The ship detection capability of ENVISAT´s ASAR

Norway has used spaceborne SAR systems for operational fisheries monitoring since 1998. RADARSAT-1 has been the main source of data. With ENVISAT, there are plans to increase usage of satellite data. First, however, it is important to verify which modes and products are most useful for operational purposes. At FFI, we are in the process of analysing ENVISAT data for evaluating the ship detection capabilities of the ASAR instrument. The Alternating Polarisation (AP) mode is of particular interest, as this represents a new spaceborne capability for routine observations. The first results are promising for VV/VH AP data for ship detection.