An analysis of settlement characterization in central Europe using SIR-B radar imagery

Understanding the consistencies and changes in settlement detection ability related to radar system and environmental parameters is of potential interest to applications-oriented users as well as to those interested in improving our understanding of basic system-target interactions. Previous efforts in radar settlement detection have contributed to an eclectic collection of data, but few studies have been able to employ multiple images of the same area. In this experiment, L-band, like-polarized SIR-B radar imagery of southern Germany and northeastern France are examined. Three data takes at three different incident angles and two different look directions covering some 20,000 square kilometers comprised the study area. Two analyses were performed: one of the entire imaged areas, and one limited to similar terrain conditions to focus on look direction effects. Errors of omission and commission were calculated and accuracies tabulated for both tests. Results indicated that steep incident angles were of minimal utility, generating the highest omission and commission errors. Accuracy improved as incident angle increased, up to a point, and then decreased. The results obtained over mixed terrain were not in accord with those obtained over similar terrain.