A Multiple Linear Regression Algorithm for Sea Surface Temperature Retrieval by One-Dimensional Synthetic Aperture Microwave Radiometry

Abstract

One-dimensional synthetic aperture microwave radiometer (1D-SAMR) can provide remote sensing images at a higher spatial resolution than those from traditional real aperture microwave radiometers. As 1D-SAMR operates at multiple incidence angles, we proposed a multiple linear regression method to retrieve sea surface temperature at an incidence angle between 0° and 65°. Assuming that a 1D-SAMR operates at various frequencies (i.e., 6.9, 10.65, 18.7, 23.8 and 36.5 GHz), a radiation transmission forward model was developed to simulate the brightness temperature measured by the 1D-SAMR. The sensitivity of the five frequencies to sea surface temperature was examined, and we evaluated the reliability of the regression method proposed in this study. Furthermore, 11 schemes with various frequency combinations were applied to retrieve sea surface temperature. The results showed that the five-frequency combination scheme performed better than the other schemes. This study also found that the accuracy of retrieved sea surface temperature is dependent on incidence angles. Finally, we suggested that the incidence angle range of the 1D-SAMR is necessary to be 30°–60° based on the relationship between the accuracy of retrieved sea surface temperature and the incidence angles.