Temporal Decorrelation At C- And L-Band Over Olive Tree Plantations:First Insights From The Marocscat Campaigns

This paper addresses the question of temporal decorrelation at C and L-band in the case of olive tree plantations, considering the very recent tower-based experiments in Morocco, as well as the preliminary results conducted in preparation phases. Based on the expertise gained from the TropiScat-1&2 campaigns, the presented experiments also consist in the acquisition of dense time series using a Vector Network Analyser (VNA) connected to several antennas, herein dedicated to L and C-band data. Likewise, this experiment benefit from auxiliary measurements (meteorological and in-situ data) in order to better understand the processes behind temporal decorrelation, which remains a key issue for future repeat-pass, tandem or geostationary missions. Our first results highlight the importance of the acquisition time during the day, and also rise the challenge on how to disentangle the combined effects of water content variations and wind induced displacements driven by solar convection.

1. Introduction

Although limited by their rather small footprint (typically about 1 ha), tower based experiments enable to generate very dense time series which can not be afforded by airborne campaigns. The generated time series can then be exploited to better define the acquisition scenarios for spaceborne missions, in addition to the delivery of extensive database under a wide range of environmental conditions, essential to improve our understanding of microwave interactions with natural media.