Application of plane waves for accurate measurement of microwave scattering from geophysical surfaces

The authors utilized the concept of a compact antenna range to obtain plane-wave illumination to accurately measure scattering properties of simulated sea ice. They also made simultaneous measurements using conventional antennas. Measured scattering coefficients obtained with the plane-wave system at 10 GHz decreased by about 35 dB when the incidence angle increased from 0° to 10°. Scattering coefficients derived from data collected with the radar system at 13.5 GHz using conventional far-field antennas decreased by about 20 dB over the same angular region. This demonstrates that the far-field properties of a widebeam antenna are inadequate for measuring the angular scattering response of smooth surfaces. They believe that application of the compact antenna range concept for scattering measurements has a wide range of applications and is the solution to the long-standing problem of how to directly measure scattering consisting of coherent and incoherent components