Development of a multi-frequency airborne radar instrumentation package for ice sheet mapping and imaging

  • F. Rodriguez-Morales
  • , P. Gogineni
  • , C. Leuschen
  • , C. Allen
  • , C. Lewis
  • , A. Patel
  • , K. Byers
  • , L. Smith
  • , L. Shi
  • , B. Panzer
  • , W. Blake
  • , R. Crowe
  • , C. Gifford

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

15 Scopus citations

Abstract

We have developed improved versions of three different radar systems and integrated them as an airborne instrumentation suite for sounding and imaging Polar ice sheets. The first instrument consists of a multi-channel, coherent, pulsed radar operating at VHF with up to 20 MHz bandwidth. This instrument is capable of sounding a few-kilometer thick ice while flying at altitudes up to 10 km above mean sea level. The second instrument is designed to operate at UHF using a burst of narrow-bandwidth signals to digitally synthesize a bandwidth of in excess of 300 MHz. This apparatus is used to measure internal layers of the ice sheet to a depth close to 100 m. The third component to the instrumentation package is based on a frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar, which operates at microwave (Ku band) frequencies with up to 1 GHz of instantaneous bandwidth. This radar set is used to measure the ice sheet surface elevation profile with centimeter accuracy. We are presenting a description of each system, with emphasis on the VHF depth sounder. We also present sample field test results obtained during the 2009 austral summer season in Antarctica, as a validation of the performance of the instrument package.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication2010 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium, MTT 2010
Pages157-160
Number of pages4
DOIs
StatePublished - 2010
Externally publishedYes
Event2010 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium, MTT 2010 - Anaheim, CA, United States
Duration: May 23 2010May 28 2010

Publication series

NameIEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium Digest
ISSN (Print)0149-645X

Conference

Conference2010 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium, MTT 2010
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityAnaheim, CA
Period05/23/1005/28/10

Keywords

  • Airborne radar
  • Radar altimetry
  • UHF radar
  • VHF radar

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