Method and apparatus for collection and processing of interferometric synthetic aperture radar data
First Claim
1. A system for temporal topographical data collection in a synthetic aperture radar interferometry (SAR) system comprising:
- a first space vehicle configured for emitting electromagnetic energy and collecting a first IFSAR image data set for at least one region of interest (ROI) movable along a first orbital track;
a second space vehicle moving in a aligned orbital path relative to the first space vehicle, wherein the second space vehicle is configured to emit electromagnetic energy and collect a second IFSAR image data set for the at least one ROI; and
the first and second space vehicle being further configured to emit the electromagnetic energy pulses in a manner so as to be substantially non-interfering with the IFSAR data collection of the other space vehicle.
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Abstract
A system and method provide for the collection of interferometric synthetic aperture radar (IFSAR) data. In the system, a first space vehicle configured for emitting electro-magnetic energy and collecting the reflection from a region of interest (ROI), may be directed along a first orbital track. The collected image data may be stored and later provided to a ground station for image and interferometric processing. A second space vehicle may also be configured for emission and collection of electro-magnetic energy reflected from the plurality of ROI'"'"'s. The second space vehicle is positioned in an aligned orbit with respect to the first space vehicle where the separation between the vehicles is known. In order to minimize decorrelation of the ROI during image processing, the lead and trail satellite are configured to substantially simultaneously emit electromagnetic pulses image data collection. In order to avoid interference in the collection of this image data, each system is configured to control the emission of pulses such that the receipt of direct and bistatic pulses by the other vehicles does not interfere with data collection.
121 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A system for temporal topographical data collection in a synthetic aperture radar interferometry (SAR) system comprising:
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a first space vehicle configured for emitting electromagnetic energy and collecting a first IFSAR image data set for at least one region of interest (ROI) movable along a first orbital track;
a second space vehicle moving in a aligned orbital path relative to the first space vehicle, wherein the second space vehicle is configured to emit electromagnetic energy and collect a second IFSAR image data set for the at least one ROI; and
the first and second space vehicle being further configured to emit the electromagnetic energy pulses in a manner so as to be substantially non-interfering with the IFSAR data collection of the other space vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method of collecting topographical information from a plurality of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites comprising the steps of:
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directing a lead space vehicle along an first orbital track relative to at least one region of interest (ROI) for which topographical image data is to be collected;
directing a trail space vehicle in an aligned orbital track relative to the lead space vehicle, wherein the trail space vehicle is at a known separation along the aligned orbital track; and
emitting one or more electromagnetic pulses from the lead and trail space vehicles substantially simultaneously at the at least one ROI to collect first and second image data sets in a manner which is substantially non-interfering with image data collection of the lead and trail space vehicles. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification