Weak Signal Extraction from Lunar Penetrating Radar Channel 1 Data Based on Local Correlation

Abstract

Knowledge of the subsurface structure not only provides useful information on lunar geology, but it also can quantify the potential lunar resources for human beings. The dual-frequency lunar penetrating radar (LPR) aboard the Yutu rover offers a Special opportunity to understand the subsurface structure to a depth of several hundreds of meters using a low-frequency channel (channel 1), as well as layer near-surface stratigraphic structure of the regolith using high-frequency observations (channel 2). The channel 1 data of the LPR has a very low signal-to-noise ratio. However, the extraction of weak signals from the data represents a problem worth exploring. In this article, we propose a weak signal extraction method in view of local correlation to analyze the LPR CH-1 data, to facilitate a study of the lunar regolith structure. First, we build a pre-processing workflow to increase the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Second, we apply the K-L transform to separate the horizontal signal and then use the seislet transform (ST) to reserve the continuous signal. Then, the local correlation map is calculated using the two denoising results and a time–space dependent weighting operator is constructed to suppress the noise residuals. The weak signal after noise suppression may provide a new reference for subsequent data interpretation. Finally, in combination with the regional geology and previous research, we provide some speculative interpretations of the LPR CH-1 data.