CHALLENGES IN THE CALIBRATION OF POLARIMETRIC RADAR CROSS SECTION MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS

Published

November 4, 2007

Author(s)

Lorant A. Muth

Abstract

We examine the calibration of polarimetric radar cross section measurement systems using a rotating dihedral and a cylinder. Stringent requirements on the polarimetric system's stability, dynamic range and sensitivity as functions of the cross-polarimetric parameters present several measurement challenges. We must consider the system sensitivity over the required dynamic range in the context of the overall system uncertainty, which might need to be improved to successfully complete a polarimetric calibration. The minimum cross-polarimetric signal-to-noise and signal-to-drift ratios must be accurately characterized. In state-of-the-art radar cross section systems the signal-to-noise requirement is probably satisfied. However, the presence of very small drifts will invalidate a polarimetric calibration and must be removed from the data. A cylinder preserves the transmitted signal's cross-polarization and can provide drift-free measurements. Hence, we propose a new polarimetric calibration procedure that combines dihedral and cylinder calibration data to find the system parameters.

Proceedings Title

Antenna Measurements Techniques Association

Conference Dates

November 4-9, 2007

Conference Location

St Louis, MO

Pub Type

Conferences

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Keywords

drift, dynamic range, polarimetric calibration, radar cross section, sensitivity

Citation

Muth, L. (2007), CHALLENGES IN THE CALIBRATION OF POLARIMETRIC RADAR CROSS SECTION MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS, Antenna Measurements Techniques Association, St Louis, MO, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=32725 (Accessed April 25, 2024)