A New Semi-empirical Model for the Analysis of Surface Roughness Heterogeneity

The use of a theoretical backscatter model to analyse medium to low spatial resolution microwave data is still very complicated, particularly because of the difficulty in defining a unique roughness parameter, capable of adequately representing heterogeneous terrain. In this paper, an approach is proposed for roughness analysis and the modelling of backscattering, under conditions of surface heterogeneity. The proposed backscattering model has been validated with IEM (integral equation model) simulations and radar data , for high radar incidence angles, and within its domain of roughness validity.