Basic Studies in Microwave Remote Sensing by

The purpose of this research is to develop scattering models in support of microwave remote sensing of earth terrains with particular emphasis on model applications to airborne SAR measurements of forest. Practically useful surface scattering models based on a solution of a pair of integral equations including multiple scattering effects have been developed. Comparisons of these models with controlled scattering measurements from statistically known random surfaces indicate that they are valid over a wide range of frequencies. Scattering models treating a forest environment as a twoand a three-layered media have also been developed. Extensive testing and comparisons have been carrried out with the two-layered model. Further studies with the three-layered model are being carried out. A volume scattering model valid for dense media such as a snow layer has also been developed that shows the appropriate trend dependence with the volume fraction of scatterers.