Module 1: Fundamentals of Radar Remote Sensing

• Introduction to microwave remote sensing.
• Principles of radar: Active sensing, sending and receiving signals.
• Key concepts: Wavelength, frequency, polarization, incidence angle.
• Advantages of radar: All-weather capability, day/night operation, penetration.
• Basic interaction of radar signals with different surfaces.
• Practical session: Exploring different radar images and observing variations in backscatter for various land cover types.

Module 2: Radar Systems and Data Characteristics

• Overview of different radar systems: Real Aperture Radar (RAR) vs. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR).
• Understanding SAR data acquisition geometry: Side-looking, range, azimuth.
• Common SAR satellites: Sentinel-1, TerraSAR-X, ALOS PALSAR, Radarsat.
• SAR data formats and characteristics: SLC, GRD products.
• Introduction to different radar bands (X, C, L, P bands) and their applications.
• Practical session: Downloading SAR data from a public archive (e.g., ESA Sentinel Hub) and inspecting its metadata.

Module 3: Radar Data Pre-processing

• Importance of pre-processing for accurate radar analysis.
• Speckle Filtering: Reducing noise in radar images (e.g., Lee filter, Gamma Map).
• Radiometric Calibration: Converting digital numbers to radar brightness/backscatter coefficient (sigma nought).
• Geometric Correction/Terrain Correction: Removing geometric distortions caused by topography.
• Co-registration of multi-temporal radar images.
• Subsetting and clipping radar images for specific areas of interest.
• Practical session: Applying different speckle filters to a SAR image and performing radiometric and geometric correction.

Module 4: Radar Image Interpretation and Enhancement

• Visual interpretation of radar images: Tone, texture, shape, pattern.
• Understanding the influence of surface roughness, dielectric properties, and orientation on backscatter.
• Creating false-color composites using different polarizations or time series.
• Image enhancement techniques for radar data.
• Identifying common features in radar imagery (e.g., urban areas, water bodies, forests).
• Practical session: Creating multi-polarization or multi-temporal radar composites and interpreting different features.

Module 5: Radar Applications in Land Cover and Agriculture

• Land cover classification using SAR data.
• Mapping urban areas and impervious surfaces.
• Agricultural applications: Crop type identification, monitoring crop growth, detecting moisture content.
• Forest applications: Biomass estimation, deforestation monitoring.
• Wetlands mapping and monitoring.
• Practical session: Performing a basic land cover classification using SAR data for an agricultural area or urban extent.

Module 6: Radar Applications in Hydrology and Disaster Management

• Flood mapping and monitoring using radar's ability to penetrate clouds.
• Water body detection and surface water dynamics.
• Soil moisture estimation using radar backscatter.
• Disaster damage assessment (e.g., earthquake, hurricane, wildfire).
• Monitoring ice and snow cover.
• Practical session: Delineating flooded areas from pre- and post-flood SAR images.

Module 7: Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) Principles

• Introduction to Interferometry: Phase difference and coherence.
• Principles of InSAR for Digital Elevation Model (DEM) generation.
• InSAR for ground deformation monitoring (e.g., subsidence, landslides, volcanic activity).
• Understanding interferograms and their interpretation.
• Limitations and challenges of InSAR.
• Practical session: Viewing an interferogram and interpreting fringe patterns for deformation.

Module 8: InSAR Data Processing and Applications

• Steps in InSAR processing: Coregistration, interferogram generation, phase unwrapping.
• Deriving displacement maps from unwrapped phase.
• Correcting for atmospheric effects in InSAR.
• Time-series InSAR (e.g., DInSAR, PS-InSAR) for continuous deformation monitoring.
• Case studies of InSAR applications in engineering, geology, and cryosphere.
• Practical session: Processing InSAR data to generate a basic deformation map (e.g., demonstrating subsidence).

Module 9: Polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) Principles and Applications

• Introduction to radar polarization: Single, dual, and full polarization.
• Understanding scattering mechanisms from different surfaces.
• Polarimetric decomposition techniques (e.g., Pauli, Freeman-Durden).
• PolSAR applications in detailed land cover classification, target discrimination, and biomass estimation.
• Advantages of PolSAR for characterizing complex scattering environments.
• Practical session: Visualizing PolSAR data and performing basic polarimetric decompositions to interpret scattering characteristics.

Module 10: Advanced Radar Concepts and Case Studies

• Review of all radar remote sensing techniques.
• Introduction to SAR Tomography and 3D imaging.
• Integration of radar data with optical and LiDAR data.
• Discussion of cutting-edge research and emerging trends in radar remote sensing.
• Real-world integrated case studies demonstrating the power of radar (e.g., urban infrastructure monitoring, glacier dynamics).
• Practical session: Analyzing an advanced radar dataset or exploring a research application demonstration.

Requirements:

·       Participants should be reasonably proficient in English.

·       Applicants must live up to Armstrong Global Institute admission criteria.

Terms and Conditions

1. Discounts: Organizations sponsoring Four Participants will have the 5th attend Free

2. What is catered for by the Course Fees: Fees cater for all requirements for the training – Learning materials, Lunches, Teas, Snacks and Certification. All participants will additionally cater for their travel and accommodation expenses, visa application, insurance, and other personal expenses.

3. Certificate Awarded: Participants are awarded Certificates of Participation at the end of the training.

4. The program content shown here is for guidance purposes only. Our continuous course improvement process may lead to changes in topics and course structure.

5. Approval of Course: Our Programs are NITA Approved. Participating organizations can therefore claim reimbursement on fees paid in accordance with NITA Rules.

Booking for Training

Simply send an email to the Training Officer on training@armstrongglobalinstitute.com and we will send you a registration form. We advise you to book early to avoid missing a seat to this training.

Or call us on +254720272325 / +254725012095 / +254724452588

Payment Options

We provide 3 payment options, choose one for your convenience, and kindly make payments at least 5 days before the Training start date to reserve your seat:

1. Groups of 5 People and Above – Cheque Payments to: Armstrong Global Training & Development Center Limited should be paid in advance, 5 days to the training.

2. Invoice: We can send a bill directly to you or your company.

3. Deposit directly into Bank Account (Account details provided upon request)

Cancellation Policy

1. Payment for all courses includes a registration fee, which is non-refundable, and equals 15% of the total sum of the course fee.

2. Participants may cancel attendance 14 days or more prior to the training commencement date.

3. No refunds will be made 14 days or less before the training commencement date. However, participants who are unable to attend may opt to attend a similar training course at a later date or send a substitute participant provided the participation criteria have been met.

Tailor Made Courses

This training course can also be customized for your institution upon request for a minimum of 5 participants. You can have it conducted at our Training Centre or at a convenient location. For further inquiries, please contact us on Tel: +254720272325 / +254725012095 / +254724452588 or Email training@armstrongglobalinstitute.com

Accommodation and Airport Transfer

Accommodation and Airport Transfer is arranged upon request and at extra cost. For reservations contact the Training Officer on Email: training@armstrongglobalinstitute.com or on Tel: +254720272325 / +254725012095 / +254724452588