Combined application of target decomposition methods and polarimetric SAR interferometry: some preliminary results

Abstract

The application of interferometric techniques to polarimetric SAR data is a relative new and promising research field. Noteworthy examples of its potential have been reported by Cloude and Papathanassiou for the retrieval of forests height. In general, polarimetric analysis approaches have been considered for optimizing the interferometric coherence, mainly in order to improve the generation of digital elevation models. In this paper, we will present the first results that we obtained by combining interferometric analysis with coherent target decomposition methods (in particular, the one proposed by Krogager); the different coherence properties of target models will be investigated and a provisional evaluation of the usefulness of this approach will be given.