Agricultural Application Prospect of Fully Polarimetric and Quantification S-Band SAR Subsystem in Chinese High-Resolution Aerial Remote Sensing System

Abstract

The synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is a type of active radar that can obtain polarization scattering information of ground objects, which is an important supplement to optical remote sensing. This paper designs a high-precision quantitative SAR system that combines radiation and polarization calibration processing to achieve a subtle perception of the changes in soil moisture and straw coverage. In Yushu, Jilin, we conducted the first S-band agricultural remote sensing application experiment. The backscattering coefficient was measured under different water content and straw coverage conditions, and the results showed that the backscattering coefficient increased by about 2 dB and 6 dB, respectively. We estimated that the soil water content increased by about 0.01 cm3/cm3, which was consistent with the theoretical analysis. The polarization scattering characteristics also showed significant differences under different straw coverage. The results indicated that S-band quantitative SAR had an excellent response ability to water content and straw coverage, which provided a technical basis for further radar agricultural applications in the future.