Internal calibration for high-beamwidth, high-bandwidth UAV-SAR systems

Abstract

The proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in recent years has piqued the interest of the scientific community, due to the ability to equip them with complex and advanced synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems. UAV-SAR systems bring many advantages to the users, but they also come with new challenges. Among them, there is the problem of finding an effective and validated calibration procedure that can yield the radiometrically-accurate image of the scene. The thesis firstly questions about the applicability of existing internal calibration methods, developed with classical (air- and spaceborne) SAR systems in mind, to UAV-SAR systems. The document goes on to elucidate and emphasize the significant differences that set apart air- and spaceborne systems from UAV-SAR systems, with simulated results backing up the claims. Then, a state-of-the-art internal calibration procedure designed for an airborne SAR system undergoes testing and analysis. Finally, theoretical progress is presented through comprehensive problem analysis, and innovative solutions are suggested.