Synthetic Aperture Radar: Systems and Signal Processing (Wiley Series in Remote Sensing and Image Processing)
The use of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) represents a new era in remote sensing technology. A complete handbook for anyone who must design an SAR system capable of reliably producing high quality image data products, free from image artifacts and calibrated in terms of the target backscatter coefficient. Combines fundamentals underlying the SAR imaging process and the practical system engineering required to produce quality images from a real SAR system. Beginning with a broad overview of SAR technology, it goes on to examine SAR system capabilities and components and detail the techniques required for design and development of the SAR ground data system with emphasis on the correlation processing. Intended for SAR system engineers and researchers, it is generously illustrated for maximum clarity.
Why Read This Book
You should read this book if you need a practical, system-oriented handbook that links SAR theory to real-world imaging and ground processing. You will learn how to design and engineer SAR systems and ground data processors that produce high-quality, calibrated images and how correlation-based image formation removes artifacts and recovers radiometric fidelity.
Who Will Benefit
Ideal for SAR system engineers, signal processing researchers, and senior radar/remote sensing engineers who must design, specify, or operate airborne or spaceborne SAR imaging systems and their ground processing chains.
Level: Advanced — Prerequisites: Solid undergraduate/graduate background in signals and systems, Fourier transforms and classical DSP, basic radar principles (pulse radar and range/Doppler concepts), and comfort with linear systems mathematics; familiarity with MATLAB or equivalent is helpful.
Key Takeaways
- Design correlation-based SAR processors and implement image-formation chains that minimize artifacts
- Analyze and apply pulse-compression, matched filtering, and FFT-based techniques for high-resolution range and azimuth focusing
- Apply radiometric calibration and understand the radar equation to convert raw returns into backscatter coefficients
- Diagnose and mitigate common error sources (motion errors, range cell migration, sidelobes, speckle) using motion compensation and range migration correction
- Specify system-level tradeoffs (PRF, bandwidth, antenna size, resolution, swath) for airborne and spaceborne SAR missions
Topics Covered
- 1. Introduction and Overview of Synthetic Aperture Radar
- 2. Basic Radar and SAR Principles: Geometry, Resolution, and Ambiguity
- 3. Signal Models for SAR and the Radar Equation
- 4. Pulse Compression, Matched Filtering, and Range Processing
- 5. Azimuth Processing: Doppler, Correlation, and Focusing
- 6. Range Migration and 2-D Migration Algorithms (including FFT-based approaches)
- 7. Implementation of Correlation Processors and Ground Data Systems
- 8. Motion Compensation and Platform Error Correction
- 9. Radiometric Calibration and Performance Assessment
- 10. Image Quality: Speckle, Sidelobes, and Resolution Tradeoffs
- 11. System Engineering: Antenna, PRF, Waveform, and System Design Parameters
- 12. Practical Processing Considerations, Test Methods, and Examples
- Appendices: Mathematical Tools (FFT, spectral analysis), Notation, and Data Formats
Languages, Platforms & Tools
How It Compares
Covers similar ground to Cumming & Wong's DSP-focused SAR texts but emphasizes system engineering, correlation processing, and calibration more heavily; complements general radar texts like Richards by concentrating on SAR imaging practice.
