Human body detection in wet snowpack by an FM-CW radar

An FM-CW radar system was applied to detect a human body buried in a very wet snowpack. This radar uses the L-band microwave frequency with a maximum output power of 100 mW, and utilizes digital signal processing techniques. Field experiments were carried out to detect and map a human body embedded at a depth of 125 cm in a natural snowpack. The radar is shown to have a potential ability to detect avalanche victims, indicating that it may become a tool for snow rescuer operations