Efficient SAR Raw Data Compression in Frequency Domain

Abstract

SAR raw data compression is necessary to reduce huge amounts of SAR data for a memory on board a satellite, space shuttle or aircraft and for later downlink to a ground station. In view of interferometric and polarimetric applications for SAR data, it becomes more and more important to pay attention to phase errors caused by data compression. Herein, a detailed comparison of block adaptive quantization in time domain (BAQ) and in frequency domain (FFT-BAQ) is given. Inclusion of raw data compression in the processing chain allows an efficient use of the FFT-BAQ and makes implementation for on-board data compression feasible. The FFT-BAQ outperforms the BAQ in terms of signal-to-quantization noise ratio and phase error and allows a direct decimation of the oversampled data equivalent to FIR-filtering in time domain. Impacts on interferometric phase and coherency are also given.