Informative value of synthetic aperture radar for observing subsurface targets

Currently, synthetic aperture radar systems (SAR) are widely used in solving problems of remote sensing of the Earth from space and air carriers. The information capabilities of these systems when observing subsurface targets are usually unknown, especially for quantitative assessment. To solve the problem, a method for calculating the signal-to-noise ratio on a radar image is proposed, taking into account the parameters of the radar, the geometry of the survey, the characteristics of the underlying surface and the environment in which the target is immersed. Goal of the research is to develop a methodology for calculating indicators of the in formativeness of the RSA when observing subsurface targets. A method for calculating the signal-to-noise+background ratio on a radar image of a subsurface target, taking into account the environmental parameters, is presented. The values of the target detection depth are obtained depending on the properties of the medium, the underlying surface, and the parameters of the radar. The practical significance of this study lies in the fact that the proposed methodology can be used to determine the informative value of different ranges of radar when observing subsurface targets. The peculiarity of the technique is that it can be used for both theoretical and experimental research. In addition, using the obtained ratios, we can determine the tactical and technical parameters of the radar, at which the specified information content is achieved when observing a subsurface target. An example of calculating the target detection depth in the MRLK-2 RADAR shows that the penetrating power of radio waves and the level of reflection from the surface are the main factors determining the actual information content.