RS130RS130SYNOPSIS
The Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) course is intended for scientists,engineers and other technologists who are already familiar with the basicprinciples of radar and are interested in acquiring a deeper knowledge andunderstanding of the theory and applications of (high resolution) syntheticaperture radar.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
Technologists who have completed an advanced radar course or have a strongbackground in radar systems.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
The principal objective of this course is to provide an in-depth introductionto radar systems which are capable of attaining high resolution imagery.Specific learning objectives are:
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course describes an exciting new area of radar systems which produceshigh resolution, all weather imagery of sufficient quality to be comparablewith photographic aerial reconnaisance imagery. The introductory materialdocuments the applications of SAR and describes fundamental system operation.Many examples of SAR imagery will be shown and comparisons made with photographicimagery. A discussion of the interpretation of the SAR imagery is presented.
After reviewing basic SAR operations and imagery, the course focusesattention on environmental and target cross-section factors and their influenceon SAR performance. A discussion of natural and man-made objects in SARimagery is presented. Effects of weather and propagation on imagery aregiven. From the presentation of environmental and target cross-section factors,the requirements for SAR frequency selection are described. From these considerations,the theory and the associated mathematical relationships for synthetic apertureradars are developed. The SAR performance is explained in terms of two models-- the equivalent, extended-array antenna model and the doppler informationmodel. From these models, the basic equations of SAR are developed. Systemperformance is parameterized in terms of iso-range and iso-doppler contours.Because motion is inherently involved in production of synthetic apertureradar measurements, motion compensation must be considered in the reconstructionof SAR imagery. All of the effects including velocity, acceleration, vibrationand platform motion are described. Image correction and autofocus are alsoconsidered. Advance techniques for improving system performance are presented.Attention is given to special geometrics, multilook operations, image changedetection and augmentation of traditional radar modes to accommodate a syntheticaperture mode of operation.
The last part of the course deals with hardware design and implementationfor a synthetic aperture radar. Consideration is given to each of the elementsin the SAR system. Particular emphasis is placed on the signal generationand processing requirements. Processor sizing is presented in terms of thearithmetic, memory and data link bandwidth requirements imposed by the application.Processor and display hardware are described and techniques are presentedfor hardware reduction. Examples of state-of-the-art SAR hardware will beshown.
COURSE OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION TO SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR MOTION COMPENSATION | SAR SYSTEM DESIGN INVERSE SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR SAR HARDWARE DESIGN FUNDAMENTALS |