Estimation of ocean wave height using polarization ratio of synthetic aperture radar data

A new technique for estimating wave height of range-traveling ocean waves by using the polarization ratio of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data is proposed. Unlike the previous methods based on scattering models such as composite surface model [1], the new method does not require any scattering models that strongly affect the estimation accuracy. First, the dependence of the polarization ratio on local incidence angles and its application to estimating wave height are described. Next, the estimation method is applied to the data acquired by Phased Array L-band SAR (PAL SAR) on board of Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS). Then, the results are analyzed and discussed.