A Multiarc Adjustment Method for Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar Time-Series Analysis

Accurately measuring surface deformation velocity using interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) is crucial for understanding geophysical processes. However, traditional methods often face challenges in capturing subtle deformations over long distances, as errors introduced during unwrapping can accumulate overextended spatial extents. This study introduces a multiarc adjustment (MAA) method aimed at mitigating these errors, especially in high-precision monitoring scenarios, where velocities are sensitive to the location of the reference point. Simulation results demonstrate that the MAA method significantly outperforms the traditional method, achieving substantial reductions in rms under noisy conditions and complex phase unwrapping scenarios. Furthermore, integrating the MAA method into fault slip inversion improves the accuracy of slip distribution estimations. Applications to real datasets from the southern Tibet region and the San Andreas Fault further validate the MAA method’s effectiveness. These findings underscore the MAA method’s potential to enhance deformation velocity measurements in challenging environments, establishing it as a valuable tool for geodetic and tectonic studies.