X-Band Two-Scale Sea Surface Scattering Model to Predict the Contrast due to an Oil slick

作者：Montuori Antonio; Nunziata Ferdinando; Migliaccio Maurizio; Sobieski Piotr

来源：IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing, 2016, 9(11): 4970-4978.

DOI：10.1109/JSTARS.2016.2605151

• COSMO-SkyMed synthetic aperture radar (SAR)
• oil slick contrast

In this study, a sea/oil contrast model, based on the two-scale sea surface scattering Boundary Perturbation Model and an improved Marangoni damping model, is exploited to predict the X-band contrast due to an oil slick. Theoretical predictions are then compared with actual X-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) measurements collected by COSMO-SkyMed and TerraSAR-X satellites over the polluted area off the Aberdeen coast (United Kingdom) during the Gannet Alpha oil spillage occurred in 2011. The contrast model is here verified at X-band for the first time and exploited in a very challenging scenario, i.e., when an oil slick is in place. In addition, a detailed analysis on the effect of sensor's noise equivalent sigma zero (NESZ) on the predicted and measured contrast is undertaken. Experimental results confirm model predictions, witnessing a remarkable agreement between predicted and measured contrasts. Moreover, they demonstrate that NESZ significantly affects the information content of the signal backscattered off the oil-covered area.

• 出版日期2016-11