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Abstract
A major part of the variation in a Seasat SAR scene originates from terrain topography. Quantitative evaluation of the topography-induced variation was carried out. Differences in the slope of backscatter curve (sensitivity of radar to changes in incidence angle) between spruce-dominated mixed forests, pine-dominated mixed forests, deciduous forests and regenerated (pine plantations) areas were determined. Contribution of the corner reflector backscatter mechanism (a radar pulse is reflected from ground and tree trunks back to radar) to the total backscatter was evaluated.
Results of the analysis showed that: 65 per cent of the total variation in land pixels can be attributed to terrain topography;
Differences in the slope of backscatter curve were found to be significant (at 0·05 significance level) between spruce-dominated mixed forests, pine-dominated mixed forests, deciduous forests, and regenerated (pine plantations) areas;
The corner reflector backscatter mechanism does not constitute a significant part in the backscatter in the test site, where the ground surface (till) is relatively rough in terms of the radar wavelength.