X-Band Radar Ground Clutter Statistics for Resolution Cells of Arbitrary Size and Shape
Abstract
A procedure is developed for predicting the clutter reflectivity and probability density function of X-band radar clutter returns for resolution cells of arbitrary size and shape. The prediction uses high-resolution measurements of phase and amplitude of the ground reflections made by synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to estimate the properties of the clutter that would be observed with lower resolution radars. Clutter scene images collected by the MSTAR Program form the basis of this work. MSTAR public clutter scene data consists of spotlight mode X-band SAR images with typical resolution 0.3 x 0.3 m. Under certain assumptions, the statistics of the image pixels will approximate those of the associated clutter cells. The probability distribution of the complex pixel amplitudes is found to be significantly non-Gaussian. Larger resolution cells are constructed by coherently combining the returns from adjacent pixels. The statistical properties of clutter in these larger resolution cells is examined for a variety of cell sizes, shapes, and underlying terrain types.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 1999
- Accession Number
- ADA399215
Entities
People
- Bertus Weijers
- James Ernstmeyer
- Leon Poirier