Estimation of soil moisture using active microwave remote sensing

The method for developing a soil moisture inversion algorithm using Radar data can be approached in two ways: the multiple-incident angle approach and the change detection method. This thesis discusses how these two methods can be used to predict surface soil moisture. In the multiple incident angle approach, surface roughness can be mapped, if multiple incident angle viewing is possible and if the surface roughness is assumed constant during data acquisitions. A backpropagation neural network (NN) is trained with the data set generated by the Integral Equation Method (IEM) model. The training data set includes possible combinations of backscatter obtained as a result of variation in dielectric constant within the period of data acquisitions. The inputs to the network are backscatter acquired at different incident angles. The outputs are correlation length and root mean square height (r.m.s). Once the roughness is mapped using these outputs, dielectric constant can be determined. Three different data sets, (backscatter acquired from multiple-frequencies, multiple-polarizations, and multiple-incident angles) are used to train the NN. The performance of the NN trained by the different data sets is compared.;The next approach is the application of the change detection concept. In this approach, the relative change in dielectric constant over two different periods is determined from Radarsat data using a simplified algorithm. The vegetation backscatter contribution can be removed with the aid of multi-spectral data provided by Landsat. A method is proposed that minimizes the effect of incident angle on Radar backscatter by normalizing the acquired SAR images to a reference angle. A quantitative comparison of some of the existing soil moisture estimation algorithms is also made.