Range-Doppler processing of Saturn's Icy Satellites using the Cassini RADAR Scatterometer

Details Range-Doppler processing of Saturn's Icy Satellites using the Cassini RADAR Scatterometer Range-Doppler processing of Saturn's Icy Satellites using the Cassini RADAR Scatterometer

Dec 2007

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2007agufm.p21b0544w&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2007, abstract #P21B-0544

Physics

5464 Remote Sensing, 5494 Instruments And Techniques, 6280 Saturnian Satellites, 6969 Remote Sensing, 6974 Signal Processing (0674)

Scientific paper

The Cassini RADAR has obtained disk-integrated 2.2-cm reflectivity measurements for a number of Saturn's major icy satellites (Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Iapetus, Hyperion, Phoebe, and Mimas) [1, 2]. In these observations, the RADAR instrument operates in scatterometer mode, where the low receiver bandwidth of 117 kHz helps to minimize thermal noise. Transmitting a narrow bandwidth pulsed tone further reduces the noise variance [3]. In spite of these precautions to minimize noise, the instrument is often operating at distances as high as 400,000 km, and the signal-to-noise ratio is so low that it is impossible to detect the signal within the individual echoes (which are recorded in time as real 8-bit voltage samples); thus, the echo powers are accumulated in the frequency domain to produce a measurable signal [1, 3]. Yet, in a few observations, the SNR is estimated to be high enough for range compression and a pulsed chirp signal is thus transmitted, allowing us to divide the coarse disk reflectivities into fine annular rings. If the signal is strong enough, we attempt to further discriminate the echo into cells by separating the return into Doppler bins. To date, there are six observations that support higher resolution processing: Rhea (Orbit 18 and 22), Enceladus (Orbit 3), Dione (Orbit 16), Hyperion (Orbit 15), and Iapetus (Orbit B). Here, we present the preliminary results of this processing, obtaining finer resolution radar returns of these bodies than ever before, with the exception of the forthcoming Iapetus SAR imaging flyby, expected to achieve 2-12 km surface resolution [2, 4]. [1] Ostro et al. 2006, Icarus 183, 479-490. [2] Ostro et al. 2007, this conference. [3] West et al. 2007, IEEE TGARS, in preparation. [4] West et al. 2007, this conference.

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