Model SENSAT: A Tool for Evaluating the System Performance of Optical Systems.

Abstract

Model SENSAT is a tool for the evaluation of the radiometric system performance of passive optical sensors. In combination with the LOWTRAN-7 code the model can be employed in the spectral range 0.28-28 ym. The model is capable of treating up to three homogeneous objects in the sensor's instantaneous field of view. It calculates the emitted / reflected radiance contribution of each object at the sensor, the SNR, the brightness temperature, and derived quantities like detector signal and associated quantized digital numbers. Special features include the multiple path option, a noise model for quantum detectors, a spectral band optimization, and a multi-bandsensor option which processes a sequence of contiguous spectral bands. The model can also be employed to process images of spaceborne / airborne optical sensors by performing the atmospheric correction and calculating ground reflectance images.