Synthetic Aperture Radar Ground Moving Target Indication Research Articles

Application of Digital Twin Technology in Synthetic Aperture Radar Ground Moving Target Intelligent Detection System

In recent years, the detection performance of SAR-GMTI (synthetic aperture radar-ground moving target indication) algorithm based on deep learning has always been limited by insufficient measured data due to the heavy operation complexity and high cost of real SAR systems. To solve this problem, this paper proposes an overall DT-based implementation framework for SAR ground moving target intelligent detection tasks. In particular, by virtue of a SAR imaging algorithm, a high-fidelity twin replica of SAR moving targets is established in digital space through parameter traversal based on the prior target characteristics of the obtained measured datasets. Then, the constructed SAR twin datasets is fed into the neural network model to train an intelligent detector by fully learning features of the moving targets and preset the SAR scene in the twin space, which can realize the robust detection of ground moving targets in related practical scenarios with no need for multiple and complex field experiments. Moreover, the effectiveness of the proposed framework is verified on the MiniSAR measured system, and a comparison with traditional CFAR detection method is given simultaneously.

Ground Moving Target Detection and Trajectory Reconstruction Methods for Multichannel Airborne Circular SAR

Synthetic aperture radar ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI) is an attractive mode for radar system to obtain high-resolution regional images and detection of moving targets simultaneously. Moreover, the 360° observation capability of circular SAR (CSAR) makes it possible for moving target trajectory reconstruction. In order to address the problem that slow-moving targets, which are buried in strong stationary ground clutter, are difficult to be detected, a framework of multichannel SAR-GMTI is presented in this article. For ground moving target detection in the presence of stationary clutter, the proposed method first adopts clutter suppression interferometry and relaxation-based cyclic algorithm to suppress clutterand retrieve parameters (e.g., radial velocity and Doppler information). Then, to further reduce the false alarm rate, multiple moving target tracking algorithm is performed in range–Doppler domain. Finally, the moving target trajectory is reconstructed by using the proposed two-stage parameter estimation method based on Doppler characteristic and CSAR geometry, and the mathematical analysis of this method is performed. The proposed method is robust and insensitive to the signal-to-noise ratio. It does not rely on priori road information, so it has wide applicability, especially in military application. In addition, the framework is performed in echo domain and independent of imaging processing. The experimental results on simulated data are presented to evaluate the estimation accuracy of the proposed method, and the real data processing results are provided to demonstrate the validity and feasibility of the proposed method.

A SAR-GMTI Approach Aided by Online Knowledge With an Airborne Multichannel Quad-Pol Radar System

In the complicated geographical environment, there will be a seriously deleterious effect to the performance of synthetic aperture radar (SAR)-ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI) system, because it is difficult to obtain the homogeneous training samples to accurately estimate the clutter covariance matrix (CCM) without prior information of the observed scene. To this end, this paper proposes a SAR-GMTI approach aided by online knowledge with an airborne multichannel quadrature-polarimetric (quad-pol) radar system. Generally, this paper can be divided into two parts: online knowledge acquisition and polarization knowledge-aided (Pol-KA) SAR-GMTI processing. Firstly, based on the similarity of pixels from the multichannel and multi-polarization information, a weighed estimation method of polarimetric coherency matrix is proposed, which can overcome the over-smoothing problem and increase the estimation accuracy of coherency matrix. Further, a hybrid weighted local K-means based on geodesic distance (GD-HWLKM) clustering algorithm is proposed to achieve the aim of unsupervised classification. Here, geodesic distance (GD) is exploited to measure the distance between multi-feature region covariance matrixes (MFRCMs) and a hybrid weight from different scales (including local cover class distribution, region and pixel) is calculated to automatically update the cluster centroid, which can make full use of the local spatial information by taking the interclass samples' similarity and the diversity of different classes into consideration. Secondly, with the assistance of the previous polarization SAR (PolSAR) image classification result, a Pol-KA SAR-GMTI method is developed. For each ground cover category, an accurate CCM can be estimated with the independent and identically distributed (IID) training samples. Then, the multichannel clutter suppression and preliminary constant false alarm rate (CFAR) detection are performed. Finally, with an airborne multichannel quad-pol radar system, the experimental results on real measured data demonstrate that the proposed method can efficiently improve the clutter suppression preformation and moving-target detection preformation.

Bistatic SAR Clutter-Ridge Matched STAP Method for Nonstationary Clutter Suppression

Clutter suppression is a challenging task in synthetic aperture radar-ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI). In general, sufficient secondary samples are not easily acquired due to the nonstationary and nonhomogeneous characteristics of bistatic SAR (BiSAR) clutter, resulting in worse clutter suppression results. Recently, space–time adaptive processing based on sparse recovery (SR-STAP) has been developed since its better clutter suppression performance with less samples. However, since the off-grid problem in space–time domain caused by BiSAR’s separate configuration, existing SR-STAP would suffer from severe performance degradation. To address this problem, a clutter-ridge matched STAP (CRM-STAP) method for BiSAR nonstationary clutter suppression is proposed. First, clutter distribution modeling with arbitrary BiSAR configuration is applied to accurately obtain the clutter ridge in space–time domain. Then, keystone transform and time-division processing are applied to correct range cell migration and eliminate Doppler frequency migration, respectively. Next, to solve the off-grid problem, the CRM dictionary is reconstructed via adaptive gradient method, which is established along the direction of clutter ridge and its orthogonal direction. Then, with the constructed CRM dictionary, the clutter covariance matrix (CCM) estimation process is transformed to a multimeasured vector optimization problem, and it can be directly solved by the sparse Bayesian learning algorithm. Finally, based on the estimated CCM, the CRM-STAP filter is built to suppress the nonstationary clutter effectively. Compared with the existing STAP and SR-STAP methods, this method can avoid the performance degradation in clutter suppression caused by the off-grid problem and overcomes the strong nonstationary problem of BiSAR clutter in heterogeneous environments. In October 2020, we have successfully carried out the world’s first airborne BiSAR-GMTI experiment, and the experimental results are given to verify the effectiveness of this method.

Joint Tracking of Moving Target in Single-Channel Video SAR

Video synthetic aperture radar (SAR) has been found very useful in ground moving target indication (GMTI) and tracking. The dynamic shadows in video SAR imagery sequences indicate the real positions of moving targets, which can be utilized in target detection and tracking. Unfortunately, the shadow-based method often fails when the shadows are not sufficiently developed. On the other hand, the traditional energy-based GMTI methods exhibit performance degradation when SAR images of a moving target are distorted or smeared. Neither of these two methods can stand alone to provide robust detection and tracking of moving targets. This article presents a joint processing framework for video SAR GMTI and tracking by combining the target shadow and echo energy information, which effectively lowers the false alarm and miss-detection rate. This approach is very suitable for real-time surveillance of ground moving targets in a single-channel video SAR system. The proposed approach has been verified by using the simulated and the real video SAR data.

An Effective Clutter Suppression Approach Based on Null-Space Technique for the Space-Borne Multichannel in Azimuth High-Resolution and Wide-Swath SAR System

In this article, an effective clutter suppression algorithm is presented for the space-borne azimuth multiantenna high-resolution and wide-swath (HRWS) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system, which is based on the null-space technique. First, the echo of bistatic geosynchronous-low earth orbit (GEO-LEO) azimuth multiantenna HRWS SAR-ground moving target indication (GMTI) system is utilized to deduce the coarse-focused image of moving targets and clutter, where the Chirp Fourier transform (CFT) in azimuth is involved. Then, the matrix form can be utilized to describe the coarse-focused image of the multiantenna SAR system and the corresponding covariance matrix can be estimated. After that, the null-space is constructed using the covariance matrix corresponding to clutter, where at least a redundant channel freedom is required. Since the null-space vector is orthogonal to signal-space vector, it can be used to suppress the clutter. As an equivalent phase is brought by the slant velocity, the moving targets’ echo can be preserved during clutter suppression. Then, the optimization and suboptimization vectors for clutter suppression are introduced. It is worth noting that the proposed clutter suppression algorithm is robust for the antenna mismatch, that is, the antenna mismatch in phase and the corresponding position error. Finally, the theoretical investigations are validated using some simulation experiments, where the experiments for bistatic GEO-LEO and single-platform azimuth multiantenna HRWS SAR-GMTI system are both included. In addition, the real measured single-platform azimuth multiantenna HRWS SAR data experiments are also performed.

Adaptive Channel Balancing Algorithm Based on 2-D Gaussian Kernel Function

The inherent magnitude and phase errors between channels in the multichannel synthetic aperture radar/ground moving target indication (SAR/GMTI) system will affect the clutter suppression and moving target detection performance of the system. To solve this problem, this letter proposes an adaptive channel balancing algorithm based on the 2-D Gaussian kernel function. First, the iterative reweighted least squares (IRLS) algorithm is used to estimate and compensate the inherent linear phase error that varies with the Doppler frequency in the range-Doppler domain. Then the Gaussian statistical analysis of the residual phase errors is performed in the image domain after the azimuth processing. According to the coupling characteristics of the range and azimuth of the SAR image, the correlation coefficient and the standard deviations of the phase errors in the range and azimuth directions are computed, and a 2-D Gaussian kernel function is constructed to estimate and compensate the residual phase errors. Finally, a mean filter is used to compensate the 2-D magnitude errors. This algorithm can eliminate the magnitude and phase errors and improve the coherence between different channels. The real airborne SAR data demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Extended GLRT Detection of Moving Targets for Multichannel SAR Based on Generalized Steering Vector.

A generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT) with the constant false alarm rate (CFAR) property was recently developed for adaptive detection of moving targets in focusing synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. However, in the multichannel SAR-ground moving-target indication (SAR-GMTI) system, image defocus is inevitable, which will remarkably degrade the performance of the GLRT detector, especially for the lower radar cross-section (RCS) and slower radial velocity moving targets. To address this issue, based on the generalized steering vector (GSV), an extended GLRT detector is proposed and its performance is evaluated by the optimum likelihood ratio test (LRT) in the Neyman-Pearson (NP) criterion. The joint data vector formulated by the current cell and its adjacent cells is used to obtain the GSV, and then the extended GLRT is derived, which coherently integrates signal and accomplishes moving-target detection and parameter estimation. Theoretical analysis and simulated SAR data demonstrate the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed detector in the defocusing SAR images.

A Novel Moving Target Detection Method Based on RPCA for SAR Systems

Clutter background suppression and velocity estimation for moving targets are two critical problems in synthetic aperture radar-ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI). A robust principal component analysis (RPCA) method is used to separate the sparse matrix of moving targets from the low-rank matrix of static backgrounds by using amplitude information in the image domain. However, the nonsparsity of the moving target echoes limits the performance of the RPCA in SAR-GMTI, and the velocity of the moving target cannot be estimated since the phase information is destroyed by the soft-thresholding operator in the RPCA process. To solve these problems, a novel moving target detection method based on RPCA (NRPCA) for SAR systems is proposed in this article. An atomic norm-based optimization program is first constructed to transform the data sparsity requirement into a moving target sparsity requirement. Although this optimization program is NP-hard, it is transformed to semidefinite programming by relaxation. Furthermore, accurate velocity estimation is performed using dual function theory and the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) algorithm while the selection of the sparsity order k is avoided. Simulations and analyses based on experimental data illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

A Clutter Suppression Method Based on NSS-RPCA in Heterogeneous Environments for SAR-GMTI

Clutter background suppression is a critical problem in synthetic aperture radar-ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI). In general, a great quantity of secondary data is not easily acquired in heterogeneous environments. To solve the problem of clutter suppression, a method based on nonlocal self-similarity-robust principal component analysis (NSS-RPCA) is proposed for airborne SAR systems. First, discrete clutter is separated from the echo data by RPCA after range pulse compression. Second, similar blocks of the residual-clutter background are extracted to overcome the training sample limitation using the NSS method in the 2-D time domain. Third, subcovariance matrices are structured by the similar blocks, and the subcovariance matrix is stacked into a tensor. Then, the subclutter covariance matrix can be obtained from the stacked subcovariance matrix tensor by RPCA, where the residual-clutter tensor is of low rank and the target tensor is sparse. Finally, the residual clutter can be suppressed by the subclutter covariance matrix. In this manner, the source of independent identically distributed (IID) samples will be increased significantly without aperture loss by the proposed method. Simulation and analysis based on the experimental data illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

A Novel Azimuth Spectrum Reconstruction and Imaging Method for Moving Targets in Geosynchronous Spaceborne–Airborne Bistatic Multichannel SAR

Geosynchronous spaceborne–airborne bistatic multichannel synthetic aperture radar (GEO-SABM SAR) is a form of bistatic SAR constructed by a GEO transmitter and an airborne multichannel receiver. The frequent coverage of earth observations in GEO-SABM SAR provides a great advantage in SAR-ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI). However, the bandwidth of the azimuth spectrum in this configuration, which is larger than the pulse repetition frequency (PRF), makes the whole spectrum fold into several subsegments, i.e., azimuth spectrum aliasing (ASA) occurs. In addition, azimuth Doppler ambiguity (ADA) caused by the larger radial velocity of the moving target may occur simultaneously. To address these problems, an improved velocity SAR (VSAR)-based azimuth spectrum reconstruction method for moving targets is proposed. The influence of ASA and ADA on the signal of the moving targets is analyzed, and a signal model after coarse imaging with static target parameters is deduced. From the signal model, each subsegment has different Doppler frequencies and can be extracted based on improved VSAR. Meanwhile, the Doppler ambiguous integer has a definite relationship with the slope of the range migration of the subsegments after a range cell migration correction (RCMC) based on the static target parameters and can be estimated by this relationship. Furthermore, based on the extracted spectrum subsegments and estimated Doppler ambiguous integer, the azimuth spectrum can be reconstructed. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by the numerical experiments.

Acceleration Compensation for Estimation of Along-Track Velocity of Ground Moving Target from Single-Channel SAR SLC Data

Across-track acceleration is a major source of estimation error of along-track velocity in synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) ground moving-target indication (GMTI). This paper presents the theory and a method of compensating across-track acceleration to improve the accuracy of along-track velocity estimated from single-channel SAR single-look complex data. A unique feature of the proposed method is the utilisation of phase derivatives in the Doppler frequency domain, which is effective for azimuth-compressed signals. The performance of the method was evaluated through experimental data acquired by TerraSAR-X and speed-controlled and measured vehicles. The application results demonstrate a notable improvement in along-track velocity estimates. The amount of along-track velocity correction is particularly significant when a target has irregular motion with a low signal-to-clutter ratio. A discontinuous velocity jump rather than a constant acceleration was also observed and verified through comparison between actual data and simulations. By applying this method, the capability of single-channel SAR GMTI could be substantially improved in terms of accuracy of velocity, and moving direction. However, the method is effective only if the correlation between the actual Doppler phase derivatives and a model derived from the residual Doppler rate is sufficiently high. The proposed method will be applied to X-band SAR systems of KOMPSAT-5 and -6.

A Robust Radial Velocity Estimation Method for FDA-SAR

In multi-channel synthetic aperture radar-ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI), most radial velocity estimation methods are based on the phase difference between channels. However, the image coregistration and channel phase errors will have a severe impact on the phase difference between channels. Moreover, it deteriorates the performance of the moving target radial velocity estimation. To solve this problem, a robust radial velocity estimation method is proposed using a frequency diverse array-SAR (FDA-SAR) in this letter. By introducing the step frequency, the interferometric phase among channels is a linear function of the Doppler frequency. The radial velocity of moving targets is embedded in the first-order term of the linear function. Meanwhile, the first-order term does not include channel phase error terms. Therefore, the accurate velocity of moving targets is estimated by the first-order coefficient which is solved by the least-squares fitting method. Afterward, according to the analysis and derivation, the proposed method is robust on the condition of image coregistration error. At last, simulations and data analysis illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

A Novel Deceptive Jamming Method Against Two-Channel SAR-GMTI Based on Two Jammers

The traditional synthetic aperture radar (SAR) deceptive jamming can effectively create false static and moving targets in the SAR image. However, the deceptive capability could be significantly reduced or denied by the two-channel SAR-ground moving target indication (GMTI) system. To achieve the effective deception, the impact of SAR deceptive jamming against two-channel SAR-GMTI system is first analyzed. Then, a novel effective deceptive jamming method based on two jammers is described. Using this method, the two stationary jammers are made to be located at different positions along the azimuth direction. By applying the complex modulation in each jammer, the additional phase term of the synthetic jamming signals in the two coregistered SAR images is canceled. It is shown that the expected modulation coefficient for each jammer can be precisely calculated by solving a linear system of equations of two unknowns. Finally, the proposed deceptive jamming against the two-channel SAR-GMTI system is achieved by generating the jamming signal in each jammer via the efficient deceptive jamming technique. By utilizing the optimal layout of the jammers, this scheme is both robust and computationally efficient. It will generate false static and moving targets with high fidelity in the two SAR images. Only the false moving targets can be detected by the displaced phase center antenna (DPCA) and then relocated to the correct positions by along-track interferometry (ATI) in the two-channel SAR-GMTI system. Some simulations are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Clutter suppression and ground moving target imaging approach for hypersonic vehicle borne multichannel radar based on two-step focusing method

In this paper, a novel clutter suppression and ground moving target imaging approach is proposed for hypersonic vehicle (HSV) borne multichannel (MC) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system. Compared with the traditional MC SAR ground moving target indication (GMTI) methods, the proposed algorithm can suppress clutter and decrease the moving target energy loss based on the improved MC clutter suppression method in the chirp Fourier transform (CFT) domain. Moreover, the moving target can be accurately focused by compensating the range curvature and the third order phase item. In addition, the motion parameters can be estimated precisely and the moving target can be focused accurately. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is validated by the simulation examples.

Azimuth Multichannel GMTI Based on Ka-Band DBF-SCORE SAR System

The azimuth multichannel synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system is used in ground moving target indication (GMTI). But for Ka-band SAR, the conflicts between high gain and wide swath coverage are very strict. The digital beamforming (DBF) scan-on-receive (SCORE) algorithm can solve this problem very well. This letter introduces a multichannel SAR system with three receiving antennas in the azimuth direction. For each azimuth antenna, eight subapertures are arranged in the elevation direction in order to obtain higher gain and a lower data rate through the DBF-SCORE algorithm. Airborne flight experiments with this system are accomplished successfully and quantities of experimental data are acquired. In this letter, we first derive the signal forms and weighting coefficients in the DBF-SCORE procedures. Then, different GMTI methods including along-track interferometry and displaced phase center antenna are introduced for azimuth multichannel SAR–GMTI based on the DBF-SCORE technology. Finally, airborne raw data with cooperating moving targets are processed successfully, and the estimation errors of the radial velocities meet the expected accuracy requirements.

First Spaceborne SAR-GMTI Experimental Results for the Chinese Gaofen-3 Dual-Channel SAR Sensor.

In spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors, it is a challenging task to detect ground slow-moving targets against strong clutter background with limited spatial channels and restricted pulse repetition frequency (PRF). In this paper, we evaluate the image-based dual-channel SAR-ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI) workflow for the Gaofen-3 SAR sensor and analyze the impact of strong azimuth ambiguities on GMTI when the displaced phase center antenna (DPCA) condition is not fully satisfied, which has not been demonstrated yet. An effective sliding window design technique based on system parameters analysis is proposed to deal with azimuth ambiguities and reduce false alarm. In the SAR-GMTI experiments, co-registration, clutter suppression, constant false alarm rate (CFAR) detector, vector velocity estimation and moving target relocation are analyzed and discussed thoroughly. With the real measured data of the Gaofen-3 dual-channel SAR sensor, the GMTI capability of this sensor is demonstrated and the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified.

Clutter suppression and GMTI for hypersonic vehicle borne SAR system with MIMO antenna

This study proposes a clutter suppression approach and the corresponding ground moving target imaging algorithm for hypersonic vehicle (HSV) borne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system with multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antenna. HSV-borne radar platforms fly with a high speed, which can lead to severe Doppler ambiguity, and the radar system usually cannot provide enough channel freedom degree for clutter suppression. In this study, an SAR ground moving target indication (GMTI) approach with MIMO antenna is presented for HSV-borne radar. Compared with the traditional multichannel SAR GMTI methods, the proposed approach can provide more space freedom degree and obtain a wider imaging swath without decreasing pulse repetition frequency. Besides, the improved deramp space-time adaptive processing method decreases the ambiguity times of the ground clutter and focuses the moving target. The simulation results validate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

On the Statistics of Coherence Estimators for Textured Clutter Plus Noise

This letter presents a theoretical analysis of the impact of thermal noise on the statistics of the classical as well as a modified estimator for the cross-correlation coefficient between two receive channels, which follow a noisy compound clutter model. This correlation coefficient, in the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) context often called coherence, is widely used as an important quality parameter in the field of SAR interferometry, SAR change detection, and SAR ground moving target indication. Based on a novel closed-form expressions for the probability density function (pdf) for integer number of averaged samples (or looks), it is shown that, contrary to widespread belief, the clutter texture does not cancel out when the noise contribution is taken into account. It is further demonstrated that the new pdfs can be used to derive the bias and variance of the sample coherence in analytical closed form. Thereby, the impact of the texture on the estimators is analyzed.

SAR Ground Moving Target Indication via Cross-Track Interferometry for a Forward-Looking Array

In this paper, an effective synthetic aperture radar ground moving target indication (SAR-GMTI) method is proposed based on cross-track interferometry only, by combining the squint-looking and a 2-D cruciform forward-looking array. First, for a multiple-channel SAR with an arbitrarily array configuration and an arbitrary-looking angle, the 2-D response of a ground moving target, including its phase, amplitude, and position, is derived in the complex image domain via back-projection algorithm. Second, an interferometry phase sensitivity function is defined to evaluate the interferometry properties of an arbitrarily baseline with a closed-form expression, from which the GMTI and altitude-estimating abilities of the conventional along-track baseline and cross-track baseline can be verified. Besides, it is shown that the interferometry phases of the upright cross-track and straightforward along-track baselines are only sensitive to the target's height and velocity, respectively. Furthermore, the interferometry phase of the level cross-track baseline can be sensitive to both target's radial velocity and height when the squint-looking angle is large. Therefore, to solve the coupled phases of velocity and height of the moving target in a real fluctuating terrain, a cruciform cross-track baseline with five receiving channels is further proposed for a squint-looking SAR, by which the height, radial velocity, and location of both fixed and moving targets can be estimated, simultaneously. This means that the SAR-GMTI can be effectively accomplished by cross-track interferometry only without along-track baseline. Finally, some results of numerical experiments are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.