Multi-Temporal Insar and Target Detection with COSMO-SkyMed SAR Big Data to Monitor Urban Dynamics in Wuhan (China)

An unprecedented time series of 293 COSMO-SkyMed StripMap SAR images acquired in 2011–2020 is exploited to investigate land subsidence and vehicle traffic in Wuhan, China. Persistent Scatterer Interferometry using linear and non-linear deformation models suggests that the spatial and temporal evolution of subsidence relates with the dynamic urban development across the main city districts. Traffic patterns along bridges were captured by detecting vehicles based on their azimuth shift caused by their across-track motion, and identified by type based on their radar cross section and speed. The results of vehicle counting confirm an increasing number of vehicles over the last years, which is currently an urban challenge for Wuhan.