Potential and Limitations of Radar Remote Sensing for Humanitarian Operations

Methods of earth observation deliver quick and reliable information covering large areas, which can be used for the management of natural disasters and humanitarian crises. However, optical sensors reach their limits in areas affected by cloud cover or atmospheric haze, while radar satellites are predominantly unaffected by atmospheric conditions. This paper discusses the application of radar imagery for the assistance of humanitarian operations. The opening section describes the need for complementary information gained from radar data as well as the challenges which arise when working with imaging systems. Subsequently, examples for the use of various sensors are given based on our own findings, and a literature review for various application domains. These include the monitoring of natural resources, the distribution of human settlements or dwellings, and the retrieval of hydrologic parameters. Against this background, limitations and how they were handled in selected studies are discussed. A summary reflects the findings in the light of new developments and discusses challenges for the future.

• Publication year

  2017

• Venue

  Unknown venue

• Publication date

  2017-06-30

• Fields of study

  Not labeled

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1553/GISCIENCE2017_01_S228
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

• Earth observation for conflict mitigation and peacekeeping – from humanitarian relief to supporting peace and conflict studies

  2016cited by this paper
• Impact of refugee camps on their environment. A case study using multi-temporal SAR data

  2016cited by this paper
• Sensitivity of L-Band SAR Backscatter to Aboveground Biomass of Global Forests

  2016cited by this paper
• Evidence of a topographic signal in surface soil moisture derived from ENVISAT ASAR wide swath data

  2016cited by this paper
• Flood detection from multi-temporal SAR data using harmonic analysis and change detection

  2015cited by this paper
• Assisting Groundwater Exploration for Refugee/IDP Camps by Remote Sensing and GIS

  2015cited by this paper
• Humanitarian emergencies: causes, traits and impacts as observed by remote sensing

  2015cited by this paper
• Rapid Damage Assessment by Means of Multi-Temporal SAR - A Comprehensive Review and Outlook to Sentinel-1

  2014cited by this paper
• Towards semi-automated satellite mapping for humanitarian situational awareness

  2014cited by this paper
• Flood extent mapping for Namibia using change detection and thresholding with SAR

  2014cited by this paper
• A Prototype Software Package to Retrieve Soil Moisture From Sentinel-1 Data by Using a Bayesian Multitemporal Algorithm

  2014cited by this paper
• Mapping and monitoring of refugees and internally displaced people using EO data

  2014cited by this paper
• Earth Observation-Based Dwelling Detection Approaches in a Highly Complex Refugee Camp Environment - A Comparative Study

  2014cited by this paper
• Global-Scale Comparison of Passive (SMOS) and Active (ASCAT) Satellite Based Microwave Soil Moisture Retrievals with Soil Moisture Simulations (MERRA-Land)

  2014cited by this paper
• Automated Analysis of Satellite Imagery to provide Information Products for Humanitarian Relief Operations in Refugee Camps – from Scientific Development towards Operational Services

  2013cited by this paper
• Edinburgh Research Explorer Measuring biomass changes due to woody encroachment and deforestation/degradation in a forest-savanna boundary region of central Africa using multi-temporal L-band radar backscatter

  2013cited by this paper
• Potential of Sentinel-1 for high-resolution soil moisture monitoring

  2013cited by this paper
• Tsunami Damage Investigation of Built-Up Areas Using Multitemporal Spaceborne Full Polarimetric SAR Images

  2013cited by this paper
• Quantifying small‐scale deforestation and forest degradation in African woodlands using radar imagery

  2012cited by this paper
• Understanding the relationship between aboveground biomass and ALOS PALSAR data in the forests of Guinea-Bissau (West Africa)

  2012cited by this paper
• Sentinel-2: ESA's Optical High-Resolution Mission for GMES Operational Services

  2012cited by this paper
• Use of TerraSAR-X Data to Retrieve Soil Moisture Over Bare Soil Agricultural Fields

  2012cited by this paper
• Aboveground biomass retrieval in tropical forests — The potential of combined X- and L-band SAR data use

  2011cited by this paper
• Benchmark map of forest carbon stocks in tropical regions across three continents

  2011cited by this paper
• Building Detection From One Orthophoto and High-Resolution InSAR Data Using Conditional Random Fields

  2011cited by this paper
• Building-damage detection using post-seismic high-resolution SAR satellite data

  2010cited by this paper
• Mapping Subsurface Geology in Sahara Using L-Band SAR: First Results From the ALOS/PALSAR Imaging Radar

  2010cited by this paper
• Analysis of the reliability of the double bounce scattering mechanism for detecting buildings in VHR SAR images

  2009cited by this paper
• Use of Mapping and Spatial and Space-Time Modeling Approaches in Operational Control of Aedes aegypti and Dengue

  2009cited by this paper
• Building extraction and 3D reconstruction in urban areas from high-resolution optical and SAR imagery

  2009cited by this paper
• Using satellite radar backscatter to predict above‐ground woody biomass: A consistent relationship across four different African landscapes

  2009cited by this paper
• Hole-filled SRTM for the globe Version 4

  2008cited by this paper
• Detection and classification of urban structures based on high-resolution SAR imagery

  2007cited by this paper
• Building Recognition From Multi-Aspect High-Resolution InSAR Data in Urban Areas

  2007cited by this paper
• Mapping Water Potential: The Use of WATEX to Support UNHCR Refugee Camp Operations in Eastern Chad

  2006cited by this paper
• Detection and Classification

  2005cited by this paper
• Building characterization using L-band polarimetric interferometric SAR data

  2005cited by this paper
• Rectangular building extraction from stereoscopic airborne Radar images

  2005cited by this paper
• Mapping ground subsidence induced by aquifer overexploitation using advanced Differential SAR Interferometry: Vega Media of the Segura River (SE Spain) case study

  2005cited by this paper
• Weather patterns, food security and humanitarian response in sub-Saharan Africa

  2005cited by this paper
• Active Fire Detection for Fire Emergency Management: Potential and Limitations for the Operational Use of Remote Sensing

  2005cited by this paper
• Use of multiincidence angle RADARSAT-1 SAR data to incorporate the effect of surface roughness in soil moisture estimation

  2003cited by this paper
• The application of geographic information systems and global positioning systems in humanitarian emergencies: lessons learned, programme implications and future research.

  2003cited by this paper
• Classification and Change Detection Using Landsat TM Data: When and How to Correct Atmospheric Effects?

  2001cited by this paper
• Soil moisture evaluation using multi-temporal synthetic aperture radar (SAR) in semiarid rangeland

  2000cited by this paper
• Estimation of Watershed Soil Moisture Index from ERS/SAR Data

  2000cited by this paper
• The study of ERS-1 SAR and Landsat TM synergism for land use classification

  2000cited by this paper
• Estimation of stem volume in boreal forests using ERS-1 C- and JERS-1 L-band SAR data

  1999cited by this paper
• The potential of C- and L-band SAR in estimating vegetation biomass: the ERS-1 and JERS-1 experiments

  1999cited by this paper
• Estimation of bare surface soil moisture and surface roughness parameter using L-band SAR image data

  1997cited by this paper
• Use of imagery and GIS for humanitarian demining management

  1997cited by this paper
• Global Drought Watch from Space

  1997cited by this paper
• Detection of sand-covered geologic features in the Arabian Peninsula using SIR-C/X-SAR data☆

  1997cited by this paper
• The potential of C- and L- band SAR in assessing vegetation biomass : The ERS-1 and JERS-1 experiments

  1997cited by this paper
• Status of microwave soil moisture measurements with remote sensing

  1995cited by this paper
• Measuring soil moisture with imaging radars

  1995cited by this paper
• Operational use of environmental satellite remote sensing and satellite communications technology for global food security and locust control by FAO: The ARTEMIS and DIANA systems

  1994cited by this paper
• Multisource classification of remotely sensed data: fusion of Landsat TM and SAR images

  1994cited by this paper
• Radar backscatter/biomass saturation: observations and implications for global biomass assessment

  1993cited by this paper
• Terrain influences in SAR backscatter and attempts to their correction

  1991cited by this paper
• Drought stress evaluation in agricultural crops using C-HH SAR data.

  1990cited by this paper
• Global distribution of total cloud cover and cloud type amounts over land

  1986cited by this paper
• Speckle analysis and smoothing of synthetic aperture radar images

  1981cited by this paper
• Microwave remote sensing fundamentals and radiometry

  1981cited by this paper

• Development of an experimental methodology to identify spatial variations in bulk material storage through radar images to reduce environmental impact in port infrastructures

  2025cites this paper
• The Convergence of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data for Humanitarian Supply Chain Resilience

  2024cites this paper
• Quantifying biomass and canopy cover of submerged aquatic vegetation on an offshore island

  2023cites this paper
• Comparing OBIA-Generated Labels and Manually Annotated Labels for Semantic Segmentation in Extracting Refugee-Dwelling Footprints

  2022cites this paper
• The City is the Medium and Satellite Imagery Are a Prism

  2021cites this paper
• PRACTICAL PAPER Space borne radar imagery – An under-utilised source of information for humanitarian relief

  2021cites this paper
• Mapping Submerged Aquatic Vegetation along the Central Vietnamese Coast Using Multi-Source Remote Sensing

  2020cites this paper
• Spaceborne radar imagery – An under-utilized source of information for humanitarian relief

  2020cites this paper
• Dwelling Detection on VHR satellite imagery of Refugee/ IDP camps using Faster R-CNN

  2019cites this paper
• Improving Community Capacity in Rapid Disaster Mapping: An Evaluation of Summer School

  2019cites this paper
• Refugee Camp Monitoring and Environmental Change Assessment of Kutupalong, Bangladesh, Based on Radar Imagery of Sentinel-1 and ALOS-2

  2019cites this paper
• Assessment of Building Damage in Raqqa during the Syrian Civil War Using Time-Series of Radar Satellite Imagery

  2018cites this paper