24-11-2012, 01:51 PM
Using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to Map Natural Hazards and Disasters
[attachment=40965]
Remote Sensing of Our Planet
During the last three or four decades, great advances have been made in technologies to study our planet from vantage points high above the surface
Monitors aboard aircraft and satellites reveal much that cannot be discovered through surface-based techniques
Remote Sensing & E2C
Christopher Small has shared examples of cutting-edge investigations using remote sensing over the years in E2C programs
Today’s Topic:
Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) is one of the most useful of the remote sensing strategies used by research scientists and operation specialists in a variety of fields.
What’s “SAR” and How Can It Help Map Natural Disasters and Hazards?
Synthetic Aperture Radar is a space or airborne technology that provides high-resolution monitoring for environmental and military purposes in all weather or day/night conditions
With SAR it is possible to obtain detailed information quickly that may be of great use in combating such natural disasters as wildfires, oil spills, ice and seas, etc.
How Does SAR Work?
Details are complex, but in a simplified version, we can say that SAR operates by sending out energy pulses at microwave wavelengths and measuring the precise time of the returning echo from a surface
What makes SAR different is that it creates an extremely sharp beam over a wide area that enables high-resolution imaging
The next slide represents the process.
SAR is one type of “imaging radar”
Many types of optical as well as radar remote sensing systems have been developed in the past few decades that have yielded vast amounts of data about our planet
All radar systems basically transmit a pulse in the radio frequency part of the EM spectrum and capture part of the returning echo, as shown in the next slide
Wildfires in the Western US
Inevitable part of the environment
Expansion of human communities into forested areas increase risks
Landslides and flooding in burned-out areas are major post-fire threats
Need new technologies to identify potential as effectively as possible
[attachment=40965]
Remote Sensing of Our Planet
During the last three or four decades, great advances have been made in technologies to study our planet from vantage points high above the surface
Monitors aboard aircraft and satellites reveal much that cannot be discovered through surface-based techniques
Remote Sensing & E2C
Christopher Small has shared examples of cutting-edge investigations using remote sensing over the years in E2C programs
Today’s Topic:
Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) is one of the most useful of the remote sensing strategies used by research scientists and operation specialists in a variety of fields.
What’s “SAR” and How Can It Help Map Natural Disasters and Hazards?
Synthetic Aperture Radar is a space or airborne technology that provides high-resolution monitoring for environmental and military purposes in all weather or day/night conditions
With SAR it is possible to obtain detailed information quickly that may be of great use in combating such natural disasters as wildfires, oil spills, ice and seas, etc.
How Does SAR Work?
Details are complex, but in a simplified version, we can say that SAR operates by sending out energy pulses at microwave wavelengths and measuring the precise time of the returning echo from a surface
What makes SAR different is that it creates an extremely sharp beam over a wide area that enables high-resolution imaging
The next slide represents the process.
SAR is one type of “imaging radar”
Many types of optical as well as radar remote sensing systems have been developed in the past few decades that have yielded vast amounts of data about our planet
All radar systems basically transmit a pulse in the radio frequency part of the EM spectrum and capture part of the returning echo, as shown in the next slide
Wildfires in the Western US
Inevitable part of the environment
Expansion of human communities into forested areas increase risks
Landslides and flooding in burned-out areas are major post-fire threats
Need new technologies to identify potential as effectively as possible