Radar and multispectral sensors in Earth observations and planetary exploration

To obtain three credits, PhD students must complete the course (16 hours) on "Radar and multispectral sensors in Earth observations and planetary exploration" and attend the following two seminars (2 hours each): "The Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer (JUICE) mission"; "The EnVision mission to Venus"

Radar and multispectral sensors in Earth observations and planetary exploration" course
The course will be delivered via Zoom platform

Overview on planetary and Earth observation missions. Basics of passive remote sensing: EM spectrum; elements of radiation theory; radiation properties of Earth, Sun and celestial bodies; transmittance and diffusion in the atmosphere. Spectral signature. Spectral regions used in passive and active remote sensing. Taxonomy of instruments. Multispectral scanners: principles; scanning modes; geometrical, spectral and radiometric resolutions; A/D conversion and digital multispectral images. Hyperspectral scanners: principles; spectral resolution. Basics of radar theory: principles; radar equation; radar cross section and backscattering coefficient. Radar for imaging: ambiguity; acquisition geometry; side-looking radar; geometric distortions. Geometric resolution: slant-range, ground range and azimuth resolution. Image construction and speckle. Overview of satellite missions with multispectral, hyperspectral and radar systems for Earth observation. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) and radar sounders: definitions and basic principles. Acquisition process. Propagation in dielectric media and attenuation. Reflection, transmission and velocity of propagation in the media. Clutter. Geometrical resolutions and penetration. Examples of real systems: MARSIS (Mars Express), SHARAD (MRO), RIME (JUICE) and SRS (EnVision).

Assessment methods

Presentation on in-depth course content

Bibliography 

Course slides

"The Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer (JUICE) mission" seminar

"The EnVision mission to Venus" seminar