Turbulence-Induced Phase Errors in Synthetic-Aperture Radars

Radar waves propagating through the turbulent troposphere acquire phase fluctuations which appear as aperture phase errors in synthetic-aperture radar systems. The phase error description follows directly from Tatarski's theory of wave propagation through turbulence; for most situations of interest, the phase error is Gaussian with stationary first increments. The structure function of the phase error is a function of the radar parameters and of the vertical profile Cnm(h) of the microwave refractive index structure constant of the turbulence. A closed form expression for best attainable resolution can then be given as a function of these same parameters, via the results of a phase error analysis by Brown and Riordan. Published data on Cnm(h) and its optical-region counterpart are reviewed. The data from a recent microwave propagation experiment by Thompson and Janes are then analyzed and are consistent with the order-of-magnitude estimates of Cnm: Some unsolved problems associated with applying the results to synthetic-aperture systems are discussed.