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FAN Huangjiang, ZHANG Qingjun, LIU Lei, et al. A baseline design method for interferometric SAR ocean current measurements using a dual-satellite distributed system[J]. Journal of Radars, in press. doi: 10.12000/JR26065
Citation: FAN Huangjiang, ZHANG Qingjun, LIU Lei, et al. A baseline design method for interferometric SAR ocean current measurements using a dual-satellite distributed system[J]. Journal of Radars, in press. doi: 10.12000/JR26065
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A Baseline Design Method for Interferometric SAR Ocean Current Measurements Using a Dual-satellite Distributed System

DOI: 10.12000/JR26065 CSTR: 32380.14.JR26065

  • Institute of Remote Sensing Satellite, China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China

Funds:  The National Natural Science Foundation of China (62031005), Civilian Space Programme of China (No: D040305), Civilian Space Programme of China (D030103,D030103)
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  • Corresponding author: ZHANG Qingjun, ztzhangqj@163.com
  • Received Date: 2026-03-25
  • Rev Recd Date: 2026-06-15
    • Available Online: 2026-06-17
    Abstract
  • Due to their fixed baselines, traditional single-baseline spaceborne along-track interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems struggle to meet the measurement requirements for ocean surface current, particularly under complex sea conditions. To overcome this limitation and optimize multi-baseline designs for distributed SAR satellite systems, this study introduces a multi-baseline optimization method for ocean current measurements. The method operates under the dual constraints of interferometric coherence and current measurement sensitivity. The study also derives the theoretical upper bound of accuracy for multi-baseline weighted least squares fusion inversion of ocean surface current. Results show that this method significantly reduces radial current velocity error, with accuracy approaching the theoretical upper limit as the number of baselines increases. Under various sea conditions, the fusion error meets the required velocity measurement accuracy of 0.1 m/s. Notably, the X and C-band require longer baselines than the Ku-band. This method effectively supports the design of distributed interferometric SAR satellite systems for ocean current measurements.

     

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