A Subwaveform-Based Retracker for Multipeak Waveforms: A Case Study over Ukai Dam/Reservoir

Abstract

Retracking altimeter waveforms over inland water bodies is a challenging task as a wide range of waveform is encountered while the retracking algorithms are available only for a handful of echo shapes. One such waveform shape widely encountered in lakes and reservoirs is the multipeak echo. These echoes are produced when the interacting surface in the altimeter footprint is not homogeneous and a number of different types of surfaces contribute to the resulting waveform. The widely used conventional retrackers, namely the Brown, Beta-5, Ice-2, OCOG, and threshold, can retrack a number of different waveform shapes such as the Brown like waveforms, specular waveforms, and rectangular waveforms but may not perform well for multipeak waveforms. In this article, a technique has been demonstrated to identify the different subwaveforms within a multipeak waveform and identify the subwaveform corresponding to the target at nadir. The subwaveform that is reflected from the nadir surface is identified from apriory information about the surface topography of the area. The subwaveform is then retracked using the 50% threshold to find the correct retracked range and water height. This technique has been tested for nine cycles of SARAL SIGDR data on Ukai reservoir, Gujarat, India, and found to perform much better than the other retrackers, particularly for multipeak waveforms.

Keywords:

• Altimeter
• footprint
• range
• retracking
• waveform

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Shri S. A. Vahia, Executive Engineer, and Shri R. R. Singh, Engineer, Flood Cell, Ukai division, Tapi, Gujarat, for providing the in-situ data over the reservoir.