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41 records · Page 3

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NASA NTRS1993

Performance evaluation of the JPL TOPSAR system: An across-track interferometric SAR system for topographic mapping

An across-track interferometric (XTI) SAR has the capability of determining the three dimensional target location from the recorded radar echos thus providing high spatial resolution both horizontally and vertically. The output of an XTI SAR will typically include both a radar backscatter map and a digital elevation model (DEM). The accuracy of the derived DEM is determined by factors such as data acquisition geometry, signal-to-noise ratio, knowledge of platform position and attitude as well as the accuracy of the processing system. In the summer of 1992 the authors acquired TOPSAR data over the Ft. Irwin area in California, a desert area with significant relief (height standard deviation 150 m). Very accurate DEM's have been derived for this area by the Topographic Engineering Center (TEC) using digital correlation methods on 1:20,000 scale digitized photographs. Corner reflectors were deployed in the area, and their locations were determined to cm accuracies by the Defense Mapping Agency (DMA) using differential GPS techniques. DEM's generated from the acquired radar data have been rotated and translated to overlay the reference DEM's provided by TEC. A detailed description of the errors and their characteristics will be given. The standard deviations of the radar data sets we acquired measured over a 5.6 by 7 km area were 1.9 and 2.3 m. The corresponding numbers for flat areas were 1.1 and 2.0 m and for mountain areas 3.3 and 2.2 m.

Madsen, Soren N.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Phase Screen Determination for the GeoSAR Interferometric Mapping Instrument

GeoSAR is a dual frequency airborne radar interferometric mapping instrument designed to obtain high resolution and high accuracy digital elevation models. The X-band inteferometric antennas are mounted beneath the fuselage with a separation distance of 2.6 m. Midway between the antennas along the aircraft centerline is a large fairing housing the Laser Baseline metrology System (LBMS) and Inertial Navigtion Units (INUs). The P-band antennas are mounted in wingtip pods approximately 10 m from the aircraft centerline. Multipath signals reflected from the LBMS fairing cause phase distortions corrupting the topograhic height measurements for both the X-band and P-band systems. In addition multipath off the wing affects the P-band phase measurements. In this paper we discuss a technique used to mitigate the amount of X-Band multipath and methods calibrating and correcting the phase for both X-Band and P-Band using a high accuracy DEM. Height differences between the interferometrically derived elevations and a photogrammetrically derived DEM are converted into phase differences. Multipath phase errors are sinusoidal with spatial frequency and amplitude related to the magnitude of reflection of the multipath reflection point and its distance from the interferometric antennas. These phase residuals are fitted using a Chebyshev polynomial sequence and used as a phase screen in the processor to correct the phase prior to height reconstruction. Based on the correction signal it is possible to estimate the location and magnitude of the multipath signal. This information can then be used to extend the domain of the phase screen over mapping angles not covered during the calibration passes. Keywords: SAR,interferometry,phase screen

Hensley, Scott↗

NASA NTRS2017

High-Accuracy Tidal Flat Digital Elevation Model Construction Using TanDEM-X Science Phase Data

This study explored the feasibility of using TanDEM-X (TDX) interferometric observations of tidal flats for digital elevation model (DEM) construction. Our goal was to generate high-precision DEMs in tidal flat areas, because accurate intertidal zone data are essential for monitoring coastal environment sand erosion processes. To monitor dynamic coastal changes caused by waves, currents, and tides, very accurate DEMs with high spatial resolution are required. The bi- and monostatic modes of the TDX interferometer employed during the TDX science phase provided a great opportunity for highly accurate intertidal DEM construction using radar interferometry with no time lag (bistatic mode) or an approximately 10-s temporal baseline (monostatic mode) between the master and slave synthetic aperture radar image acquisitions. In this study, DEM construction in tidal flat areas was first optimized based on the TDX system parameters used in various TDX modes. We successfully generated intertidal zone DEMs with 57-m spatial resolutions and interferometric height accuracies better than 0.15 m for three representative tidal flats on the west coast of the Korean Peninsula. Finally, we validated these TDX DEMs against real-time kinematic-GPS measurements acquired in two tidal flat areas; the correlation coefficient was 0.97 with a root mean square error of 0.20 m.

Lee, Seung-Kuk↗

DOE OSTI2021

Simulation of Hurricane Harvey flood event through coupled hydrologic-hydraulic models: Challenges and next steps

Using the 2017 Hurricane Harvey flood event as a test case, this study set up a series of sensitivity analyses to highlight three challenges associated with large-scale flood inundation modeling, including (a) model parameterization, (b) errors in digital elevation models, and (c) effects of reservoir retention. Driven by radar-based hourly rainfall data, a series of hydrologic-hydraulic models including the VIC hydrologic model, RAPID routing model, and Flood2D-GPU hydrodynamic model are set up over Harris County, Texas, to simulate flood inundation and hazards. The results demonstrate the importance of hydrologic parameters in improving flood modeling. For a large flood event such as Hurricane Harvey, the effect of the initial water depths is insignificant. The Manning's n values may increase the peak water depth by ~1%, the flood extents by 65km 2 , and the high danger zone by ~6%. On the contrary, the bathymetry correction factors may reduce the flood extent by ~1.4% and the high-danger zone by ~4%. Reducing the reservoir storage capacity to 1% may increase the flood extent by ~4% and the high-danger zone by ~17%. This study may provide supporting information to guide and prioritize the development of future high-performance computing hydrodynamic large-scale flood simulations.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

NASA NTRS2007

Spaceborne Autonomous and Ground Based Relative Orbit Control for the TerraSAR-X/TanDEM-X Formation

TerraSAR-X (TSX) and TanDEM-X (TDX) are two advanced synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites flying in formation. SAR interferometry allows a high resolution imaging of the Earth by processing SAR images obtained from two slightly different orbits. TSX operates as a repeat-pass interferometer in the first phase of its lifetime and will be supplemented after two years by TDX in order to produce digital elevation models (DEM) with unprecedented accuracy. Such a flying formation makes indeed possible a simultaneous interferometric data acquisition characterized by highly flexible baselines with range of variations between a few hundreds meters and several kilometers [1]. TSX has been successfully launched on the 15th of June, 2007. TDX is expected to be launched on the 31st of May, 2009. A safe and robust maintenance of the formation is based on the concept of relative eccentricity/inclination (e/i) vector separation whose efficiency has already been demonstrated during the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) [2]. Here, the satellite relative motion is parameterized by mean of relative orbit elements and the key idea is to align the relative eccentricity and inclination vectors to minimize the hazard of a collision. Previous studies have already shown the pertinence of this concept and have described the way of controlling the formation using an impulsive deterministic control law [3]. Despite the completely different relative orbit control requirements, the same approach can be applied to the TSX/TDX formation. The task of TDX is to maintain the close formation configuration by actively controlling its relative motion with respect to TSX, the leader of the formation. TDX must replicate the absolute orbit keeping maneuvers executed by TSX and also compensate the natural deviation of the relative e/i vectors. In fact the relative orbital elements of the formation tend to drift because of the secular non-keplerian perturbations acting on both satellites. The goal of the ground segment is thus to regularly correct this configuration by performing small orbit correction maneuvers on TDX. The ground station contacts are limited due to the geographic position of the station and the costs for contact time. Only with a polar ground station a contact visibility is possible every orbit for LEO satellites. TSX and TDX use only the Weilheim ground station (in the southern part of Germany) during routine operations. This station allows two scheduled contact per day for the nominal orbit configuration, meaning that the satellite conditions can be checked with an interval of 12 hours. While this limitation is usually not critical for single satellite operations, the visibility constraints drive the achievable orbit control accuracy for a LEO formation if a ground based approach is chosen. Along-track position uncertainties and maneuver execution errors affect the relative motion and can be compensated only after a ground station contact.

Ardaens, J. S.↗