Analysis of C Band SAR Response in Flooded Marshes using EM models and Envisat Observations

GRINGS F. M., FERRAZZOLI P., JACOBO-BERLLES J. C., KARSZENBAUM H., TIFFENBERG J., PRATOLONGO P., KANDUS, P

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON GEOSCIENCE AND REMOTE SENSING

Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society

Lugar: Reykjavik, Iceland; Año: 2006 p. 1 - 18

0196-2892

This paper discusses the contribution of multi-temporal multi-polarization radar data in monitoring flooding events in wetland areas in the Delta of the Paraná River in Argentina. The discussion is based on the exhaustive comparison between radiative transfer model simulations and ENVISAT ASAR observations of two types of marshes: junco and cortadera. In all, these marshes cover a large area (near 40%, 1000 Km2) of the wetland, playing an important role in the stability of the watershed. When these marshes are flooded, the radar response changes significantly. This work shows how the differences in radar response between flooded and non-flooded condition can be explained as a change in the dominant water-vegetation-radar interaction mechanism which is related, on its turn, to changes in the amount of emerged biomass. It is also shown that an electromagnetic model provides a sound theoretical interpretation of radar flooding observations. Based on this, we propose a vegetation-dependent flooding prediction scheme for two marsh structures: nearly vertical cylinders (junco-like) on flooded soils and random disk (cortadera-like) also on flooded