Radar technology is increasingly being used to monitor the environment. This monograph provides a review of polarimetric radar techniques for remote sensing. The first four chapters cover the basics of mathematical, statistical modelling as well as physical modelling based on radiowave scattering theory. The subsequent eight chapters summarize applications of polarimetric radar monitoring for various types of earth environments, including vegetation and oceans. The last two chapters provide a summary of Western as well as former Soviet Union knowledge and the outlook. This monograph is of value to students, scientists and engineers involved in remote sensing development and applications in particular for environmental monitoring.

As the need for accurate and non-invasive optical characterization and diagnostic techniques is rapidly increasing, it is imperative to find improved ways of extracting the additional information contained within the measured parameters of the scattered light. This is the first specialized monograph on photopolarimetry, a rapidly developing, multidisciplinary topic with numerous military, ecological remote-sensing, astrophysical, biomedical, and technological applications. The main objective is to describe and discuss techniques developed in various disciplines to acquire useful information from the polarization signal of scattered electromagnetic waves. It focuses on the state-of-the-art in polarimetric detection, characterization, and remote sensing, including military and environmental monitoring as well as terrestrial, atmospheric, and biomedical characterization. The book identifies polarimetric techniques that have been especially successful for various applications as well as the future needs of the various research communities. The monograph is intended to facilitate cross-pollination of ideas and thereby improve research efficiency and help advance the field of polarimetry into the future. The book is thoroughly interdisciplinary and contains only invited review chapters written by leading experts in the respective fields. It will be useful to science professionals, engineers, and graduate students working in a broad range of disciplines: optics, electromagnetics, atmospheric radiation and remote sensing, radar meteorology, oceanography, climate research, astrophysics, optical engineering and technology, particle characterization, and biomedical optics.

This new edition introduces the fundamentals of passive microwave remote sensing of oceans, including the physical principles of microwave radiometry, novel observational data, their interpretation, and applications. It not only demonstrates and examines the recent advantages and state of the art of microwave data but also provides guidance for explaining complex ocean studies and advanced applications. All chapters are thoroughly updated with detailed analysis of space‐based microwave missions, and a new chapter on space‐based microwave radiometer experiments has been added. This book discusses the power of microwave remote sensing as an efficient tool for diagnostics of ocean phenomena in research and education. Features New to this Edition: • Includes a new chapter and additional data, images, illustrations, and references. • Uses ocean microwave data, acquired from different platforms, to illustrate different methods of analysis and interpretation. • Updates information on recent and important satellite missions dedicated to microwave remote sensing of oceans. • Offers more detailed analysis of multiband microwave data and images. • Provides examples of microwave data that cover different ocean environmental phenomena and hydro‐physical fields, including global and local ocean features. • Presents additional material on advanced applications, including detection capabilities. This book is intended for postgraduate students and professionals working in fields related to remote sensing, geography, oceanography, civil, environmental, and geotechnical engineering.

This resource explains and demonstrates the backscattering properties of multiscale rough surfaces, and illustrates their application to establish the geophysical model function (GMF) needed in wind scatterometry. This book also explains how the mechanisms of backscattering change with frequency and the incident angle on a multiscale surface and how to recognize single scale versus multiscale surfaces – very useful information for those wanting to use backscattering models more efficiently.

This book offers detailed discussion of dielectric measurement and behaviour of wet soil, from theoretical and experiment points of view. The author describes numerous microwave measurement techniques and protocols, and shows how to evaluate and choose among them. The book is written primarily with the requirements of interdisciplinary researchers in agriculture and soil science in mind.

This volume addresses the physical foundation of remote sensing. The basic grounds are presented in close association with the kinds of environmental targets to monitor and with the observing techniques. The book aims at plugging the quite large gap between the thorough and quantitative description of electromagnetic waves interacting with the Earth's environment and the user applications of Earth observation. It is intended for scientifically literate students and professionals who plan to gain a first understanding of remote sensing data and of their information content.

The aquatic coastal zone is one of the most challenging targets for environmental remote sensing. Properties such as bottom reflectance, spectrally diverse suspended sediments and phytoplankton communities, diverse benthic communities, and transient events that affect surface reflectance (coastal blooms, runoff, etc.) all combine to produce an optical complexity not seen in terrestrial or open ocean systems. Despite this complexity, remote sensing is proving to be an invaluable tool for "Case 2" waters. This book presents recent advances in coastal remote sensing with an emphasis on applied science and management. Case studies of the operational use of remote sensing in ecosystem studies, monitoring, and interfacing remote sensing/science/management are presented. Spectral signatures of phytoplankton and suspended sediments are discussed in detail with accompanying discussion of why blue water (Case 1) algorithms cannot be applied to Case 2 waters. Audience This book is targeted for scientists and managers interested in using remote sensing in the study or management of aquatic coastal environments. With only limited discussion of optics and theory presented in the book, such researchers might benefit from the detailed presentations of aquatic spectral signatures, and to operational management issues. While not specifically written for remote sensing scientists, it will prove to be a useful reference for this community for the current status of aquatic coastal remote sensing.