may be used to reduce the systematic errors, while regularization methods can reduce the random errors in downward continuation. Airborne gravity surveys are sometimes conducted in mountainous areas and the most extreme area of the world for this type of survey is the Tibetan Plateau. Since there are no high-accuracy surface gravity data available for this area, the above error minimization method involving the external gravity data cannot be used. We propose a semi-parametric downward continuation method in combination with regularization to suppress the systematic error effect and the random error effect in the Tibetan Plateau; i.e., without the use of the external high-accuracy gravity data. We use a Louisiana airborne gravity dataset from the USA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to demonstrate that the new method works effectively. Furthermore, and for the Tibetan Plateau we show that the numerical experiment is also successfully conducted using the synthetic Earth Gravitational Model 2008 (EGM08)-derived gravity data contaminated with the synthetic errors. The estimated systematic errors generated by the method are close to the simulated values. In addition, we study the relationship between the downward continuation altitudes and the error effect. The

  3. AirMSPI Data and Information

    Atmospheric Science Data Center

    2018-05-09

    AirMSPI Data and Information   Airborne Multi-angle Spectro Polarimetric ... where 3-D radiative transfer may dominate, and (b) enable retrieval of aerosol and cloud macrophysical properties (distribution, height), ... MISR Home Page DISCOVER-AQ Information AirMSPI Announcements MISR Data Table ...

  4. A polarimetric investigation of Jupiter: Disk-resolved imaging polarimetry and spectropolarimetry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    McLean, W.; Stam, D. M.; Bagnulo, S.; Borisov, G.; Devogèle, M.; Cellino, A.; Rivet, J. P.; Bendjoya, P.; Vernet, D.; Paolini, G.; Pollacco, D.

    2017-05-01

    Context. Polarimetry is a powerful remote sensing tool to characterise solar system planets and, potentially, to detect and characterise exoplanets. The linear polarisation of a planet as a function of wavelength and phase angle is sensitive to the cloud and haze particle properties in planetary atmospheres, as well as to their altitudes and optical thicknesses. Aims: We present for the first time polarimetric signals of Jupiter mapped over the entire disk, showing features such as contrasts between the belts and zones, the polar regions, and the Great Red Spot. We investigate the use of these maps for atmospheric characterisation and discuss the potential application of polarimetry to the study of the atmospheres of exoplanets. Methods: We have obtained polarimetric images of Jupiter, in the B, V, and R filters, over a phase angle range of α = 4°-10.5°. In addition, we have obtained two spectropolarimetric datasets, over the wavelength range 500-850 nm. An atmospheric model was sought for all of the datasets, which was consistent with the observed behaviour over the wavelength and phase angle range. Results: The polarimetric maps show clear latitudinal structure, with increasing polarisation towards the polar regions, in all filters. The spectropolarimetric datasets show a decrease in polarisation as a function of wavelength along with changes in the polarisation in methane absorption bands. A model fit was achieved by varying the cloud height and haze optical thickness; this can roughly produce the variation across latitude for the V and R filters, but not for the B filter data. The same model particles are also able to produce a close fit to the spectropolarimetric data. The atmosphere of Jupiter is known to be complex in structure, and data taken at intermediate phase angles (unreachable for Earth-based telescopes) seems essential for a complete characterisation of the atmospheric constituents. Because exoplanets orbit other stars, they are observable at

  5. Retrieval of Soil Moisture and Roughness from the Polarimetric Radar Response

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sarabandi, Kamal; Ulaby, Fawwaz T.

    1997-01-01

    The main objective of this investigation was the characterization of soil moisture using imaging radars. In order to accomplish this task, a number of intermediate steps had to be undertaken. In this proposal, the theoretical, numerical, and experimental aspects of electromagnetic scattering from natural surfaces was considered with emphasis on remote sensing of soil moisture. In the general case, the microwave backscatter from natural surfaces is mainly influenced by three major factors: (1) the roughness statistics of the soil surface, (2) soil moisture content, and (3) soil surface cover. First the scattering problem from bare-soil surfaces was considered and a hybrid model that relates the radar backscattering coefficient to soil moisture and surface roughness was developed. This model is based on extensive experimental measurements of the radar polarimetric backscatter response of bare soil surfaces at microwave frequencies over a wide range of moisture conditions and roughness scales in conjunction with existing theoretical surface scattering models in limiting cases (small perturbation, physical optics, and geometrical optics models). Also a simple inversion algorithm capable of providing accurate estimates of soil moisture content and surface rms height from single-frequency multi-polarization radar observations was developed. The accuracy of the model and its inversion algorithm is demonstrated using independent data sets. Next the hybrid model for bare-soil surfaces is made fully polarimetric by incorporating the parameters of the co- and cross-polarized phase difference into the model. Experimental data in conjunction with numerical simulations are used to relate the soil moisture content and surface roughness to the phase difference statistics. For this purpose, a novel numerical scattering simulation for inhomogeneous dielectric random surfaces was developed. Finally the scattering problem of short vegetation cover above a rough soil surface was

  6. Routing architecture and security for airborne networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Deng, Hongmei; Xie, Peng; Li, Jason; Xu, Roger; Levy, Renato

    2009-05-01

    Airborne networks are envisioned to provide interconnectivity for terrestial and space networks by interconnecting highly mobile airborne platforms. A number of military applications are expected to be used by the operator, and all these applications require proper routing security support to establish correct route between communicating platforms in a timely manner. As airborne networks somewhat different from traditional wired and wireless networks (e.g., Internet, LAN, WLAN, MANET, etc), security aspects valid in these networks are not fully applicable to airborne networks. Designing an efficient security scheme to protect airborne networks is confronted with new requirements. In this paper, we first identify a candidate routing architecture, which works as an underlying structure for our proposed security scheme. And then we investigate the vulnerabilities and attack models against routing protocols in airborne networks. Based on these studies, we propose an integrated security solution to address routing security issues in airborne networks.

  7. Spatial Correlation of Rain Drop Size Distribution from Polarimetric Radar and 2D-Video Disdrometers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Thurai, Merhala; Bringi, Viswanathan; Gatlin, Patrick N.; Wingo, Matt; Petersen, Walter Arthur; Carey, Lawrence D.

    2011-01-01

    Spatial correlations of two of the main rain drop-size distribution (DSD) parameters - namely the median-volume diameter (Do) and the normalized intercept parameter (Nw) - as well as rainfall rate (R) are determined from polarimetric radar measurements, with added information from 2D video disdrometer (2DVD) data. Two cases have been considered, (i) a widespread, long-duration rain event in Huntsville, Alabama, and (ii) an event with localized intense rain-cells within a convection line which occurred during the MC3E campaign. For the first case, data from a C-band polarimetric radar (ARMOR) were utilized, with two 2DVDs acting as ground-truth , both being located at the same site 15 km from the radar. The radar was operated in a special near-dwelling mode over the 2DVDs. In the second case, data from an S-band polarimetric radar (NPOL) data were utilized, with at least five 2DVDs located between 20 and 30 km from the radar. In both rain event cases, comparisons of Do, log10(Nw) and R were made between radar derived estimates and 2DVD-based measurements, and were found to be in good agreement, and in both cases, the radar data were subsequently used to determine the spatial correlations For the first case, the spatial decorrelation distance was found to be smallest for R (4.5 km), and largest fo Do (8.2 km). For log10(Nw) it was 7.2 km (Fig. 1). For the second case, the corresponding decorrelation distances were somewhat smaller but had a directional dependence. In Fig. 2, we show an example of Do comparisons between NPOL based estimates and 1-minute DSD based estimates from one of the five 2DVDs.

  8. Retrieval of the thickness of undeformed sea ice from C-band compact polarimetric SAR images

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, X.; Dierking, W.; Zhang, J.; Meng, J. M.; Lang, H. T.

    2015-10-01

    In this paper we introduce a parameter for the retrieval of the thickness of undeformed first-year sea ice that is specifically adapted to compact polarimetric SAR images. The parameter is denoted as "CP-Ratio". In model simulations we investigated the sensitivity of CP-Ratio to the dielectric constant, thickness, surface roughness, and incidence angle. From the results of the simulations we deduced optimal conditions for the thickness retrieval. On the basis of C-band CTLR SAR data, which were generated from Radarsat-2 quad-polarization images acquired jointly with helicopter-borne sea ice thickness measurements in the region of the Sea of Labrador, we tested empirical equations for thickness retrieval. An exponential fit between CP-Ratio and ice thickness provides the most reliable results. Based on a validation using other compact polarimetric SAR images from the same region we found a root mean square (rms) error of 8 cm and a maximum correlation coefficient of 0.92 for the retrieval procedure when applying it on level ice of 0.9 m mean thickness.

  9. Bistatic synthetic aperture radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yates, Gillian

    Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) allows all-weather, day and night, surface surveillance and has the ability to detect, classify and geolocate objects at long stand-off ranges. Bistatic SAR, where the transmitter and the receiver are on separate platforms, is seen as a potential means of countering the vulnerability of conventional monostatic SAR to electronic countermeasures, particularly directional jamming, and avoiding physical attack of the imaging platform. As the receiving platform can be totally passive, it does not advertise its position by RF emissions. The transmitter is not susceptible to jamming and can, for example, operate at long stand-off ranges to reduce its vulnerability to physical attack. This thesis examines some of the complications involved in producing high-resolution bistatic SAR imagery. The effect of bistatic operation on resolution is examined from a theoretical viewpoint and analytical expressions for resolution are developed. These expressions are verified by simulation work using a simple 'point by point' processor. This work is extended to look at using modern practical processing engines for bistatic geometries. Adaptations of the polar format algorithm and range migration algorithm are considered. The principal achievement of this work is a fully airborne demonstration of bistatic SAR. The route taken in reaching this is given, along with some results. The bistatic SAR imagery is analysed and compared to the monostatic imagery collected at the same time. Demonstrating high-resolution bistatic SAR imagery using two airborne platforms represents what I believe to be a European first and is likely to be the first time that this has been achieved outside the US (the UK has very little insight into US work on this topic). Bistatic target characteristics are examined through the use of simulations. This also compares bistatic imagery with monostatic and gives further insight into the utility of bistatic SAR.

  10. Measurement of Attenuation with Airborne and Ground-Based Radar in Convective Storms Over Land and Its Microphysical Implications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tian, Lin; Heymsfield, G. M.; Srivastava, R. C.; Starr, D. OC. (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    Observations by the airborne X-band Doppler radar (EDOP) and the NCAR S-band polarimetric (S-POL) radar from two field experiments are used to evaluate the Surface ref'ercnce technique (SRT) for measuring the path integrated attenuation (PIA) and to study attenuation in deep convective storms. The EDOP, flying at an altitude of 20 km, uses a nadir beam and a forward pointing beam. It is found that over land, the surface scattering cross-section is highly variable at nadir incidence but relatively stable at forward incidence. It is concluded that measurement by the forward beam provides a viable technique for measuring PIA using the SRT. Vertical profiles of peak attenuation coefficient are derived in vxo deep convective storms by the dual-wavelength method. Using the measured Doppler velocity, the reflectivities at. the two wavelengths, the differential reflectivity and the estimated attenuation coefficients, it is shown that: supercooled drops and dry ice particles probably co-existed above the melting level in regions of updraft, that water-coated partially melted ice particles probably contributed to high attenuation below the melting level, and that the data are not readil explained in terms of a gamma function raindrop size distribution.

  11. Chilean Air Force Captain Saez and Dr. Tom Mace discuss airborne science during a DC-8 ferry flight from Santiago to Punta Arenas, Chile

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2004-03-10

    Chilean Air Force Captain Saez and Dr. Tom Mace, DFRC Director of Airborne Sciences, discuss airborne science during a DC-8 ferry flight from Santiago to Punta Arenas, Chile. AirSAR 2004 is a three-week expedition by an international team of scientists that uses an all-weather imaging tool, called the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) which is located onboard NASA's DC-8 airborne laboratory. Scientists from many parts of the world including NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory are combining ground research done in several areas in Central and South America with NASA's AirSAR technology to improve and expand on the quality of research they are able to conduct. In South America and Antarctica, AirSAR collected imagery and data to help determine the contribution of Southern Hemisphere glaciers to sea level rise due to climate change. In Patagonia, researchers found this contribution had more than doubled from 1995 to 2000, compared to the previous 25 years. AirSAR data will make it possible to determine whether that trend is continuing or accelerating. AirSAR will also provide reliable information on ice shelf thickness to measure the contribution of the glaciers to sea level.

  12. Values of Deploying a Compact Polarimetric Radar to Monitor Extreme Precipitation in a Mountainous Area: Mineral County, Colorado

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cheong, B. L.; Kirstetter, P. E.; Yu, T. Y.; Busto, J.; Speeze, T.; Dennis, J.

    2015-12-01

    Precipitation in mountainous regions can trigger flash floods and landslides especially in areas affected by wildfire. Because of the small space-time scales required for observation, they remain poorly observed. A light-weighted X-band polarimetric radar can rapidly respond to the situation and provide continuous rainfall information with high resolution for flood forecast and emergency management. A preliminary assessment of added values to the operational practice in Mineral county, Colorado was performed in Fall 2014 and Summer 2015 with a transportable polarimetric radar deployed at the Lobo Overlook. This region is one of the numerous areas in the Rocky Mountains where the WSR-88D network does not provide sufficient weather coverage due to blockages, and the limitations have impeded forecasters and local emergency managers from making accurate predictions and issuing weather warnings. High resolution observations were collected to document the precipitation characteristics and demonstrate the added values of deploying a small weather radar in such context. The analysis of the detailed vertical structure of precipitation explain the decreased signal sampled by the operational radars. The specific microphysics analyzed though polarimetry suggest that the operational Z-R relationships may not be appropriate to monitor severe weather over this wildfire affected region. Collaboration with the local emergency managers and the National Weather Service shows the critical value of deploying mobile, polarimetric and unmanned radars in complex terrain. Several selected cases are provided in this paper for illustration.

  13. Airborne Cloud Computing Environment (ACCE)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hardman, Sean; Freeborn, Dana; Crichton, Dan; Law, Emily; Kay-Im, Liz

    2011-01-01

    Airborne Cloud Computing Environment (ACCE) is JPL's internal investment to improve the return on airborne missions. Improve development performance of the data system. Improve return on the captured science data. The investment is to develop a common science data system capability for airborne instruments that encompasses the end-to-end lifecycle covering planning, provisioning of data system capabilities, and support for scientific analysis in order to improve the quality, cost effectiveness, and capabilities to enable new scientific discovery and research in earth observation.

  14. Detection and Identification of Archaeological Sites and Features Using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Data Collected from Airborne Platforms

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2006-04-26

    sessions were used not only for signature development, but more 5 immediately to determine the spatial precision of images produced from...algorithms (e.g., NDVI and Tasseled Cap) available. The most instructive vectors were determined to be the SAR band polarizations vertically in the C...lands. Our principal, but not exclusive, focus has been on the use of high resolution airborne radar data in detection. in’<l’entoxy, and

  15. Infrared polarimetric sensing of oil on water

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chenault, David B.; Vaden, Justin P.; Mitchell, Douglas A.; DeMicco, Erik D.

    2016-10-01

    Infrared polarimetry is an emerging sensing modality that offers the potential for significantly enhanced contrast in situations where conventional thermal imaging falls short. Polarimetric imagery leverages the different polarization signatures that result from material differences, surface roughness quality, and geometry that are frequently different from those features that lead to thermal signatures. Imaging of the polarization in a scene can lead to enhanced understanding, particularly when materials in a scene are at thermal equilibrium. Polaris Sensor Technologies has measured the polarization signatures of oil on water in a number of different scenarios and has shown significant improvement in detection through the contrast improvement offered by polarimetry. The sensing improvement offers the promise of automated detection of oil spills and leaks for routine monitoring and accidents with the added benefit of being able to continue monitoring at night. In this paper, we describe the instrumentation, and the results of several measurement exercises in both controlled and uncontrolled conditions.

  16. Structural classification of marshes with Polarimetric SAR highlighting the temporal mapping of marshes exposed to oil

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Ramsey, Elijah W.; Rangoonwala, Amina; Jones, Cathleen E.

    2015-01-01

    Empirical relationships between field-derived Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Leaf Angle Distribution (LAD) and polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) based biophysical indicators were created and applied to map S. alterniflora marsh canopy structure. PolSAR and field data were collected near concurrently in the summers of 2010, 2011, and 2012 in coastal marshes, and PolSAR data alone were acquired in 2009. Regression analyses showed that LAI correspondence with the PolSAR biophysical indicator variables equaled or exceeded those of vegetation water content (VWC) correspondences. In the final six regressor model, the ratio HV/VV explained 49% of the total 77% explained LAI variance, and the HH-VV coherence and phase information accounted for the remainder. HV/HH dominated the two regressor LAD relationship, and spatial heterogeneity and backscatter mechanism followed by coherence information dominated the final three regressor model that explained 74% of the LAD variance. Regression results applied to 2009 through 2012 PolSAR images showed substantial changes in marsh LAI and LAD. Although the direct cause was not substantiated, following a release of freshwater in response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the fairly uniform interior marsh structure of 2009 was more vertical and dense shortly after the oil spill cessation. After 2010, marsh structure generally progressed back toward the 2009 uniformity; however, the trend was more disjointed in oil impact marshes.             

  17. Development of a standardized and safe airborne antibacterial assay, and its evaluation on antibacterial biomimetic model surfaces.

    PubMed

    Al-Ahmad, Ali; Zou, Peng; Solarte, Diana Lorena Guevara; Hellwig, Elmar; Steinberg, Thorsten; Lienkamp, Karen

    2014-01-01

    Bacterial infection of biomaterials is a major concern in medicine, and different kinds of antimicrobial biomaterial have been developed to deal with this problem. To test the antimicrobial performance of these biomaterials, the airborne bacterial assay is used, which involves the formation of biohazardous bacterial aerosols. We here describe a new experimental set-up which allows safe handling of such pathogenic aerosols, and standardizes critical parameters of this otherwise intractable and strongly user-dependent assay. With this new method, reproducible, thorough antimicrobial data (number of colony forming units and live-dead-stain) was obtained. Poly(oxonorbornene)-based Synthetic Mimics of Antimicrobial Peptides (SMAMPs) were used as antimicrobial test samples. The assay was able to differentiate even between subtle sample differences, such as different sample thicknesses. With this new set-up, the airborne bacterial assay was thus established as a useful, reliable, and realistic experimental method to simulate the contamination of biomaterials with bacteria, for example in an intraoperative setting.

  18. Passive synthetic aperture radar imaging of ground moving targets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wacks, Steven; Yazici, Birsen

    2012-05-01

    In this paper we present a method for imaging ground moving targets using passive synthetic aperture radar. A passive radar imaging system uses small, mobile receivers that do not radiate any energy. For these reasons, passive imaging systems result in signicant cost, manufacturing, and stealth advantages. The received signals are obtained by multiple airborne receivers collecting scattered waves due to illuminating sources of opportunity such as commercial television, radio, and cell phone towers. We describe a novel forward model and a corresponding ltered-backprojection type image reconstruction method combined with entropy optimization. Our method determines the location and velocity of multiple targets moving at dierent velocities. Furthermore, it can accommodate arbitrary imaging geometries. we present numerical simulations to verify the imaging method.

  19. Estimation of forest fuel load from radar remote sensing

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Saatchi, S.; Halligan, K.; Despain, Don G.; Crabtree, R.L.

    2007-01-01

    Understanding fire behavior characteristics and planning for fire management require maps showing the distribution of wildfire fuel loads at medium to fine spatial resolution across large landscapes. Radar sensors from airborne or spaceborne platforms have the potential of providing quantitative information about the forest structure and biomass components that can be readily translated to meaningful fuel load estimates for fire management. In this paper, we used multifrequency polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery acquired over a large area of the Yellowstone National Park by the Airborne SAR sensor to estimate the distribution of forest biomass and canopy fuel loads. Semiempirical algorithms were developed to estimate crown and stem biomass and three major fuel load parameters, namely: 1) canopy fuel weight; 2) canopy bulk density; and 3) foliage moisture content. These estimates, when compared directly to measurements made at plot and stand levels, provided more than 70% accuracy and, when partitioned into fuel load classes, provided more than 85% accuracy. Specifically, the radar-generated fuel parameters were in good agreement with the field-based fuel measurements, resulting in coefficients of determination of R2 = 85 for the canopy fuel weight, R 2 = 0.84 for canopy bulk density, and R2 =0.78 for the foliage biomass. ?? 2007 IEEE.

  20. Automatic Low-Cost Data Acquisition from Old Polarimetric Instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alibrandi, Giuseppe; D'Aliberti, Santi; Coppolino, Salvatore; Villari, Antonino; Micali, Norberto

    2005-03-01

    This article describes the design of an apparatus that allows the digital acquisition of polarimetric data from a Lippich polarimeter. This apparatus consists of a low-cost telecamera applied to the ocular of a double-field polarimeter and connected to a PC. The camera is able to reveal with high sensibility the difference in brightness in the two fields allowing more accurate analytical data to be obtained, without need for the analyser to be rotated. This apparatus allows the execution of either single observations or kinetics, because it is able to save previously obtained analytical data. Experimental tests of the apparatus were performed by measuring the rotation angle of solutions of ( )-adrenaline and by following the kinetics of the acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of sucrose.

  1. Evaluation of two "integrated" polarimetric Quantitative Precipitation Estimation (QPE) algorithms at C-band

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tabary, Pierre; Boumahmoud, Abdel-Amin; Andrieu, Hervé; Thompson, Robert J.; Illingworth, Anthony J.; Le Bouar, Erwan; Testud, Jacques

    2011-08-01

    SummaryTwo so-called "integrated" polarimetric rate estimation techniques, ZPHI ( Testud et al., 2000) and ZZDR ( Illingworth and Thompson, 2005), are evaluated using 12 episodes of the year 2005 observed by the French C-band operational Trappes radar, located near Paris. The term "integrated" means that the concentration parameter of the drop size distribution is assumed to be constant over some area and the algorithms retrieve it using the polarimetric variables in that area. The evaluation is carried out in ideal conditions (no partial beam blocking, no ground-clutter contamination, no bright band contamination, a posteriori calibration of the radar variables ZH and ZDR) using hourly rain gauges located at distances less than 60 km from the radar. Also included in the comparison, for the sake of benchmarking, is a conventional Z = 282 R1.66 estimator, with and without attenuation correction and with and without adjustment by rain gauges as currently done operationally at Météo France. Under those ideal conditions, the two polarimetric algorithms, which rely solely on radar data, appear to perform as well if not better, pending on the measurements conditions (attenuation, rain rates, …), than the conventional algorithms, even when the latter take into account rain gauges through the adjustment scheme. ZZDR with attenuation correction is the best estimator for hourly rain gauge accumulations lower than 5 mm h -1 and ZPHI is the best one above that threshold. A perturbation analysis has been conducted to assess the sensitivity of the various estimators with respect to biases on ZH and ZDR, taking into account the typical accuracy and stability that can be reasonably achieved with modern operational radars these days (1 dB on ZH and 0.2 dB on ZDR). A +1 dB positive bias on ZH (radar too hot) results in a +14% overestimation of the rain rate with the conventional estimator used in this study (Z = 282R1.66), a -19% underestimation with ZPHI and a +23

  2. Polarimetric mountain based radio-occultation for rain detection: The ROHP-PAZ ground campaign

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Padulles, Ramon; Cardellach, Estel; Tomas, Sergio; de la Torre, Manuel; Turk, Joe

    2014-05-01

    The Radio Occultation and Heavy Precipitation experiment aboard the PAZ Low Earth Orbiter (ROHP-PAZ) is a mission of opportunity: The Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN) approved in 2009 a proposal to include a polarimetric Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Radio-Occultation (RO) payload on board of the Spanish Earth Observation satellite PAZ. This will be a new technique that has never been tested before, that aims to improve the knowledge of precipitation through simultaneous thermodynamic and vertical rain profiles. Prior to the launch of the satellite, expected for 2014, a ground experimental campaign is being conducted with the goal of starting the process of identifying and understanding all the factors that might affect the polarimetric RO observables. The campaign is being carried out at the top of Puig Sesolles, a 1667m peak in the Natural Park of Montseny (41º46'24 N, 2º26'17 E), 50 km N-NE from Barcelona, with clear views over the horizon to the South (East to West) direction, an area in which intense precipitation events tend to occur a few times per year. The campaign uses a ICE-CSIC/IEEC's GOLD-RTR open-loop receiver initially designed for collecting GNSS signals reflected off the sea surface. The receiver has been adjusted to track occulting GNSS radio-links. A double polarization (H and V) GNSS antenna has been designed and manufactured by the Polytechnic University of Barcelona (UPC) team for this particular ground-based experiment. The antenna is a phase-array made of 7 elements, each of them being a square patch built using a Rogers 4003 substrate, and symmetrically fed by four probes. It provides a pattern of 12.9 dB peak gain, 45 degrees half-power beam-width, and <-35 dB cross-polar isolation at the peak (better than -30 dB in the main lobe). The preliminary results show that not only precipitation, but also other factors are affecting the GNSS signal, wich means that the polarimetric signal is richer than expected

  3. Characterization of Mediterranean hail-bearing storms using an operational polarimetric X-band radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vulpiani, G.; Baldini, L.; Roberto, N.

    2015-07-01

    This work documents the fruitul use of X-band radar observations for the monitoring of severe storms in an operational framework. More specifically, a couple of severe hail-bearing Mediterranean storms occurred in 2013 in southern Italy, flooding two important cities of Sicily, are described in terms of their polarimetric radar signatures and retrieved rainfall fields. It is used the X-band dual-polarization radar operating inside the Catania airport (Sicily, Italy), managed by the Italian Department of Civil Protection. A suitable processing is applied to X-band radar measurements. The crucial procedural step relies on the differential phase processing based on an iterative approach that uses a very short-length (1 km) moving window allowing to properly catch the observed high radial gradients of the differential phase. The parameterization of the attenuation correction algorithm, which use the reconstructed differential phase shift, is derived from electromagnetic simulations based on 3 years of DSD observations collected in Rome (Italy). A Fuzzy Logic hydrometeor classification algorithm was also adopted to support the analysis of the storm characteristics. The precipitation fields amount were reconstructed using a combined polarimetric rainfall algorithm based on reflectivity and specific differential phase. The first considered storm was observed on the 21 February, when a winter convective system, originated in the Tyrrhenian sea, hit only marginally the central-eastern coastline of Sicily causing the flash-flood of Catania. Due to the optimal radar location (the system is located at just few kilometers from the city center), it was possible to well retrieve the storm characteristics, including the amount of rainfall field at ground. Extemporaneous signal extinction, caused by close-range hail core causing significant differential phase shift in very short range path, is documented. The second storm, occurred on 21 August 2013, is a summer mesoscale

  4. Data Analysis of Airborne Electromagnetic Bathymetry.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1985-04-01

    7 AD-R 58 889 DATA ANALYSIS OF AIRBORNE ELECTROMAGNETIC BRTHYMETRY i/i (U) NAVAL OCEAN RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY NSTL STRTION MS R ZOLLINGER...Naval Ocean Research and Development Activity NSTL, Mississippi 39529 NORDA Report 93 April 1985 AD-A158 809 - Data Analysis of Airborne Electromagnetic ...8217 - Foreword CI Airborne electromagnetic (AEM) systems have traditionally been used for detecting anomalous conductors in the

  5. Multiangular L-band Datasets for Soil Moisture and Sea Surface Salinity Retrieval Measured by Airborne HUT-2D Synthetic Aperture Radiometer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kainulainen, J.; Rautiainen, K.; Seppänen, J.; Hallikainen, M.

    2009-04-01

    SMOS is the European Space Agency's next Earth Explorer satellite due for launch in 2009. It aims for global monitoring of soil moisture and ocean salinity utilizing a new technology concept for remote sensing: two-dimensional aperture synthesis radiometry. The payload of SMOS is Microwave Imaging Radiometer by Aperture Synthesis, or MIRAS. It is a passive instrument that uses 72 individual L-band receivers for measuring the brightness temperature of the Earth. From each acquisition, i.e. integration time or snapshot, MIRAS provides two-dimensional brightness temperature of the scene in the instrument's field of view. Thus, consecutive snapshots provide multiangular measurements of the target once the instrument passes over it. Depending on the position of the target in instrument's swath, the brightness temperature of the target at incidence angles from zero up to 50 degrees can be measured with one overpass. To support the development MIRAS instrument, its calibration, and soil moisture and sea surface salinity retrieval algorithm development, Helsinki University of Technology (TKK) has designed, manufactured and tested a radiometer which operates at L-band and utilizes the same two-dimensional methodology of interferometery and aperture synthesis as MIRAS does. This airborne instrument, called HUT-2D, was designed to be used on board the University's research aircraft. It provides multiangular measurements of the target in its field of view, which spans up to 30 degrees off the boresight of the instrument, which is pointed to the nadir. The number of independent measurements of each target point depends on the flight speed and altitude. In addition to the Spanish Airborne MIRAS demonstrator (AMIRAS), HUT-2D is the only European airborne synthetic aperture radiometer. This paper presents the datasets and measurement campaigns, which have been carried out using the HUT-2D radiometer and are available for the scientific community. In April 2007 HUT-2D participated

  6. Channeled polarimetric technique for the measurement of spectral dependence of linearly Stokes parameters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Quan, Naicheng; Zhang, Chunmin; Mu, Tingkui; Li, Qiwei

    2018-05-01

    The principle and experimental demonstration of a method based on channeled polarimetric technique (CPT) to measure spectrally resolved linearly Stokes parameters (SRLS) is presented. By replacing front retarder with an achromatic quarter wave-plate of CPT, the linearly SRLS can be measured simultaneously. It also retains the advantages of static and compact of CPT. Besides, comparing with CPT, it can reduce the RMS error by nearly a factor of 2-5 for the individual linear Stokes parameters.

  7. Polarimetric glucose sensing using Brewster reflection applying a rotating retarder analyzer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boeckle, Stefan; Rovati, Luigi L.; Ansari, Rafat R.

    2003-10-01

    Previously, we proposed a polarimetric method, that exploits the Brewster-reflection with the final goal of application to the human eye (reflection off the eye lens) for non-invasive glucose sensing. The linearly polarized reflected light of this optical scheme is rotated by the glucose molecules present in the aqueous humor, thus carries the blood glucose concentration information. A proof-of-concept experimental bench-top setup is presented, applying a multi-wavelength true phase measurement approach and a rotating phase retarder as an analyzer to measure the very small rotation angles and the complete polarization state of the measurement light.

  8. Analysis of remote sensing data collected for detection and mapping of oil spills: Reduction and analysis of multi-sensor airborne data of the NASA Wallops oil spill exercise of November 1978

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1982-01-01

    Airborne, remotely sensed data of the NASA Wallops controlled oil spill were corrected, reduced and analysed. Sensor performance comparisons were made by registering data sets from different sensors, which were near-coincident in time and location. Multispectral scanner images were, in turn, overlayed with profiles of correlation between airborne and laboratory-acquired fluorosensor spectra of oil; oil-thickness contours derived (by NASA) from a scanning fluorosensor and also from a two-channel scanning microwave radiometer; and synthetic aperture radar X-HH images. Microwave scatterometer data were correlated with dual-channel (UV and TIR) line scanner images of the oil slick.

  9. Statistics-based optimization of the polarimetric radar hydrometeor classification algorithm and its application for a squall line in South China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Chong; Liu, Liping; Wei, Ming; Xi, Baozhu; Yu, Minghui

    2018-03-01

    A modified hydrometeor classification algorithm (HCA) is developed in this study for Chinese polarimetric radars. This algorithm is based on the U.S. operational HCA. Meanwhile, the methodology of statistics-based optimization is proposed including calibration checking, datasets selection, membership functions modification, computation thresholds modification, and effect verification. Zhuhai radar, the first operational polarimetric radar in South China, applies these procedures. The systematic bias of calibration is corrected, the reliability of radar measurements deteriorates when the signal-to-noise ratio is low, and correlation coefficient within the melting layer is usually lower than that of the U.S. WSR-88D radar. Through modification based on statistical analysis of polarimetric variables, the localized HCA especially for Zhuhai is obtained, and it performs well over a one-month test through comparison with sounding and surface observations. The algorithm is then utilized for analysis of a squall line process on 11 May 2014 and is found to provide reasonable details with respect to horizontal and vertical structures, and the HCA results—especially in the mixed rain-hail region—can reflect the life cycle of the squall line. In addition, the kinematic and microphysical processes of cloud evolution and the differences between radar-detected hail and surface observations are also analyzed. The results of this study provide evidence for the improvement of this HCA developed specifically for China.

  10. Minor planets and related objects. XX - Polarimetric evidence for the albedos and compositions of 94 asteroids

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zellner, B.; Gradie, J.

    1976-01-01

    Polarimetric observations are presented and analyzed for a total of 94 asteroids. The data include numerical parameters describing the polarization-plane curve, the maximum depth of the negative branch, geometric albedo, and diameter. With few exceptions, the polarizations are found to be repeatable from hour to hour, night to night, and apparition to apparition at the same solar phase angle within an observational accuracy of plus or minus 0.05%. It is shown that over a range of more than a factor of 50 in diameter or a factor of 100,000 in mass, all the asteroids seem to have microscopically very rough or particulate surface textures. In terms of their polarimetric properties, the asteroids are classified as follows: 48 in the broad S class, with compositions corresponding to stony-iron meteorites or ordinary chondrites; 34 in the C class, probably corresponding to carbonaceous chondrites; three to five M asteroids with surfaces rich in free metal; two with low-opacity surfaces (class E) attributable to pure enstatite; and five of other types.

  11. Performance Considerations for the SIMPL Single Photon, Polarimetric, Two-Color Laser Altimeter as Applied to Measurements of Forest Canopy Structure and Composition

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dabney, Philip W.; Harding, David J.; Valett, Susan R.; Vasilyev, Aleksey A.; Yu, Anthony W.

    2012-01-01

    The Slope Imaging Multi-polarization Photon-counting Lidar (SIMPL) is a multi-beam, micropulse airborne laser altimeter that acquires active and passive polarimetric optical remote sensing measurements at visible and near-infrared wavelengths. SIMPL was developed to demonstrate advanced measurement approaches of potential benefit for improved, more efficient spaceflight laser altimeter missions. SIMPL data have been acquired for wide diversity of forest types in the summers of 2010 and 2011 in order to assess the potential of its novel capabilities for characterization of vegetation structure and composition. On each of its four beams SIMPL provides highly-resolved measurements of forest canopy structure by detecting single-photons with 15 cm ranging precision using a narrow-beam system operating at a laser repetition rate of 11 kHz. Associated with that ranging data SIMPL provides eight amplitude parameters per beam unlike the single amplitude provided by typical laser altimeters. Those eight parameters are received energy that is parallel and perpendicular to that of the plane-polarized transmit pulse at 532 nm (green) and 1064 nm (near IR), for both the active laser backscatter retro-reflectance and the passive solar bi-directional reflectance. This poster presentation will cover the instrument architecture and highlight the performance of the SIMPL instrument with examples taken from measurements for several sites with distinct canopy structures and compositions. Specific performance areas such as probability of detection, after pulsing, and dead time, will be highlighted and addressed, along with examples of their impact on the measurements and how they limit the ability to accurately model and recover the canopy properties. To assess the sensitivity of SIMPL's measurements to canopy properties an instrument model has been implemented in the FLIGHT radiative transfer code, based on Monte Carlo simulation of photon transport. SIMPL data collected in 2010 over

  12. Handheld SFDI/polarimetric imaging device for objective evaluation of hypertrophic scars (Conference Presentation)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ramella-Roman, Jessica C.; Montejo, Karla; Sevilla, Nicole; Stoff, Susan; Gonzalez, Mariacarla; Chue-Sang, Joseph

    2017-02-01

    Scars can be debilitating and cause serious functional limitations, significantly reduced physical function and loss of ability to perform normal daily activities. Scar formation is not fully understood and the treatment options have been hampered by the lack of an objective diagnostic tool to assess scars. Presently, assessment of hypertrophic scars has been based on subjective clinician rankings using a four-parameter scale called the Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS) or the Patient Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS) but no objective, standardized tool for quantifying scar severity is available, despite known inadequacies of the subjective scales. We have developed a hand-held multi modal system consisting of a combined Spatial Frequency Domain Imager (SFDI) used for the assessment of tissue molecular components and a polarimeter for structural measurements. The SFDI capability is provided by an Arduino board controlled spectrally and polarimetric diverse Light Emitting Diodes (LED) ring illuminator. For SFDI imagery, the LEDs are combined with sinusoidal patterns. A single pattern snapshot SFDI approach is used to observe and quantify the biological components in the scar tissue including: oxygenated and de oxygenated hemoglobin, water, and melanin. The SFDI system is integrated with a reduced Mueller Matrix polarimetric system, whose illumination is also included in the LED's ring, and providing for the assessment of collagen orientation through Mueller Matrix decomposition. The design of the system and experimental work on phantoms will be presented.

  13. Using Multi-Dimensional Microwave Remote Sensing Information for the Retrieval of Soil Surface Roughness

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Marzahn, P.; Ludwig, R.

    2016-06-01

    In this Paper the potential of multi parametric polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) data for soil surface roughness estimation is investigated and its potential for hydrological modeling is evaluated. The study utilizes microwave backscatter collected from the Demmin testsite in the North-East Germany during AgriSAR 2006 campaign using fully polarimetric L-Band airborne SAR data. For ground truthing extensive soil surface roughness in addition to various other soil physical properties measurements were carried out using photogrammetric image matching techniques. The correlation between ground truth roughness indices and three well established polarimetric roughness estimators showed only good results for Re[ρRRLL] and the RMS Height s. Results in form of multitemporal roughness maps showed only satisfying results due to the fact that the presence and development of particular plants affected the derivation. However roughness derivation for bare soil surfaces showed promising results.

  14. MM wave SAR sensor design: Concept for an airborne low level reconnaissance system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boesswetter, C.

    1986-07-01

    The basic system design considerations for a high resolution SAR system operating at 35 GHz or 94 GHz are given. First it is shown that only the focussed SAR concept in the side looking configuration matches the requirements and constraints. After definition of illumination geometry and airborne modes the fundamental SAR parameters in range and azimuth direction are derived. A review of the performance parameters of some critical mm wave components (coherent pulsed transmitters, front ends, antennas) establish the basis for further analysis. The power and contrast budget in the processed SAR image shows the feasibility of a 35/94 GHz SAR sensor design. The discussion of the resulting system parameters points out that this unusual system design implies both benefits and new risk areas. One of the benefits besides the compactness of sensor hardware turns out to be the short synthetic aperture length simplifying the design of the digital SAR processor, preferably operating in real time. A possible architecture based on current state-of-the-art correlator hardware is shown. One of the potential risk areas in achieving high resolution SAR imagery in the mm wave frequency band is motion compensation. However, it is shown that the short range and short synthetic aperture lengths ease the problem so that correction of motion induced phase errors and thus focussed synthetic aperture processing should be possible.

  15. Polarimetric survey of main-belt asteroids. VI. New results from the second epoch of the CASLEO survey

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gil-Hutton, R.; García-Migani, E.

    2017-11-01

    Aims: We present the results of a polarimetric survey of main-belt asteroids at Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito (CASLEO), San Juan, Argentina. The aims of this survey are to increase the database of asteroid polarimetry and to estimate the diversity in the polarimetric properties of asteroids that belong to different taxonomic classes. Methods: The data were obtained using the CASPOL polarimeter at the 2.15 m telescope. CASPOL is a polarimeter based on a CCD detector and a Savart plate. The survey began in 1995 and data on a large sample of asteroids were obtained until 2012. A second period began in 2013 using a polarimeter with a more sensitive detector in order to study small asteroids, families, and special taxonomic groups. Results: We present and analyze the unpublished results for 128 asteroids of different taxonomic types, 55 of them observed for the first time. The observational data allowed us to find probable new cases of Barbarian objects but also two D-type objects, (565) Marbachia and (1481) Tubingia, that seem to have phase-polarization curves with a large inversion angle. The data obtained combined with data from the literature enabled us to find phase-polarization curves for 121 objects of different taxonomic types and to study the relations between several polarimetric and physical parameters. Using an approximation for the phase-polarization curve we found the index of refraction of the surface material and the scatter separation distance for all the objects with known polarimetric parameters. We also found that the inversion angle is a function of the index of refraction of the surface, while the phase angle where the minimum of polarization is produced provides information about the distance between scatter particles or, to some extent, the porosity of the surface. Based on observations carried out at the Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito, operated under agreement between the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de la

  16. ImSyn: photonic image synthesis applied to synthetic aperture radar, microscopy, and ultrasound imaging

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Turpin, Terry M.; Lafuse, James L.

    1993-02-01

    ImSynTM is an image synthesis technology, developed and patented by Essex Corporation. ImSynTM can provide compact, low cost, and low power solutions to some of the most difficult image synthesis problems existing today. The inherent simplicity of ImSynTM enables the manufacture of low cost and reliable photonic systems for imaging applications ranging from airborne reconnaissance to doctor's office ultrasound. The initial application of ImSynTM technology has been to SAR processing; however, it has a wide range of applications such as: image correlation, image compression, acoustic imaging, x-ray tomographic (CAT, PET, SPECT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), microscopy, range- doppler mapping (extended TDOA/FDOA). This paper describes ImSynTM in terms of synthetic aperture microscopy and then shows how the technology can be extended to ultrasound and synthetic aperture radar. The synthetic aperture microscope (SAM) enables high resolution three dimensional microscopy with greater dynamic range than real aperture microscopes. SAM produces complex image data, enabling the use of coherent image processing techniques. Most importantly SAM produces the image data in a form that is easily manipulated by a digital image processing workstation.

  17. Polarimetric SAR image classification based on discriminative dictionary learning model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sang, Cheng Wei; Sun, Hong

    2018-03-01

    Polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) image classification is one of the important applications of PolSAR remote sensing. It is a difficult high-dimension nonlinear mapping problem, the sparse representations based on learning overcomplete dictionary have shown great potential to solve such problem. The overcomplete dictionary plays an important role in PolSAR image classification, however for PolSAR image complex scenes, features shared by different classes will weaken the discrimination of learned dictionary, so as to degrade classification performance. In this paper, we propose a novel overcomplete dictionary learning model to enhance the discrimination of dictionary. The learned overcomplete dictionary by the proposed model is more discriminative and very suitable for PolSAR classification.

  18. Birefringence-balanced polarimetric optical fiber sensor for high-temperature measurements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wang, Anbo; Wang, George Z.; Murphy, Kent A.; Claus, Richard O.

    1992-01-01

    A birefringence-balanced polarimetric multimode fiber temperature sensor is proposed and demonstrated. Two single-crystal sapphire rods are incorporated into the sensor head. They are connected end to end in such a way that the slow axis of the first rod is aligned with the fast axis of the second rod, referred to as the referencing rod. Since the lengths of the two rods are chosen to be almost the same, the original birefringence of the first rod is balanced by that of the second rod. A light-emitting diode serves as the light source. This sensor has been experimentally demonstrated for high-temperature measurements as high as 1500 C. A sensitivity of 5 C has been obtained.

  19. GNSS Polarimetric Radio Occultations: Thermodynamical Structure of pecipitating clouds

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    De La Torre Juarez, M.; Padulles, R.; Cardellach, E.; Turk, F. J.; Tomás, S.; Ao, C. O.

    2016-12-01

    Recent analysis of changes in the hydrological sensitivity during a recent weakening of transient warming show that the representation of the processes linking the condensation of water vapor and the growth and invigoration of convective precipitation produce the greatest disparities between cloud resolving models and current observations of convective cloud systems. The temperature and moisture structure of a cloud environment is the main control on the thermodynamical processes leading to the development of precipitation. The surrounding environmental state acts as the broader sink and source for moisture exchange between clouds and their surroundings. As precipitation develops, water vapor condensation leads to an evolving 3D temperature and moisture structure in and near clouds different from the larger scale structure or the clear-sky environment. Yet there is a gap in existing space-based observations since conventional IR and microwave sounding data are degraded in the presence of clouds and precipitation. GNSS radio occultations (RO) are a low-cost approach to sounding the global atmosphere with high precision, accuracy and vertical resolution inside clouds and across land-ocean boundaries. GNSS provides reliable, sustained signal sources. While current RO provide no direct information on the associated precipitation state, a recently studied concept of Polarimetric RO (PRO) can characterize the moist thermodynamics within precipitating systems. Since precipitation-sized hydrometeors are non-spherically shaped, precipitation induces a cross-polarized component during propagation through clouds, recorded by a dual-channel RO receiver as a differential phase shift. Theoretical analysis performed using coincident TRMM Precipitation Radar and COSMIC observations shows that the polarimetric phase shift is sensitive to the path-integrated rain rate. Based on the expected signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of simulated PRO measurements, the precision of the differential

  20. Polarimetric Radar Retrievals in Southeast Texas During Hurricane Harvey

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wolff, D. B.; Petersen, W. A.; Tokay, A.; Marks, D. A.; Pippitt, J. L.; Kirstetter, P. E.

    2017-12-01

    Hurricane Harvey hit the Texas Gulf Coast as a major hurricane on August 25, 2017 before exiting the state as a tropical storm on September 1, 2017. In its wake, it left a flood of historic proportions, with some areas measuring 60 inches of rain over a five-day period. Although the storm center stayed west of the immediate Houston area training bands of precipitation impacted the Houston area for five full days. The National Weather Service (NWS) WSR88D dual-polarimetric radar (KHGX), located southeast of Houston, maintained operations for the entirety of the event. The Harris County Flood Warning System (HCFWS) had 150 rain gauges deployed in its network and seven NWS Automated Surface Observing Systems (ASOS) rain gauges are also located in the area. In this study, we used the full radar data set to retrieve daily and event-total precipitation estimates within 120 km of the KHGX radar for the period August 25-29, 2017. These estimates were then compared to the HCFWS and ASOS gauges. Three different polarimetric hybrid rainfall retrievals were used: Ciffeli et al. 2011; Bringi et al. 2004; and, Chen et al. 2017. Each of these hybrid retrievals have demonstrated robust performance in the past. However, both daily and event-total comparisons from each of these retrievals compared to those of HCFWS and ASOS rain gauge networks resulted in significant underestimates by the radar retrievals. These radar underestimates are concerning. Sources of error and variance will be investigated to understand the source of radar-gauge disagreement. One current hypothesis is that due to the large number of small drops often found in hurricanes, the differential reflectivity and specific differential phase are relatively small so that the hybrid algorithms use only the reflectivity/rain rate procedure (so called Z-R relationships), and hence rarely invoke the ZDR or KDP procedures. Thus, an alternative Z-R relationship must be invoked to retrieve accurate rain rate estimates.

  1. Airborne Submillimeter Spectroscopy

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zmuidzinas, J.

    1998-01-01

    This is the final technical report for NASA-Ames grant NAG2-1068 to Caltech, entitled "Airborne Submillimeter Spectroscopy", which extended over the period May 1, 1996 through January 31, 1998. The grant was funded by the NASA airborne astronomy program, during a period of time after the Kuiper Airborne Observatory was no longer operational. Instead. this funding program was intended to help develop instrument concepts and technology for the upcoming SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) project. SOFIA, which is funded by NASA and is now being carried out by a consortium lead by USRA (Universities Space Research Association), will be a 747 aircraft carrying a 2.5 meter diameter telescope. The purpose of our grant was to fund the ongoing development of sensitive heterodyne receivers for the submillimeter band (500-1200 GHz), using sensitive superconducting (SIS) detectors. In 1997 July we submitted a proposal to USRA to construct a heterodyne instrument for SOFIA. Our proposal was successful [1], and we are now continuing our airborne astronomy effort with funding from USRA. A secondary purpose of the NAG2-1068 grant was to continue the anaIN'sis of astronomical data collected with an earlier instrument which was flown on the NASA Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO). The KAO instrument and the astronomical studies which were carried out with it were supported primarily under another grant, NAG2-744, which extended over October 1, 1991 through Januarv 31, 1997. For a complete description of the astronomical data and its anailysis, we refer the reader to the final technical report for NAG2-744, which was submitted to NASA on December 1. 1997. Here we report on the SIS detector development effort for SOFIA carried out under NAG2-1068. The main result of this effort has been the demonstration of SIS mixers using a new superconducting material niobium titanium nitride (NbTiN), which promises to deliver dramatic improvements in sensitivity in the 700

  2. Performance characterization of polarimetric active radar calibrators and a new single antenna design

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sarabandi, Kamal; Oh, Yisok; Ulaby, Fawwaz T.

    1992-10-01

    Three aspects of a polarimetric active radar calibrator (PARC) are treated: (1) experimental measurements of the magnitudes and phases of the scattering-matrix elements of a pair of PARCs operating at 1.25 and 5.3 GHz; (2) the design, construction, and performance evaluation of a PARC; and (3) the extension of the single-target-calibration technique (STCT) to a PARC. STCT has heretofore been limited to the use of reciprocal passive calibration devices, such as spheres and trihedral corner reflectors.

  3. Performance characterization of polarimetric active radar calibrators and a new single antenna design

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sarabandi, Kamal; Oh, Yisok; Ulaby, Fawwaz T.

    1992-01-01

    Three aspects of a polarimetric active radar calibrator (PARC) are treated: (1) experimental measurements of the magnitudes and phases of the scattering-matrix elements of a pair of PARCs operating at 1.25 and 5.3 GHz; (2) the design, construction, and performance evaluation of a PARC; and (3) the extension of the single-target-calibration technique (STCT) to a PARC. STCT has heretofore been limited to the use of reciprocal passive calibration devices, such as spheres and trihedral corner reflectors.

  4. Benefits of Sharing Information from Commercial Airborne Forward-Looking Sensors in the Next Generation Air Transportation System

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schaffner, Philip R.; Harrah, Steven; Neece, Robert T.

    2012-01-01

    The air transportation system of the future will need to support much greater traffic densities than are currently possible, while preserving or improving upon current levels of safety. Concepts are under development to support a Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) that by some estimates will need to support up to three times current capacity by the year 2025. Weather and other atmospheric phenomena, such as wake vortices and volcanic ash, constitute major constraints on airspace system capacity and can present hazards to aircraft if encountered. To support safe operations in the NextGen environment advanced systems for collection and dissemination of aviation weather and environmental information will be required. The envisioned NextGen Network Enabled Weather (NNEW) infrastructure will be a critical component of the aviation weather support services, providing access to a common weather picture for all system users. By taking advantage of Network Enabled Operations (NEO) capabilities, a virtual 4-D Weather Data Cube with aviation weather information from many sources will be developed. One new source of weather observations may be airborne forward-looking sensors, such as the X-band weather radar. Future sensor systems that are the subject of current research include advanced multi-frequency and polarimetric radar, a variety of Lidar technologies, and infrared imaging spectrometers.

  5. A Polarimetric Extension of the van Cittert-Zernike Theorem for Use with Microwave Interferometers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Piepmeier, J. R.; Simon, N. K.

    2004-01-01

    The van Cittert-Zernike theorem describes the Fourier-transform relationship between an extended source and its visibility function. Developments in classical optics texts use scalar field formulations for the theorem. Here, we develop a polarimetric extension to the van Cittert-Zernike theorem with applications to passive microwave Earth remote sensing. The development provides insight into the mechanics of two-dimensional interferometric imaging, particularly the effects of polarization basis differences between the scene and the observer.

  6. Synthetic biology, inspired by synthetic chemistry.

    PubMed

    Malinova, V; Nallani, M; Meier, W P; Sinner, E K

    2012-07-16

    The topic synthetic biology appears still as an 'empty basket to be filled'. However, there is already plenty of claims and visions, as well as convincing research strategies about the theme of synthetic biology. First of all, synthetic biology seems to be about the engineering of biology - about bottom-up and top-down approaches, compromising complexity versus stability of artificial architectures, relevant in biology. Synthetic biology accounts for heterogeneous approaches towards minimal and even artificial life, the engineering of biochemical pathways on the organismic level, the modelling of molecular processes and finally, the combination of synthetic with nature-derived materials and architectural concepts, such as a cellular membrane. Still, synthetic biology is a discipline, which embraces interdisciplinary attempts in order to have a profound, scientific base to enable the re-design of nature and to compose architectures and processes with man-made matter. We like to give an overview about the developments in the field of synthetic biology, regarding polymer-based analogs of cellular membranes and what questions can be answered by applying synthetic polymer science towards the smallest unit in life, namely a cell. Copyright © 2012 Federation of European Biochemical Societies. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. Airborne laser-diode-array illuminator assessment for the night vision's airborne mine-detection arid test

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stetson, Suzanne; Weber, Hadley; Crosby, Frank J.; Tinsley, Kenneth; Kloess, Edmund; Nevis, Andrew J.; Holloway, John H., Jr.; Witherspoon, Ned H.

    2004-09-01

    The Airborne Littoral Reconnaissance Technologies (ALRT) project has developed and tested a nighttime operational minefield detection capability using commercial off-the-shelf high-power Laser Diode Arrays (LDAs). The Coastal System Station"s ALRT project, under funding from the Office of Naval Research (ONR), has been designing, developing, integrating, and testing commercial arrays using a Cessna airborne platform over the last several years. This has led to the development of the Airborne Laser Diode Array Illuminator wide field-of-view (ALDAI-W) imaging test bed system. The ALRT project tested ALDAI-W at the Army"s Night Vision Lab"s Airborne Mine Detection Arid Test. By participating in Night Vision"s test, ALRT was able to collect initial prototype nighttime operational data using ALDAI-W, showing impressive results and pioneering the way for final test bed demonstration conducted in September 2003. This paper describes the ALDAI-W Arid Test and results, along with processing steps used to generate imagery.

  8. The Australian National Airborne Field Experiment 2005: Soil Moisture Remote Sensing at 60 Meter Resolution and Up

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kim, E. J.; Walker, J. P.; Panciera, R.; Kalma, J. D.

    2006-01-01

    truth collection over a range of grid spacings, to provide a basis for examining the effects of subpixel variability. However, the native footprint size of the airborne L-band radiometers was always a few hundred meters. During the recently completed (November, 2005) National Airborne Field Experiment (NAFE) campaign in Australia, a compact L-band radiometer was deployed on a small aircraft. This new combination permitted routine observations at native resolutions as high as 60 meters, substantially finer than in previous airborne soil moisture campaigns, as well as satellite footprint areal coverage. The radiometer, the Polarimetric L-band Microwave Radiometer (PLMR) performed extremely well and operations included extensive calibration-related observations. Thus, along with the extensive fine-scale ground truth, the NAFE dataset includes all the ingredients for the first scaling studies involving very-high-native resolution soil moisture observations and the effects of vegetation, roughness, etc. A brief overview of the NAFE will be presented, then examples of the airborne observations with resolutions from 60 m to 1 km will be shown, and early results from scaling studies will be discussed.

  9. Semi-physical Simulation of the Airborne InSAR based on Rigorous Geometric Model and Real Navigation Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Changyong, Dou; Huadong, Guo; Chunming, Han; yuquan, Liu; Xijuan, Yue; Yinghui, Zhao

    2014-03-01

    Raw signal simulation is a useful tool for the system design, mission planning, processing algorithm testing, and inversion algorithm design of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). Due to the wide and high frequent variation of aircraft's trajectory and attitude, and the low accuracy of the Position and Orientation System (POS)'s recording data, it's difficult to quantitatively study the sensitivity of the key parameters, i.e., the baseline length and inclination, absolute phase and the orientation of the antennas etc., of the airborne Interferometric SAR (InSAR) system, resulting in challenges for its applications. Furthermore, the imprecise estimation of the installation offset between the Global Positioning System (GPS), Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and the InSAR antennas compounds the issue. An airborne interferometric SAR (InSAR) simulation based on the rigorous geometric model and real navigation data is proposed in this paper, providing a way for quantitatively studying the key parameters and for evaluating the effect from the parameters on the applications of airborne InSAR, as photogrammetric mapping, high-resolution Digital Elevation Model (DEM) generation, and surface deformation by Differential InSAR technology, etc. The simulation can also provide reference for the optimal design of the InSAR system and the improvement of InSAR data processing technologies such as motion compensation, imaging, image co-registration, and application parameter retrieval, etc.

  10. Distress detection, location, and communications using advanced space technology. [satellite-borne synthetic aperture radar

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sivertson, W. E., Jr.

    1977-01-01

    This paper briefly introduces a concept for low-cost, global, day-night, all-weather disaster warning and assistance. Evolving, advanced space technology with passive radio frequency reflectors in conjunction with an imaging synthetic aperture radar is employed to detect, identify, locate, and provide passive communication with earth users in distress. This concept evolved from a broad NASA research on new global search and rescue techniques. Appropriate airborne radar test results from this research are reviewed and related to potential disaster applications. The analysis indicates the approach has promise for disaster communications relative to floods, droughts, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and severe storms.

  11. Constraints on the optical polarization source in the luminous non-blazar quasar 3C 323.1 (PG 1545+210) from the photometric and polarimetric variability

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kokubo, Mitsuru

    2017-05-01

    We examine the optical photometric and polarimetric variability of the luminous type 1 non-blazar quasar 3C 323.1 (PG 1545+210). Two optical spectropolarimetric measurements taken during the periods 1996-1998 and 2003 combined with a V-band imaging-polarimetric measurement taken in 2002 reveal that (1) as noted in the literature, the polarization of 3C 323.1 is confined only to the continuum emission, I.e. the emission from the broad-line region is unpolarized; (2) the polarized flux spectra show evidence of a time-variable broad absorption feature in the wavelength range of the Balmer continuum and other recombination lines; (3) weak variability in the polarization position angle (PA) of ˜4°over a time-scale of 4-6 yr is observed and (4) the V-band total flux and the polarized flux show highly correlated variability over a time-scale of 1 yr. Taking the above-mentioned photometric and polarimetric variability properties and the results from previous studies into consideration, we propose a geometrical model for the polarization source in 3C 323.1, in which an equatorial absorbing region and an axi-asymmetric equatorial electron-scattering region are assumed to be located between the accretion disc and the broad-line region. The scattering/absorbing regions can perhaps be attributed to the accretion disc wind or flared disc surface, but further polarimetric monitoring observations for 3C 323.1 and other quasars with continuum-confined polarization are needed to probe the true physical origins of these regions.

  12. Dual-Polarimetric Radar-Based Tornado Debris Paths Associated with EF-4 and EF-5 Tornadoes over Northern Alabama During the Historic Outbreak of 27 April 2011

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Carey, Lawrence D.; Schultz, Christopher J.; Schultz, Elise V.; Petersen, Walter A.; Gatlin, Patrick N.; Knupp, Kevin R.; Molthan, Andrew L.; Darden, Christopher B.

    2011-01-01

    An historic tornado and severe weather outbreak devastated much of the southeastern United States between 25 and 28 April 2011. On 27 April 2011, northern Alabama was particularly hard hit by a large number of tornadoes, including several that reached EF-4 and EF-5 on the Enhanced Fujita damage scale. In northern Alabama alone, there were approximately 100 fatalities and hundreds of more people who were injured or lost their homes during the havoc caused by these violent tornadic storms. Two long-track and violent (EF-4 and EF-5) tornadoes occurred within range of the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAHuntsville) Advanced Radar for Meteorological and Operational Research (ARMOR, C-band dual-polarimetric). A unique capability of dual-polarimetric radar is the near-real time identification of lofted debris associated with ongoing tornadoes on the ground. The focus of this paper is to analyze the dual-polarimetric radar-inferred tornado debris signatures and identify the associated debris paths of the long-track EF-4 and EF-5 tornadoes near ARMOR. The relative locations of the debris and damage paths for each tornado will be ascertained by careful comparison of the ARMOR analysis with NASA MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) and ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer) satellite imagery of the tornado damage scenes and the National Weather Service tornado damage surveys. With the ongoing upgrade of the WSR-88D (Weather Surveillance Radar - 1988 Doppler) operational network to dual-polarimetry and a similar process having already taken place or ongoing for many private sector radars, dual-polarimetric radar signatures of tornado debris promise the potential to assist in the situational awareness of government and private sector forecasters and emergency managers during tornadic events. As such, a companion abstract (Schultz et al.) also submitted to this conference explores "The use of dual-polarimetric tornadic

  13. Dual-Polarimetric Radar-Based Tornado Debris Paths Associated with EF-4 and EF-5 Tornadoes over Northern Alabama During the Historic Outbreak of 27 April 2011

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Carey, Lawrence D.; Schultz, Chrstopher J.; Schultz, Elise V.; Petersen, Walter A.; Gatlin, Patrick N.; Knupp, Kevin R.; Molthan, Andrew L.; Jedlovec, Gary J.; Darden, Christopher B.

    2012-01-01

    An historic tornado and severe weather outbreak devastated much of the southeastern United States between 25 and 28 April 2011. On 27 April 2011, northern Alabama was particularly hard hit by a large number of tornadoes, including several that reached EF-4 and EF-5 on the Enhanced Fujita damage scale. In northern Alabama alone, there were approximately 100 fatalities and hundreds of more people who were injured or lost their homes during the havoc caused by these violent tornadic storms. Two long-track and violent (EF-4 and EF-5) tornadoes occurred within range of the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAHuntsville) Advanced Radar for Meteorological and Operational Research (ARMOR, C-band dual-polarimetric). A unique capability of dual-polarimetric radar is the near-real time identification of lofted debris associated with ongoing tornadoes on the ground. The focus of this paper is to analyze the dual-polarimetric radar-inferred tornado debris signatures and identify the associated debris paths of the long-track EF-4 and EF-5 tornadoes near ARMOR. The relative locations of the debris and damage paths for each tornado will be ascertained by careful comparison of the ARMOR analysis with NASA MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) and ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer) satellite imagery of the tornado damage scenes and the National Weather Service tornado damage surveys. With the ongoing upgrade of the WSR-88D (Weather Surveillance Radar 1988 Doppler) operational network to dual-polarimetry and a similar process having already taken place or ongoing for many private sector radars, dual-polarimetric radar signatures of tornado debris promise the potential to assist in the situational awareness of government and private sector forecasters and emergency managers during tornadic events. As such, a companion abstract (Schultz et al.) also submitted to this conference explores The use of dual-polarimetric tornadic debris

  14. Status of a UAVSAR designed for repeat pass interferometry for deformation measurements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hensley, Scott; Wheeler, Kevin; Sadowy, Greg; Miller, Tim; Shaffer, Scott; Muellerschoen, Ron; Jones, Cathleen; Zebker, Howard; Madsen, Soren; Paul, Rose

    2005-01-01

    NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is currently implementing a reconfigurable polarimetric L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), specifically designed to acquire airborne repeat track interferometric (RTI) SAR data, also known as differential interferometric measurements. Differential interferometry can provide key deformation measurements, important for the scientific studies of Earthquakes and volcanoes. Using precision real-time GPS and a sensor controlled flight management system, the system will be able to fly predefined paths with great precision. The expected performance of the flight control system will constrain the flight path to be within a 10 m diameter tube about the desired flight track. The radar wilI be designed to operate on a UAV (Unpiloted Aria1 Vehicle) but will initially be demonstrated on a minimally piloted vehicle (MPV), such as the Proteus buitt by Scaled Composites or on a NASA Gulfstream III. The radar design is a fully polarimetric with an 80 MHz bandwidth (2 m range resolution) and 16 km range swath. The antenna is an electronically steered along track to assure that the actual antenna pointing can be controlled independent of the wind direction and speed. Other features supported by the antenna include an elevation monopulse option and a pulse-to-pulse resteering capability that will enable some novel modes of operation. The system will nominally operate at 45,000 ft (13800 m). The program began out as an Instrument Incubator Project (IIP) funded by NASA Earth Science and Technology Office (ESTO).

  15. Statistical sensor fusion analysis of near-IR polarimetric and thermal imagery for the detection of minelike targets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weisenseel, Robert A.; Karl, William C.; Castanon, David A.; DiMarzio, Charles A.

    1999-02-01

    We present an analysis of statistical model based data-level fusion for near-IR polarimetric and thermal data, particularly for the detection of mines and mine-like targets. Typical detection-level data fusion methods, approaches that fuse detections from individual sensors rather than fusing at the level of the raw data, do not account rationally for the relative reliability of different sensors, nor the redundancy often inherent in multiple sensors. Representative examples of such detection-level techniques include logical AND/OR operations on detections from individual sensors and majority vote methods. In this work, we exploit a statistical data model for the detection of mines and mine-like targets to compare and fuse multiple sensor channels. Our purpose is to quantify the amount of knowledge that each polarimetric or thermal channel supplies to the detection process. With this information, we can make reasonable decisions about the usefulness of each channel. We can use this information to improve the detection process, or we can use it to reduce the number of required channels.

  16. Entropy-Based Classification of Subsurface Scatterers: A Valuable Tool for the Analysis of Data Obtained by the Fully Polarimetric WISDOM Radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Plettemeier, D.; Statz, C.; Hahnel, R.; Benedix, W. S.; Hamran, S. E.; Ciarletti, V.

    2016-12-01

    The "Water Ice Subsurface Deposition on Mars" Experiment (WISDOM) is a Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and part of the 2020 ExoMars Rover payload. It will be the first GPR operating on a planetary rover and the first fully polarimetric radar tasked at probing the subsurface of Mars. WISDOM operates at frequencies between 500 MHz and 3 GHz yielding a centimetric resolution and a penetration depth of about 3 meters in Martian soil. Its prime scientific objective is the detailed characterization of the material distribution within the first few meters of the Martian subsurface as a contribution to the search for evidence of past life. For the first time, WISDOM will give access to the geological structure, electromagnetic nature, and hydrological state of the shallow subsurface by retrieving the layering and properties of the buried reflectors at an unprecedented resolution and, due to the fully polarimetric measurements, amount of information. Furthermore, a "real time" subsurface analysis will support the drill operations by identifying locations of high scientific interest and low risk. Key element in the WISDOM data analysis is the fast and reliable classification and correct localization of subsurface scatterers and layers. The fully polarimetric nature of the WISDOM measurements allows the use of the entropy-alpha decomposition (H-alpha). This method enables the classification of reconstructed images of the subsurface (obtained by inverse imaging algorithms, e.g. f-k migration) with regard to the main scattering mechanisms of geological features present in the image of the subsurface. It is, for example, possible to differentiate smooth surfaces, rough surfaces, isolated spherical scatterers, double- and bounce scattering, anisotropic scatterers, clouds of small scatterers of similar shape as well as layers of oblate spheroids. Preliminary tests under laboratory conditions suggest the feasibility and value of the approach for the classification of geological

  17. An update on airborne contact dermatitis.

    PubMed

    Huygens, S; Goossens, A

    2001-01-01

    This review is an update of 2 previously published articles on airborne contact dermatoses. Because reports in the literature often omit the term 'airborne', 18 volumes of Contact Dermatitis (April 1991-June 2000), 8 volumes of the American Journal of Contact Dermatitis (1992 1999) and 4 volumes of La Lettre du Gerda (1996-1999) were screened, and the cases cited were classified as to history, lesion locations, sensitization sources, and other factors. Reports on airborne dermatitis are increasingly being published, sometimes in relation to specific occupational areas.

  18. Interferometric synthetic aperture radar imagery of the Gulf Stream

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ainsworth, T. L.; Cannella, M. E.; Jansen, R. W.; Chubb, S. R.; Carande, R. E.; Foley, E. W.; Goldstein, R. M.; Valenzuela, G. R.

    1993-01-01

    The advent of interferometric synthetic aperture radar (INSAR) imagery brought to the ocean remote sensing field techniques used in radio astronomy. Whilst details of the interferometry differ between the two fields, the basic idea is the same: Use the phase information arising from positional differences of the radar receivers and/or transmitters to probe remote structures. The interferometric image is formed from two complex synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. These two images are of the same area but separated in time. Typically the time between these images is very short -- approximately 50 msec for the L-band AIRSAR (Airborne SAR). During this short period the radar scatterers on the ocean surface do not have time to significantly decorrelate. Hence the two SAR images will have the same amplitude, since both obtain the radar backscatter from essentially the same object. Although the ocean surface structure does not significantly decorrelate in 50 msec, surface features do have time to move. It is precisely the translation of scattering features across the ocean surface which gives rise to phase differences between the two SAR images. This phase difference is directly proportional to the range velocity of surface scatterers. The constant of proportionality is dependent upon the interferometric mode of operation.

  19. The magnetic field structure in high-mass star formation regions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davidson, Jacqueline A.; Schleuning, D.; Dotson, J. L.; Dowell, C. Darren; Hildebrand, Roger H.

    1995-01-01

    We present a preliminary analysis of far-IR polarimetric observations, which were made to study the magnetic field structure in the high-mass star formation regions of M42, NGC2024, and W3. These observations were made from the Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO), using the University of Chicago far-IR polarimeter, Stokes.

  20. A New Polarimetric Study of Cygnus A Using JVLA from 2-18GHz

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lerato Sebokolodi, Makhuduga; Perley, Rick; Carilli, Chris; Smirnov, Oleg M.; Makhathini, Sphesihle

    2018-01-01

    Polarimetric studies of Cygnus A [5, 1, 2, 3] have shown that this radio galaxy has unusually large rotation measures ranging from -4000 to +3000 rad m -2 for the eastern lobe (E-lobe) and -2000 to +1300 rad m -2 for western lobe(W-lobe). A challenge since then has been to identify the medium(s) responsible for these high Faraday rotations (FR). Although a majority of the FR must arise from the surrounding cluster gas, an unknown portion may arise either in the sheath or within the lobes. In these cases, some depolarization must result, along with a non λ 2 rotation of the plane of polarization. Detecting such a depolarization will enable an estimate of the internal (and/or sheath) thermal gas density. [1] found significant depolarization associated with the inner regions of the E-lobe and no depolarization associated with the W-lobe. This depolarization could be either internal to the source (Faraday depolarization) or due to unresolved small-scale fluctuations in the foreground screen (beam depolarization) [1]. The former is expected to impose significant deviations in the λ2 -law, none of which have been found to date, nor could have been found due to the limited number of frequencies employed in these studies.Since 2015, new JVLA polarimetric observations of Cygnus A have been taken, in all four configurations, covering the frequency range from 2 to 18GHz. These new data provide thousands of frequency channels at high resolution and sensitivity – opening a new opportunity to study in great detail the physics of the jets, lobes and the magnetic field of the X-ray cluster medium and lobes. Our objective is to analyze these new polarimetric data with the expectation of extending the previous work and more importantly, to investigate the possibility of any significantdeviations from the λ2-law. Initial analysis shows significant deviations from λ2 -law associated with the W-lobe. We will present these results in detail, and also the results from RM

  1. Characterization of Mediterranean hail-bearing storms using an operational polarimetric X-band radar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vulpiani, G.; Baldini, L.; Roberto, N.

    2015-11-01

    This work documents the effective use of X-band radar observations for monitoring severe storms in an operational framework. Two severe hail-bearing Mediterranean storms that occurred in 2013 in southern Italy, flooding two important Sicilian cities, are described in terms of their polarimetric radar signatures and retrieved rainfall fields. The X-band dual-polarization radar operating inside the Catania airport (Sicily, Italy), managed by the Italian Department of Civil Protection, is considered here. A suitable processing is applied to X-band radar measurements. The crucial procedural step relies on the differential phase processing, being preparatory for attenuation correction and rainfall estimation. It is based on an iterative approach that uses a very short-length (1 km) moving window, allowing proper capture of the observed high radial gradients of the differential phase. The parameterization of the attenuation correction algorithm, which uses the reconstructed differential phase shift, is derived from electromagnetic simulations based on 3 years of drop size distribution (DSD) observations collected in Rome (Italy). A fuzzy logic hydrometeor classification algorithm was also adopted to support the analysis of the storm characteristics. The precipitation field amounts were reconstructed using a combined polarimetric rainfall algorithm based on reflectivity and specific differential phase. The first storm was observed on 21 February when a winter convective system that originated in the Tyrrhenian Sea, marginally hit the central-eastern coastline of Sicily, causing a flash flood in Catania. Due to an optimal location (the system is located a few kilometers from the city center), it was possible to retrieve the storm characteristics fairly well, including the amount of rainfall field at the ground. Extemporaneous signal extinction, caused by close-range hail core causing significant differential phase shift in a very short-range path, is documented. The second

  2. Airborne measurements of solar and planetary near ultraviolet radiation during the NASA/ESA CV-900 spacelab simulation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sivjee, G. G.

    1977-01-01

    Results from a comparative study of the feasibility of employing experiment operators on the space shuttle to acquire scientifically worthwhile data are presented. The experiments performed during these tests included spectral observations of the Sun and Venus in the near ultraviolet region. The solar measurements were analyzed to determine ozone abundance in the terrestrial atmosphere. Using a detailed spectral matching technique to compare airborne solar UV measurements with synthetic spectral profiles of sunlight, it is deduced that in winter the total atmospheric ozone abundance is about 0.33 atm/cm at midlatitudes in the northern hemisphere.

  3. A New Optical Scheme for a Polarimetric-Based Glucose Sensor

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ansari, Rafat R.; Boeckle, Stefan; Rovati, Luigi; Salzman, Jack A. (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    We describe a new optical scheme to perform polarimetric measurements to detect glucose concentration in the aqueous humor of a model eye. The ultimate aim is to apply this technique in designing a new instrument for measuring glucose levels in diabetic patients routinely, frequently, and non-invasively. The scheme exploits the Brewsterreflection of circularly polarized light off of the lens of the eye. Theoretically, this backreflected linearly polarized light on its way to the detector is expected to rotate its state of polarization due to the presence of glucose molecules in the aqueous humor of patients. An experimental laboratory setup based on this scheme was designed and tested by measuring a range of known concentration of glucose solutions dissolved in water.

  4. Extraction of multi-scale landslide morphological features based on local Gi* using airborne LiDAR-derived DEM

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shi, Wenzhong; Deng, Susu; Xu, Wenbing

    2018-02-01

    For automatic landslide detection, landslide morphological features should be quantitatively expressed and extracted. High-resolution Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) derived from airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data allow fine-scale morphological features to be extracted, but noise in DEMs influences morphological feature extraction, and the multi-scale nature of landslide features should be considered. This paper proposes a method to extract landslide morphological features characterized by homogeneous spatial patterns. Both profile and tangential curvature are utilized to quantify land surface morphology, and a local Gi* statistic is calculated for each cell to identify significant patterns of clustering of similar morphometric values. The method was tested on both synthetic surfaces simulating natural terrain and airborne LiDAR data acquired over an area dominated by shallow debris slides and flows. The test results of the synthetic data indicate that the concave and convex morphologies of the simulated terrain features at different scales and distinctness could be recognized using the proposed method, even when random noise was added to the synthetic data. In the test area, cells with large local Gi* values were extracted at a specified significance level from the profile and the tangential curvature image generated from the LiDAR-derived 1-m DEM. The morphologies of landslide main scarps, source areas and trails were clearly indicated, and the morphological features were represented by clusters of extracted cells. A comparison with the morphological feature extraction method based on curvature thresholds proved the proposed method's robustness to DEM noise. When verified against a landslide inventory, the morphological features of almost all recent (< 5 years) landslides and approximately 35% of historical (> 10 years) landslides were extracted. This finding indicates that the proposed method can facilitate landslide detection, although the cell

  5. Quick response airborne command post communications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Blaisdell, Randy L.

    1988-08-01

    National emergencies and strategic crises come in all forms and sizes ranging from natural disasters at one end of the scale up to and including global nuclear warfare at the other. Since the early 1960s the U.S. Government has spent billions of dollars fielding airborne command posts to ensure continuity of government and the command and control function during times of theater conventional, theater nuclear, and global nuclear warfare. Unfortunately, cost has prevented the extension of the airborne command post technology developed for these relatively unlikely events to the lower level, though much more likely to occur, crises such as natural disasters, terrorist acts, political insurgencies, etc. This thesis proposes the implementation of an economical airborne command post concept to address the wide variety of crises ignored by existing military airborne command posts. The system is known as the Quick Response Airborne Command Post (QRAC Post) and is based on the exclusive use of commercially owned and operated aircraft, and commercially available automated data processing and communications resources. The thesis addresses the QRAC Post concept at a systems level and is primarily intended to demonstrate how current technology can be exploited to economically achieve a national objective.

  6. Calibration of polarimetric radar systems with good polarization isolation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sarabandi, Kamal; Ulaby, Fawwaz T.; Tassoudji, M. Ali

    1990-01-01

    A practical technique is proposed for calibrating single-antenna polarimetric radar systems using a metal sphere plus any second target with a strong cross-polarized radar cross section. This technique assumes perfect isolation between antenna ports. It is shown that all magnitudes and phases (relative to one of the like-polarized linear polarization configurations) of the radar transfer function can be calibrated without knowledge of the scattering matrix of the second target. Comparison of the values measured (using this calibration technique) for a tilted cylinder at X-band with theoretical values shows agreement within + or - 0.3 dB in magnitude and + or - 5 degrees in phase. The radar overall cross-polarization isolation was 25 dB. The technique is particularly useful for calibrating a radar under field conditions, because it does not require the careful alignment of calibration targets.

  7. Evaluation of Unified Model Microphysics in High-resolution NWP Simulations Using Polarimetric Radar Observations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Johnson, Marcus; Jung, Youngsun; Dawson, Daniel; Supinie, Timothy; Xue, Ming; Park, Jongsook; Lee, Yong-Hee

    2018-07-01

    The UK Met Office Unified Model (UM) is employed by many weather forecasting agencies around the globe. This model is designed to run across spatial and time scales and known to produce skillful predictions for large-scale weather systems. However, the model has only recently begun running operationally at horizontal grid spacings of ˜1.5 km [e.g., at the UK Met Office and the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA)]. As its microphysics scheme was originally designed and tuned for large-scale precipitation systems, we investigate the performance of UM microphysics to determine potential inherent biases or weaknesses. Two rainfall cases from the KMA forecasting system are considered in this study: a Changma (quasi-stationary) front, and Typhoon Sanba (2012). The UM output is compared to polarimetric radar observations in terms of simulated polarimetric radar variables. Results show that the UM generally underpredicts median reflectivity in stratiform rain, producing high reflectivity cores and precipitation gaps between them. This is partially due to the diagnostic rain intercept parameter formulation used in the one-moment microphysics scheme. Model drop size is generally both underand overpredicted compared to observations. UM frozen hydrometeors favor generic ice (crystals and snow) rather than graupel, which is reasonable for Changma and typhoon cases. The model performed best with the typhoon case in terms of simulated precipitation coverage.

  8. Gemini planet imager observational calibrations VII: on-sky polarimetric performance of the Gemini planet imager

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wiktorowicz, Sloane J.; Millar-Blanchaer, Max; Perrin, Marshall D.; Graham, James R.; Fitzgerald, Michael P.; Maire, Jérôme; Ingraham, Patrick; Savransky, Dmitry; Macintosh, Bruce A.; Thomas, Sandrine J.; Chilcote, Jeffrey K.; Draper, Zachary H.; Song, Inseok; Cardwell, Andrew; Goodsell, Stephen J.; Hartung, Markus; Hibon, Pascale; Rantakyrö, Fredrik; Sadakuni, Naru

    2014-07-01

    We present on-sky polarimetric observations with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) obtained at straight Cassegrain focus on the Gemini South 8-m telescope. Observations of polarimetric calibrator stars, ranging from nearly un- polarized to strongly polarized, enable determination of the combined telescope and instrumental polarization. We find the conversion of Stokes I to linear and circular instrumental polarization in the instrument frame to be I --> (QIP, UIP, PIP, VIP) = (-0.037 +/- 0.010%, +0.4338 +/- 0.0075%, 0.4354 +/- 0.0075%, -6.64 +/- 0.56%). Such precise measurement of instrumental polarization enables ~0.1% absolute accuracy in measurements of linear polarization, which together with GPI's high contrast will allow GPI to explore scattered light from circumstellar disk in unprecedented detail, conduct observations of a range of other astronomical bodies, and potentially even study polarized thermal emission from young exoplanets. Observations of unpolarized standard stars also let us quantify how well GPI's differential polarimetry mode can suppress the stellar PSF halo. We show that GPI polarimetry achieves cancellation of unpolarized starlight by factors of 100-200, reaching the photon noise limit for sensitivity to circumstellar scattered light for all but the smallest separations at which the calibration for instrumental polarization currently sets the limit.

  9. The Role of Airborne Proteins in Atopic Dermatitis

    PubMed Central

    Hostetler, Sarah Grim; Kaffenberger, Benjamin; Hostetler, Todd

    2010-01-01

    Atopic dermatitis is a common, chronic skin condition. A subpopulation of patients may have cutaneous exposure to common airborne proteins exacerbating their disease through direct proteolytic activity, direct activation of proteinase-activated receptor-2 itch receptors, and immunoglobulin E binding. The most common airborne proteins significant in atopic dermatitis include house dust mites, cockroach, pet dander, and multiple pollens. The literature on atopy patch testing, skin-prick testing, and specific IgE is mixed, with greater support for the use of atopy patch test. Patients with airborne proteins contributing to their disease typically have lesions predominately on air-exposed skin surfaces including the face, neck, and arms; a history of exacerbations after exposure to airborne proteins; severe disease resistant to conventional therapies; and concurrent asthma. Treatment strategies include airborne protein avoidance, removal of airborne proteins from the skin, and barrier repair. Further research is needed to establish the benefit of allergen-specific immunotherapy. PMID:20725535

  10. Monitoring of airborne bacteria and aerosols in different wards of hospitals - Particle counting usefulness in investigation of airborne bacteria.

    PubMed

    Mirhoseini, Seyed Hamed; Nikaeen, Mahnaz; Khanahmd, Hossein; Hatamzadeh, Maryam; Hassanzadeh, Akbar

    2015-01-01

    The presence of airborne bacteria in hospital environments is of great concern because of their potential role as a source of hospital-acquired infections (HAI). The aim of this study was the determination and comparison of the concentration of airborne bacteria in different wards of four educational hospitals, and evaluation of whether particle counting could be predictive of airborne bacterial concentration in different wards of a hospital. The study was performed in an operating theatre (OT), intensive care unit (ICU), surgery ward (SW) and internal medicine (IM) ward of four educational hospitals in Isfahan, Iran. A total of 80 samples were analyzed for the presence of airborne bacteria and particle levels. The average level of bacteria ranged from 75-1194 CFU/m (3) . Mean particle levels were higher than class 100,000 cleanrooms in all wards. A significant correlation was observed between the numbers of 1-5 µm particles and levels of airborne bacteria in operating theatres and ICUs. The results showed that factors which may influence the airborne bacterial level in hospital environments should be properly managed to minimize the risk of HAIs especially in operating theaters. Microbial air contamination of hospital settings should be performed by the monitoring of airborne bacteria, but particle counting could be considered as a good operative method for the continuous monitoring of air quality in operating theaters and ICUs where higher risks of infection are suspected.

  11. Airborne Transparencies.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Horne, Lois Thommason

    1984-01-01

    Starting from a science project on flight, art students discussed and investigated various means of moving in space. Then they made acetate illustrations which could be used as transparencies. The projection phenomenon made the illustrations look airborne. (CS)

  12. Photometric and Polarimetric Activity of the Herbig Ae Star VX Cas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shakhovskoi, D. N.; Rostopchina, A. N.; Grinin, V. P.; Minikulov, N. Kh.

    2003-04-01

    We present the results of our simultaneous photometric and polarimetric observations of the Herbig Ae/Be star VX Cas acquired in 1987 2001. The star belongs to the UX Ori subtype of young variable stars and exhibits a rather low level of photometric activity: only six Algol-like minima with amplitudes ΔV>1m were recorded in 15 years of observations. Two of these minima, in 1998 and 2001, were the deepest in the history of the star’s photometric studies, with V amplitudes of about 2m. In each case, the dimming was accompanied by an increase in the linear polarization in agreement with the law expected for variable circumstellar extinction. The highest V polarization was about 5%. Observations of VX Cas in the deep minima revealed a turnover of the color tracks, typical of stars of this type and due to an increased contribution from radiation scattered in the circumstellar disk. We separated the observed polarization of VX Cas into interstellar (P is) and intrinsic (P in) components. Their position angles differ by approximately 60°, with P is dominating in the bright state and P in dominating during the deep minima. The competition of these two polarization components leads to changes in both the degree and position angle of the polarization during the star’s brightness variations. Generally speaking, in terms of the behavior of the brightness, color indices, and linear polarization, VX Cas is similar to other UX Ori stars studied by us earlier. A number of episodes of photometric and polarimetric activity suggest that, in their motion along highly eccentric orbits, circumstellar gas and dust clouds can enter the close vicinity of the star (and be disrupted there).

  13. Airborne ballistic camera tracking systems

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Redish, W. L.

    1976-01-01

    An operational airborne ballistic camera tracking system was tested for operational and data reduction feasibility. The acquisition and data processing requirements of the system are discussed. Suggestions for future improvements are also noted. A description of the data reduction mathematics is outlined. Results from a successful reentry test mission are tabulated. The test mission indicated that airborne ballistic camera tracking systems are feasible.

  14. The NASA Airborne Earth Science Microwave Imaging Radiometer (AESMIR): A New Sensor for Earth Remote Sensing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kim, Edward

    2003-01-01

    The Airborne Earth Science Microwave Imaging Radiometer (AESMIR) is a versatile new airborne imaging radiometer recently developed by NASA. The AESMIR design is unique in that it performs dual-polarized imaging at all standard passive microwave frequency bands (6-89 GHz) using only one sensor headscanner package, providing an efficient solution for Earth remote sensing applications (snow, soil moisture/land parameters, precipitation, ocean winds, sea surface temperature, water vapor, sea ice, etc.). The microwave radiometers themselves will incorporate state-of-the-art receivers, with particular attention given to instrument calibration for the best possible accuracy and sensitivity. The single-package design of AESMIR makes it compatible with high-altitude aircraft platforms such as the NASA ER-2s. The arbitrary 2-axis gimbal can perform conical and cross-track scanning, as well as fixed-beam staring. This compatibility with high-altitude platforms coupled with the flexible scanning configuration, opens up previously unavailable science opportunities for convection/precip/cloud science and co-flying with complementary instruments, as well as providing wider swath coverage for all science applications. By designing AESMIR to be compatible with these high-altitude platforms, we are also compatible with the NASA P-3, the NASA DC-8, C-130s and ground-based deployments. Thus AESMIR can provide low-, mid-, and high- altitude microwave imaging. Parallel filter banks allow AESMIR to simultaneously simulate the exact passbands of multiple satellite radiometers: SSM/I, TMI, AMSR, Windsat, SSMI/S, and the upcoming GPM/GMI and NPOESS/CMIS instruments --a unique capability among aircraft radiometers. An L-band option is also under development, again using the same scanner. With this option, simultaneous imaging from 1.4 to 89 GHz will be feasible. And, all receivers except the sounding channels will be configured for 4-Stokes polarimetric operation using high-speed digital

  15. Airborne Lidar Surface Topography (LIST) Simulator

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Yu, Anthony W.; Krainak, Michael A.; Harding, David J.; Abshire, James B.; Sun, Xiaoli; Cavanaugh, John; Valett, Susan; Ramos-Izquierdo, Luis; Winkert, Tom; Plants, Michael; hide

    2011-01-01

    In this paper we will discuss our development effort of an airborne instrument as a pathfinder for the Lidar Surface Technology (LIST) mission. This paper will discuss the system approach, enabling technologies, instrument concept and performance of the Airborne LIST Simulator (A-LISTS).

  16. Polarization differences in airborne ground penetrating radar performance for landmine detection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dogaru, Traian; Le, Calvin

    2016-05-01

    The U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL) has investigated the ultra-wideband (UWB) radar technology for detection of landmines, improvised explosive devices and unexploded ordnance, for over two decades. This paper presents a phenomenological study of the radar signature of buried landmines in realistic environments and the performance of airborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) in detecting these targets as a function of multiple parameters: polarization, depression angle, soil type and burial depth. The investigation is based on advanced computer models developed at ARL. The analysis includes both the signature of the targets of interest and the clutter produced by rough surface ground. Based on our numerical simulations, we conclude that low depression angles and H-H polarization offer the highest target-to-clutter ratio in the SAR images and therefore the best radar performance of all the scenarios investigated.

  17. The Influence of Atmosphere Parameters on the Signal for Remote Sensing Polarimetric Electro-Optical Systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Budak, Vladimir P.; Korkin, Sergey V.

    2009-03-01

    The singularity subtraction on the vectorial modification of spherical harmonics method (VMSH) of the solution of the vectorial radiative transfer equation boundary problem is applied to the problem of influence of atmosphere parameters on the polarimetric system signal. We assume in this model different phase matrices (Mie, Rayleigh, and Henyey-Greenstein), reflecting bottom and particle size distribution. The authors describe the main features of the model and some results of its implementation.

  18. Challenges and Opportunities of Airborne Metagenomics

    PubMed Central

    Behzad, Hayedeh; Gojobori, Takashi; Mineta, Katsuhiko

    2015-01-01

    Recent metagenomic studies of environments, such as marine and soil, have significantly enhanced our understanding of the diverse microbial communities living in these habitats and their essential roles in sustaining vast ecosystems. The increase in the number of publications related to soil and marine metagenomics is in sharp contrast to those of air, yet airborne microbes are thought to have significant impacts on many aspects of our lives from their potential roles in atmospheric events such as cloud formation, precipitation, and atmospheric chemistry to their major impact on human health. In this review, we will discuss the current progress in airborne metagenomics, with a special focus on exploring the challenges and opportunities of undertaking such studies. The main challenges of conducting metagenomic studies of airborne microbes are as follows: 1) Low density of microorganisms in the air, 2) efficient retrieval of microorganisms from the air, 3) variability in airborne microbial community composition, 4) the lack of standardized protocols and methodologies, and 5) DNA sequencing and bioinformatics-related challenges. Overcoming these challenges could provide the groundwork for comprehensive analysis of airborne microbes and their potential impact on the atmosphere, global climate, and our health. Metagenomic studies offer a unique opportunity to examine viral and bacterial diversity in the air and monitor their spread locally or across the globe, including threats from pathogenic microorganisms. Airborne metagenomic studies could also lead to discoveries of novel genes and metabolic pathways relevant to meteorological and industrial applications, environmental bioremediation, and biogeochemical cycles. PMID:25953766

  19. Modeling Surface Roughness to Estimate Surface Moisture Using Radarsat-2 Quad Polarimetric SAR Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nurtyawan, R.; Saepuloh, A.; Budiharto, A.; Wikantika, K.

    2016-08-01

    Microwave backscattering from the earth's surface depends on several parameters such as surface roughness and dielectric constant of surface materials. The two parameters related to water content and porosity are crucial for estimating soil moisture. The soil moisture is an important parameter for ecological study and also a factor to maintain energy balance of land surface and atmosphere. Direct roughness measurements to a large area require extra time and cost. Heterogeneity roughness scale for some applications such as hydrology, climate, and ecology is a problem which could lead to inaccuracies of modeling. In this study, we modeled surface roughness using Radasat-2 quad Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) data. The statistical approaches to field roughness measurements were used to generate an appropriate roughness model. This modeling uses a physical SAR approach to predicts radar backscattering coefficient in the parameter of radar configuration (wavelength, polarization, and incidence angle) and soil parameters (surface roughness and dielectric constant). Surface roughness value is calculated using a modified Campbell and Shepard model in 1996. The modification was applied by incorporating the backscattering coefficient (σ°) of quad polarization HH, HV and VV. To obtain empirical surface roughness model from SAR backscattering intensity, we used forty-five sample points from field roughness measurements. We selected paddy field in Indramayu district, West Java, Indonesia as the study area. This area was selected due to intensive decreasing of rice productivity in the Northern Coast region of West Java. Third degree polynomial is the most suitable data fitting with coefficient of determination R2 and RMSE are about 0.82 and 1.18 cm, respectively. Therefore, this model is used as basis to generate the map of surface roughness.

  20. Three-dimensional facial recognition using passive long-wavelength infrared polarimetric imaging.

    PubMed

    Yuffa, Alex J; Gurton, Kristan P; Videen, Gorden

    2014-12-20

    We use a polarimetric camera to record the Stokes parameters and the degree of linear polarization of long-wavelength infrared radiation emitted by human faces. These Stokes images are combined with Fresnel relations to extract the surface normal at each pixel. Integrating over these surface normals yields a three-dimensional facial image. One major difficulty of this technique is that the normal vectors determined from the polarizations are not unique. We overcome this problem by introducing an additional boundary condition on the subject. The major sources of error in producing inversions are noise in the images caused by scattering of the background signal and the ambiguity in determining the surface normals from the Fresnel coefficients.