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NASA NTRS2013

Comparison Between Path Lengths Traveled by Solar Electrons and Ions in Ground-Level Enhancement Events

We have examined the Wind/3DP/SST electron and Wind/EPACT/LEMT ion data to investigate the path length difference between solar electrons and ions in the ground-level enhancement (GLE) events in solar cycle 23. Assuming that the onset time of metric type II or decameter-hectometric (DH) type III radio bursts is the solar release time of non-relativistic electrons, we have found that within an error range of plus or minus 10% the deduced path length of low-energy (approximately 27 keV) electrons from their release site near the Sun to the 1 AU observer is consistent with the ion path length deduced by Reames from the onset time analysis. In addition, the solar longitude distribution and IMF topology of the GLE events examined are in favor of the coronal mass ejection-driven shock acceleration origin of observed non-relativistic electrons.We have also found an increase of electron path lengths with increasing electron energies. The increasing rate of path lengths is correlated with the pitch angle distribution (PAD) of peak electron intensities locally measured, with a higher rate corresponding to a broader PAD. The correlation indicates that the path length enhancement is due to the interplanetary scattering experienced by first arriving electrons. The observed path length consistency implies that the maximum stable time of magnetic flux tubes, along which particles transport, could reach 4.8 hr.

electrons↗

NASA NTRS2014

Cure Cycle Design Methodology for Fabricating Reactive Resin Matrix Fiber Reinforced Composites: A Protocol for Producing Void-free Quality Laminates

For the fabrication of resin matrix fiber reinforced composite laminates, a workable cure cycle (i.e., temperature and pressure profiles as a function of processing time) is needed and is critical for achieving void-free laminate consolidation. Design of such a cure cycle is not trivial, especially when dealing with reactive matrix resins. An empirical "trial and error" approach has been used as common practice in the composite industry. Such an approach is not only costly, but also ineffective at establishing the optimal processing conditions for a specific resin/fiber composite system. In this report, a rational "processing science" based approach is established, and a universal cure cycle design protocol is proposed. Following this protocol, a workable and optimal cure cycle can be readily and rationally designed for most reactive resin systems in a cost effective way. This design protocol has been validated through experimental studies of several reactive polyimide composites for a wide spectrum of usage that has been documented in the previous publications.

Hou, Tan-Hung↗

NASA NTRS2014

Multi-Decadal Aerosol Variations from 1980 to 2009: A Perspective from Observations and a Global Model

Aerosol variations and trends over different land and ocean regions during 1980-2009 are analyzed with the Goddard Chemistry Aerosol Radiation and Transport (GOCART) model and observations from multiple satellite sensors and ground-based networks. Excluding time periods with large volcanic influences, the tendency of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and surface concentration over polluted land regions is consistent with the anthropogenic emission changes.The largest reduction occurs over Europe, and regions in North America and Russia also exhibit reductions. On the other hand, East Asia and South Asia show AOD increases, although relatively large amount of natural aerosols in Asia makes the total changes less directly connected to the pollutant emission trends. Over major dust source regions, model analysis indicates that the dust emissions over the Sahara and Sahel respond mainly to the near-surface wind speed, but over Central Asia they are largely influenced by ground wetness. The decreasing dust trend in the tropical North Atlantic is most closely associated with the decrease of Sahel dust emission and increase of precipitation over the tropical North Atlantic, likely driven by the sea surface temperature increase. Despite significant regional trends, the model-calculated global annual average AOD shows little changes over land and ocean in the past three decades, because opposite trends in different regions cancel each other in the global average. This highlights the need for regional-scale aerosol assessment, as the global average value conceals regional changes, and thus is not sufficient for assessing changes in aerosol loading.

atmopheric aerosols↗

NASA NTRS2012

Global Characterization and Monitoring of Forest Cover Using Landsat Data: Opportunities and Challenges

The compilation of global Landsat data-sets and the ever-lowering costs of computing now make it feasible to monitor the Earth's land cover at Landsat resolutions of 30 m. In this article, we describe the methods to create global products of forest cover and cover change at Landsat resolutions. Nevertheless, there are many challenges in ensuring the creation of high-quality products. And we propose various ways in which the challenges can be overcome. Among the challenges are the need for atmospheric correction, incorrect calibration coefficients in some of the data-sets, the different phenologies between compilations, the need for terrain correction, the lack of consistent reference data for training and accuracy assessment, and the need for highly automated characterization and change detection. We propose and evaluate the creation and use of surface reflectance products, improved selection of scenes to reduce phenological differences, terrain illumination correction, automated training selection, and the use of information extraction procedures robust to errors in training data along with several other issues. At several stages we use Moderate Resolution Spectroradiometer data and products to assist our analysis. A global working prototype product of forest cover and forest cover change is included.

Global↗

NASA NTRS2014

Mode I Cohesive Law Characterization of Through-Crack Propagation in a Multidirectional Laminate

A method is proposed and assessed for the experimental characterization of through-the-thickness crack propagation in multidirectional composite laminates with a cohesive law. The fracture toughness and crack opening displacement are measured and used to determine a cohesive law. Two methods of computing fracture toughness are assessed and compared. While previously proposed cohesive characterizations based on the R-curve exhibit size effects, the proposed approach results in a cohesive law that is a material property. The compact tension specimen configuration is used to propagate damage while load and full-field displacements are recorded. These measurements are used to compute the fracture toughness and crack opening displacement from which the cohesive law is characterized. The experimental results show that a steady-state fracture toughness is not reached. However, the proposed method extrapolates to steady-state and is demonstrated capable of predicting the structural behavior of geometrically-scaled specimens.

Bergan, Andrew C.↗

NASA NTRS2014

Sources, Sinks, and Transatlantic Transport of North African Dust Aerosol: A Multimodel Analysis and Comparison With Remote Sensing Data

This study evaluates model-simulated dust aerosols over North Africa and the North Atlantic from five global models that participated in the Aerosol Comparison between Observations and Models phase II model experiments. The model results are compared with satellite aerosol optical depth (AOD) data from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR), and Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor, dust optical depth (DOD) derived from MODIS and MISR, AOD and coarse-mode AOD (as a proxy of DOD) from ground-based Aerosol Robotic Network Sun photometer measurements, and dust vertical distributions/centroid height from Cloud Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization and Atmospheric Infrared Sounder satellite AOD retrievals. We examine the following quantities of AOD and DOD: (1) the magnitudes over land and over ocean in our study domain, (2) the longitudinal gradient from the dust source region over North Africa to the western North Atlantic, (3) seasonal variations at different locations, and (4) the dust vertical profile shape and the AOD centroid height (altitude above or below which half of the AOD is located). The different satellite data show consistent features in most of these aspects; however, the models display large diversity in all of them, with significant differences among the models and between models and observations. By examining dust emission, removal, and mass extinction efficiency in the five models, we also find remarkable differences among the models that all contribute to the discrepancies of model-simulated dust amount and distribution. This study highlights the challenges in simulating the dust physical and optical processes, even in the best known dust environment, and stresses the need for observable quantities to constrain the model processes.

Africa↗

NASA NTRS2014

Interannual Variations and Trends in Global Land Surface Phenology Derived from Enhanced Vegetation Index During 1982-2010

Land swiace phenology is widely retrieved from satellite observations at regional and global scales, and its long-term record has been demonstmted to be a valuable tool for reconstructing past climate variations, monitoring the dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems in response to climate impacts, and predicting biological responses to future climate scenarios. This srudy detected global land surface phenology from the advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data from 1982 to 2010. Based on daily enhanced vegetation index at a spatial resolution of 0.05 degrees, we simulated the seasonal vegetative trajectory for each individual pixel using piecewise logistic models, which was then used to detect the onset of greenness increase (OGI) and the length of vegetation growing season (GSL). Further, both overall interannual variations and pixel-based trends were examIned across Koeppen's climate regions for the periods of 1982-1999 and 2000-2010, respectively. The results show that OGI and OSL varied considerably during 1982-2010 across the globe. Generally, the interarmual variation could be more than a month in precipitation-controlled tropical and dry climates while it was mainly less than 15 days in temperature-controlled temperate, cold, and polar climates. OGI, overall, shifted early, and GSL was prolonged from 1982 to 2010 in most climate regions in North America and Asia while the consistently significant trends only occurred in cold climate and polar climate in North America. The overall trends in Europe were generally insignificant. Over South America, late OGI was consistent (particularly from 1982 to 1999) while either positive or negative OSL trends in a climate region were mostly reversed between the periods of 1982-1999 and 2000-2010. In the Northern Hemisphere of Africa, OGI trends were mostly insignificant, but prolonged GSL was evident over individual climate regions during the last 3 decades. OGI mainly showed late trends in the Southern Hemisphere of Africa while GSL was reversed from reduced GSL trends (1982-1999) to prolonged trends (2000-2010). In Australia, GSL exhibited considerable interannual variation, but the consistent trend lacked presence in most regions. Finally, the proportion of pixels with significant trends was less than I% in most of climate regions although it could be as large as 10%.

remote sensing↗

NASA NTRS2014

Biosentinel: Developing a Space Radiation Biosensor

Ionizing radiation presents a major challenge to human exploration and long-term residence in space. The deep-space radiation spectrum includes highly energetic particles that generate double strand breaks (DSBs), deleterious DNA lesions that are usually repaired without errors via homologous recombination (HR), a conserved pathway in all eukaryotes. While progress identifying and characterizing biological radiation effects using Earth-based facilities has been significant, no terrestrial source duplicates the unique space radiation environment.We are developing a biosensor-based nanosatellite to fly aboard NASAs Space Launch System Exploration Mission 1, expected to launch in 2017 and reach a 1AU (astronomic unit) heliocentric orbit. Our biosensor (called BioSentinel) uses the yeast S. cerevisiae to measure DSBs in response to ambient space radiation. The BioSentinel strain contains engineered genetic defects that prevent growth until and unless a radiation-induced DSB near a reporter gene activates the yeasts HR repair mechanisms. Thus, culture growth and metabolic activity directly indicate a successful DSB-and-repair event. In parallel, HR-defective and wild type strains will provide survival data. Desiccated cells will be carried within independent culture microwells, built into 96-well microfluidic cards. Each microwell set will be activated by media addition at different time points over 18 months, and cell growth will be tracked continuously via optical density. One reserve set will be activated only in the occurrence of a solar particle event. Biological measurements will be compared to data provided by onboard physical dosimeters and to Earth-based experiments.BioSentinel will conduct the first study of biological response to space radiation outside Low Earth Orbit in over 40 years. BioSentinel will thus address strategic knowledge gaps related to the biological effects of space radiation and will provide an adaptable platform to perform human-relevant measurements in multiple space environments. We hope that it can therefore be used on the ISS, on and around other planetary bodies as well as other exploration platforms as a self-contained system that will allow us to compare and calibrate different radiation environments.BioSentinels results will be critical for improving interpretation of the effects of space radiation exposure, and for reducing the risk associated with long-term human exploration.

space radiation↗

NASA NTRS2014

Anthropogenic and Volcanic Contributions to the Decadal Variations of Aerosols in the Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere

We investigated the anthropogenic and volcanic contributions to sulfate aerosol in the stratosphere through modeling and analysis of satellite data. We use a global model GOCART to simulate SO2 and sulfate aerosol in the period of 2000 to 2010, during which numerous volcanic eruptions occurred although nothing like the magnitudes of El Chichon or Pinatubo. We compared the model results with the column SO2 data from OMI and stratospheric SO2 data from MLS instrument on Aura satellite and the aerosol vertical profiles from the SCIAMACHY instrument on Envisat and the CALIOP instrument on CALIPSO satellites. Finally, we assessed the relative contributions of volcanic aerosols vs. anthropogenic aerosols to the observed decadal stratospheric aerosol trends.

HTAP2/AeroCom3 model↗

NASA NTRS2014

Experimental Measurement of Frozen and Partially Melted Water Droplet Impact Dynamics

High-speed video of single frozen water droplets impacting a surface was acquired. The droplets diameter ranged from 0.4 mm to 0.9 mm and impacted at velocities ranging from 140 m/sec to 309 m/sec. The techniques used to freeze the droplets and launch the particles against the surfaces is described in this paper. High-speed video was used to quantify the ice accretion area to the surface for varying impact angles (30 deg, 45 deg, 60 deg), impacting velocities, and break-up angles. An oxygen /acetylene cross-flow flame used to ensure partial melting of the traveling frozen droplets is also discussed. A linear relationship between impact angle and ice accretion is identified for fully frozen particles. The slope of the relationship is affected by impact speed. Perpendicular impacts, i.e. 30 deg, exhibited small differences in ice accretion for varying velocities, while an increase of 60% in velocity from 161 m/sec to 259 m/sec, provided an increase on ice accretion area of 96% at an impact angle of 60 deg. The increase accretion area highlights the importance of impact angle and velocity on the ice accretion process of ice crystals. It was experimentally observed that partial melting was not required for ice accretion at the tested velocities when high impact angles were used (45 and 60 deg). Partially melted droplets doubled the ice accretion areas on the impacting surface when 0.0023 Joules were applied to the particle. The partially melted state of the droplets and a method to quantify the percentage increase in ice accretion area is also described in the paper.

Impact Dynamics↗

NASA NTRS2015

Integrated Modeling of Aerosol, Cloud, Precipitation and Land Processes at Satellite-Resolved Scales

With support from NASA's Modeling and Analysis Program, we have recently developed the NASA Unified-Weather Research and Forecasting model (NU-WRF). NU-WRF is an observation-driven integrated modeling system that represents aerosol, cloud, precipitation and land processes at satelliteresolved scales. "Satellite-resolved" scales (roughly 1e25 km), bridge the continuum between local (microscale), regional (mesoscale) and global (synoptic) processes. NU-WRF is a superset of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Advanced Research WRF (ARW) dynamical core model, achieved by fully integrating the GSFC Land Information System (LIS, already coupled to WRF), the WRF/ Chem enabled version of the Goddard Chemistry Aerosols Radiation Transport (GOCART) model, the Goddard Satellite Data Simulation Unit (G-SDSU), and custom boundary/initial condition preprocessors into a single software release, with source code available by agreement with NASA/GSFC. Full coupling between aerosol, cloud, precipitation and land processes is critical for predicting local and regional water and energy cycles.

Satellite-resolved↗

NASA NTRS2010

Land Surface Phenology from MODIS: Characterization of the Collection 5 Global Land Cover Dynamics Product

Information related to land surface phenology is important for a variety of applications. For example, phenology is widely used as a diagnostic of ecosystem response to global change. In addition, phenology influences seasonal scale fluxes of water, energy, and carbon between the land surface and atmosphere. Increasingly, the importance of phenology for studies of habitat and biodiversity is also being recognized. While many data sets related to plant phenology have been collected at specific sites or in networks focused on individual plants or plant species, remote sensing provides the only way to observe and monitor phenology over large scales and at regular intervals. The MODIS Global Land Cover Dynamics Product was developed to support investigations that require regional to global scale information related to spatiotemporal dynamics in land surface phenology. Here we describe the Collection 5 version of this product, which represents a substantial refinement relative to the Collection 4 product. This new version provides information related to land surface phenology at higher spatial resolution than Collection 4 (500-m vs. 1-km), and is based on 8-day instead of 16-day input data. The paper presents a brief overview of the algorithm, followed by an assessment of the product. To this end, we present (1) a comparison of results from Collection 5 versus Collection 4 for selected MODIS tiles that span a range of climate and ecological conditions, (2) a characterization of interannual variation in Collections 4 and 5 data for North America from 2001 to 2006, and (3) a comparison of Collection 5 results against ground observations for two forest sites in the northeastern United States. Results show that the Collection 5 product is qualitatively similar to Collection 4. However, Collection 5 has fewer missing values outside of regions with persistent cloud cover and atmospheric aerosols. Interannual variability in Collection 5 is consistent with expected ranges of variance suggesting that the algorithm is reliable and robust, except in the tropics where some systematic differences are observed. Finally, comparisons with ground data suggest that the algorithm is performing well, but that end of season metrics associated with vegetation senescence and dormancy have higher uncertainties than start of season metrics.

Land cover dynamics↗

NASA NTRS2009

Return to Europa: Overview of the Jupiter Europa Orbiter Mission

Missions to explore Europa have been imagined ever since the Voyager mission first suggested that Europa was geologically very young. Subsequently, Galileo supplied fascinating new insights into that satellite's secrets. The Jupiter Europa Orbiter (JEO) would be the NASA-led portion of the Europa Jupiter System Mission (EJSM), an international mission with orbiters developed by NASA, ESA and possibly JAXA. JEO would address a very important subset of the complete EJSM science objectives and is designed to function alone or in conjunction with ESA's Jupiter Ganymede Orbiter (JGO).

radiation↗

NASA NTRS2015

Investigation of Unsteady Tip Clearance Flow in a Low-Speed One and Half Stage Axial Compressor with LES And PIV

The primary focus of this paper is to investigate how a rotor's unsteady tip clearance flow structure changes in a low speed one and half stage axial compressor when the rotor tip gap size is increased from 0.5 mm (0.49% of rotor tip blade chord, 2% of blade span) to 2.4 mm (2.34% chord, 4% span) at the design condition are investigated. The changes in unsteady tip clearance flow with the 0.62 % tip gap as the flow rate is reduced to near stall condition are also investigated. A Large Eddy Simulation (LES) is applied to calculate the unsteady flow field at these three flow conditions. Detailed Stereoscopic PIV (SPIV) measurements of the current flow fields were also performed at the Johns Hopkins University in a refractive index-matched test facility which renders the compressor blades and casing optically transparent. With this setup, the unsteady velocity field in the entire flow domain, including the flow inside the tip gap, can be measured. Unsteady tip clearance flow fields from LES are compared with the PIV measurements and both LES and PIV results are used to study changes in tip clearance flow structures. The current study shows that the tip clearance vortex is not a single structure as traditionally perceived. The tip clearance vortex is formed by multiple interlaced vorticities. Therefore, the tip clearance vortex is inherently unsteady. The multiple interlaced vortices never roll up to form a single structure. When phased-averaged, the tip clearance vortex appears as a single structure. When flow rate is reduced with the same tip gap, the tip clearance vortex rolls further upstream and the tip clearance vortex moves further radially inward and away from the suction side of the blade. When the tip gap size is increased at the design flow condition, the overall tip clearance vortex becomes stronger and it stays closer to the blade suction side and the vortex core extends all the way to the exit of the blade passage. Measured and calculated unsteady flow fields inside the tip gap agree fairly well. Instantaneous velocity vectors inside the tip gap from both the PIV and LES do show flow separation and reattachment at the entrance of tip gap as some earlier studies suggested. This area at the entrance of tip gap flow (the pressure side of the blade) is confined very close to the rotor tip section. With a small tip gap (0.5mm), the gap flow looks like a simple two-dimensional channel flow with larger velocity near the casing for both flow rates. A small area with a sharp velocity gradient is observed just above the rotor tip. This strong shear layer is turned radially inward when it collides with the incoming flow and forms the core structure of the tip clearance vortex. When tip gap size is increased to 2.4 mm at the design operation, the radial profile of the tip gap flow changes drastically. With the large tip gap, the gap flow looks like a two-dimensional channel flow only near the casing. Near the rotor top section, a bigger region with very large shear and reversed flow is observed.

compressor↗

NASA NTRS2015

Investigation of Unsteady Tip Clearance Flow in a Low-Speed One and Half Stage Axial Compressor with LES And PIV

unsteady↗

NASA NTRS2015

BioSentinel: Mission Development of a Radiation Biosensor to Gauge DNA Damage and Repair Beyond Low Earth Orbit on a 6U Nanosatellite.

We are designing and developing a "6U" (10 x 22 x 34 cm; 14 kg) nanosatellite as a secondary payload to fly aboard NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) Exploration Mission (EM) 1, scheduled for launch in late 2017. For the first time in over forty years, direct experimental data from biological studies beyond low Earth orbit (LEO) will be obtained during BioSentinel's 12- to 18- month mission. BioSentinel will measure the damage and repair of DNA in a biological organism and allow us to compare that to information from onboard physical radiation sensors. In order to understand the relative contributions of the space environment's two dominant biological perturbations, reduced gravity and ionizing radiation, results from deep space will be directly compared to data obtained in LEO (on ISS) and on Earth. These data points will be available for validation of existing biological radiation damage and repair models, and for extrapolation to humans, to assist in mitigating risks during future long-term exploration missions beyond LEO. The BioSentinel Payload occupies 4U of the spacecraft and will utilize the monocellular eukaryotic organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast) to report DNA double-strand-break (DSB) events that result from ambient space radiation. DSB repair exhibits striking conservation of repair proteins from yeast to humans. Yeast was selected because of 1) its similarity to cells in higher organisms, 2) the well-established history of strains engineered to measure DSB repair, 3) its spaceflight heritage, and 4) the wealth of available ground and flight reference data. The S. cerevisiae flight strain will include engineered genetic defects to prevent growth and division until a radiation-induced DSB activates the yeast's DNA repair mechanisms. The triggered culture growth and metabolic activity directly indicate a DSB and its successful repair. The yeast will be carried in the dry state within the 1-atm P/L container in 18 separate fluidics cards with each card having 16 independent culture microwells, with integral microchannels and filters to supply nutrients and reagents, confine the yeast to the wells, and enable optical measurement. The measurement subsystem will monitor each subgroup of culture wells continuously for several weeks, optically tracking DSBtriggered cell growth and metabolism. BioSentinel will also include physical radiation sensors based on the TimePix sensor, as implemented by JSC's RadWorks group, which record individual radiation events including estimates of their linear-energytransfer (LET) values. Radiation-dose and LET data will be compared directly to the rate of DSB-and-repair events measured by the S. cerevisiae biosentinels. The spacecraft bus will operate in a deep space environment with functions that include command and data handling, communications, power generation (via deployable solar panels) and storage, and attitude determination-and-control system with micropropulsion. Development of the BioSentinel spacecraft will mature and prove multiple nanosatellite advances in order to function well beyond LEO: Communications from distances of ≥ 500,000 km; Autonomous attitude control, momentum management, and safe mode of nanosatellites in deep space; Shielding-, hardening-, design-, and software-derived radiation tolerance for electronics; Reliable functionality for 12 - 18 months of key subsystems for biofluidics, memory, communications, power, etc.; Close integration of living biological radiation event monitors with miniature physical radiation spectrometers; Biological measurement of solar particle events beyond Earth orbit In addition to providing the first biological results from beyond LEO in over 4 decades, BioSentinel will provide an adaptable small-satellite instrument platform to perform a range of human-exploration-relevant measurements that characterize the biological consequences of multiple outer space environments. BioSentinel is being developed under NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems program.

DNA damage↗

NASA NTRS2014

Detecting Change in Urban Areas at Continental Scales with MODIS Data

Urbanization is one of the most important components of global environmental change, yet most of what we know about urban areas is at the local scale. Remote sensing of urban expansion across large areas provides information on the spatial and temporal patterns of growth that are essential for understanding differences in socioeconomic and political factors that spur different forms of development, as well the social, environmental, and climatic impacts that result. However, mapping urban expansion globally is challenging: urban areas have a small footprint compared to other land cover types, their features are small, they are heterogeneous in both material composition and configuration, and the form and rates of new development are often highly variable across locations. Here we demonstrate a methodology for monitoring urban land expansion at continental to global scales using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data. The new method focuses on resolving the spectral and temporal ambiguities between urban/non-urban land and stable/changed areas by: (1) spatially constraining the study extent to known locations of urban land; (2) integrating multitemporal data from multiple satellite data sources to classify c. 2010 urban extent; and (3) mapping newly built areas (2000-2010) within the 2010 urban land extent using a multi-temporal composite change detection approach based on MODIS 250 m annual maximum enhanced vegetation index (EVI). We test the method in 15 countries in East-Southeast Asia experiencing different rates and manifestations of urban expansion. A two-tiered accuracy assessment shows that the approach characterizes urban change across a variety of socioeconomic/political and ecological/climatic conditions with good accuracy (70-91% overall accuracy by country, 69-89% by biome). The 250 m EVI data not only improve the classification results, but are capable of distinguishing between change and no-change areas in urban areas. Over 80% of the error in the change detection can be related to definitional issues or error propagation, rather than algorithm error. As such, these methods hold great potential for routine monitoring of urban change, as well as for providing a consistent and up-to-date dataset on urban extent and expansion for a rapidly evolving region.

Urban areas↗

NASA NTRS2014

Polarimetric SAR Interferometry Evaluation in Mangroves

TanDEM-X (TDX) enables to generate an interferometric coherence without temporal decorrelation effect that is the most critical factor for a successful Pol-InSAR inversion, as have recently been used for forest parameter retrieval. This paper presents mangrove forest height estimation only using single-pass/single-baseline/dual-polarization TDX data by means of new dual-Pol-InSAR inversion technique. To overcome a lack of one polarization in a conventional Pol- InSAR inversion (i.e. an underdetermined problem), the ground phase in the Pol-InSAR model is directly estimated from TDX interferograms assuming flat underlying topography in mangrove forest. The inversion result is validated against lidar measurement data (NASA's G-LiHT data).

Mangrove↗