Optimal combination of multiple SAR differential interferometric measurements for monitoring terrain displacements

Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) differential interferometry is a powerful technique that allows to measure very small movements of the terrain happened between two data acquisitions. In previous works we demonstrated how to overcome the main limitations of the technique (i.e. decorrelation noise and atmospheric artifacts) by means of a method for unwrapping sparse phase data and by performing a temporal analysis of successive acquisitions. In this work we explore the possibility of considering together the space and time properties of the studied signal. The two steps mentioned above (i.e., sparse phase unwrapping and temporal analysis) act in the space and in the time domains separately. A significant advance can be obtained by considering the data as samples of a function in a three-dimensional (3D) space-time, and by exploiting this structure in the processing. The 3D structure of the data makes the processing more complex but can help both phase unwrapping and atmospheric (and other) artifact filtering.

[1]  P. Rosen,et al.  On the derivation of coseismic displacement fields using differential radar interferometry: The Landers earthquake , 1994, Proceedings of IGARSS '94 - 1994 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium.

[2]  K. Feigl,et al.  The displacement field of the Landers earthquake mapped by radar interferometry , 1993, Nature.

[3]  Antonio Iodice,et al.  Monitoring terrain movements by means of sparse SAR differential interferometric measurements , 2000, IGARSS 2000. IEEE 2000 International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium. Taking the Pulse of the Planet: The Role of Remote Sensing in Managing the Environment. Proceedings (Cat. No.00CH37120).

[4]  Pierfrancesco Lombardo,et al.  Analysis and correction of artifacts on differential SAR interferometry for the study of subsidence phenomena , 2001, IGARSS 2001. Scanning the Present and Resolving the Future. Proceedings. IEEE 2001 International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (Cat. No.01CH37217).

[5]  Mario Costantini,et al.  A novel phase unwrapping method based on network programming , 1998, IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote. Sens..

[6]  M. Costantini,et al.  A generalized phase unwrapping approach for sparse data , 1999, IEEE 1999 International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium. IGARSS'99 (Cat. No.99CH36293).

[7]  Charles Werner,et al.  On the derivation of coseismic displacement fields using differential radar interferometry: The Landers earthquake , 1994 .