Velocity Estimation of Multiple Moving Targets in Single-Channel Geosynchronous SAR

Abstract

Despite the increasing interest in geosynchronous synthetic aperture radar (GEO SAR) systems, the ground moving target indication and motion parameters estimation aspect have never been addressed in GEO SAR scenarios. In this article, we tackle the issue of multiple moving target velocity estimation in GEO SAR. We develop new closed-form expressions that relate both Doppler centroid and Doppler rate to the target motion parameters in GEO SAR by considering the specific features of a geosynchronous orbit. Furthermore, we propose a new velocity estimation algorithm that combines the nonuniform cubic phase function (NU-CPF) algorithm with the newly developed models to estimate the moving target’s two velocity components. Moreover, based on the abovementioned technique, we further propose a solution to address the multiple moving targets’ problem. Simulation results along with an estimation accuracy analysis are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed multitarget GEO SAR velocity estimation technique.