1. EECS 823 Microwave Remote Sensing
Fall 2016 Project Background Information, Scope, and Expectations

2. Outline
Purpose
Potential project activities
Constraints

3. Purpose
The class project will be used to assess the student’s grasp of the course material, their ability apply the course concepts to a meaningful problem.
The project should touch on the major course topics covered, e.g., electromagnetics, antennas, atmospheric effects or scattering, radiometry/radiometers or radar.
Do not plagiarize! Plagiarized work will result in a zero score on the project for the guilty party (which will devastate their course final grade).

4. Project topics I am presenting a range of candidate project topics.
Other topic concepts may be entertained.
Please consult with me early in the process to get approval.
Listed below are the candidate topics:
Develop proposal for novel radar and/or radiometer system to address a real application (driven by science, economics, or military needs).
Report on existing airborne or spaceborne microwave sensor (radar or radiometer).

5. Develop proposal for novel radar/radiometer system for real application
Following the examples of radar and radiometer application presentations, develop a proposal for a new (not previously published or reported) radar or radiometer for a real application.
The proposal must:
address the problem’s significance (scientific, economic, or military)
identify the key measurable parameters (e.g., soil moisture, snow thickness, trace gas concentration, etc.)
provide system specifications for a microwave sensor capable of measuring these parameters (e.g., operating frequency, sensor geometry, polarization, spatial/radiometric resolution, measurement update rate, etc.)
provide system requirements (e.g., antenna dimensions, spectrum requirements, platform ground speed, rough order-of-magnitude estimates for payload mass and power, data rates, algorithm for estimating parameter of interest from measured data, etc.)
results from numerical simulation of key processes
analyze error sources and their impact on the measurement accuracy and precision
conclusions

6. Develop proposal for novel radar/radiometer system for real application
Possible topics – a sensor or sensor suite to:
produce an annual water inventory for mountainous areas to aid hydrologists plan for freshwater availability and flood relief
For example airborne sensor that accurately maps snow pack thickness annually in a mountain chain (e.g., Rockies, Himalayas, Andes, etc.)
map density and 3-D spatial distribution of volcanic ash at concentrations that impact air traffic with sufficient spatial and temporal coverage to economically benefit a continent
map of ocean vector winds and all-weather sea-surface temperatures for improved understanding of weather and ocean ecosystems
3-D map of water vapor distribution and temperature within hurricanes or cyclones
map ocean, lake, and river water levels for ocean and inland water dynamic models and predictions
measure high-frequency, all-weather temperature and humidity soundings for weather forecasting and sea-surface temperature
detect spaceborne threats (asteroids, comets, space junk) using solar RF emissions as illuminator
More topics are available at NASA website, science.nasa.gov

7. Report on existing airborne or spaceborne microwave sensor
The report must address:
the sensor’s objective and mission
system designers, launch date, orbital parameters, etc.
the underlying physics that enables sensor to remotely sense the parameters of interest
the sensor system
its specifications, flight characteristics, derived sensor parameters (antenna beamwidth, range resolution, radiometric resolution, etc.), data rate
the algorithm for extracting the parameters of interest from the measured data
examples of measured data
examples of processed data
a science application where data from this sensor was applied to produce new finding
recently acquired data, when possible, where it can be found, and examples of raw and processed data
conclusion assessing capabilities and limitations of this sensor

8. Report on existing airborne or spaceborne microwave sensor
Example systems include:
ACRIMSAT – Active Cavity Radiometer Irradiance Monitor
measures Total Solar Irradiance (TSI)
AMSR-E – Japan's Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer
used to obtain images of the sea ice covers of both polar regions
CloudSat
advanced radar to "slice" through clouds to see their vertical structure
QuikSCAT – Quick Scatterometer
records sea-surface wind speed and direction data under all weather and cloud conditions
TRMM/TMI – Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission’s Microwave Imager
Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission’s (TRMM) Microwave Imager (TMI) is a passive microwave sensor designed to provide quantitative rainfall information over a wide swath under the TRMM satellite
WMAP – Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe
differential microwave radiometers that measure temperature differences between two points on the sky
CONSERT – COmet Nucleus Sounding Experiment by Radiowave Transmission
Rosetta’s means for probing the comet’s internal structure
More missions can be found at science.nasa.gov/earth-science/missions science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/missions

9. Project Constraints Team size: 1 person
Project proposals due by Tues 8 Nov 2016
Proposal specifies topic, scope, and brief project outline
Presentation to class
10-minute presentation duration with additional 5 minutes for questions
Presentations begin around 1 Dec 2016 (presentation times will be assigned by the instructor)
Evaluation based on content, quality, clarity
Project report
Report contents
Cover page (1 page) – includes title, author, abstract
Report body (10 pages max)
References page(s) – cite references properly (avoid plagiarism)
Appendices – data, graphs, program code, minimal text
Format: All margins 1”, 11-pt Arial font, line spacing of 1.5
Due at 5 pm on 12 Dec 2016
Electronic submission, pdf format
Evaluation based on technical content, writing, format, etc.

10. Project report Project report must include: Clear problem statement
Outline of the solution
System description and analysis
Data analysis and interpretation
Conclusion assessing capabilities and limitations of solution
Be thorough and rigorous
Cite references appropriately
Do not duplicate the work of others
Document your work (provide Matlab code where appropriate)
Point out difficulties or results you know are incorrect
Discuss your findings – simply presenting a final plot is inadequate; a discussion of it’s meaning and interpretation is required
Propose what others might try in the future to yield improved results