Conference Agenda
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Biomass First Results III Location: Red Hall Session Chair: Clément Albinet, European Space Agency / Agence Spatiale Européenne Session Chair: Dinh Ho Tong Minh, INRAE | |
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9:00am - 9:20am
FIRST ASSESSMENT OF BIOMASS INTERFEROMETRIC PERFORMANCE AND FOREST HEIGHT RETRIEVAL DLR e.V., Oberpfaffenhofen ESA’s BIOMASS, was launched on 29th of April 2025 to capture interferometric polarimetric and tomographic information, for the first time enabling the P-band spaceborne Pol-InSAR forest height inversion [1]. The spatial baseline distribution of BIOMASS is optimized for tropical forest height retrieval and tomographic profile reconstruction, while the satellite’s short revisit time of three days provides a unique opportunity to obtain high-quality forest height maps [2]. It is well known that forest height correlates with cross-track interferometric coherence [2]. However, obtaining high-quality P-band interferograms remains challenging due to ionospheric propagation effects, correct accounting of temporal decorrelation, dielectric change due to mainly rain events and correct approximation of vertical reflectivity profile [3-4]. This paper addresses these challenges step by step, leading to the implementation and validation of a forest height inversion algorithm. The first results demonstrate the immense potential of BIOMASS in delivering high-quality data and accurate forest height measurements. The different model-based strategies of forest height from provided BIOMASS data will be discussed: single-, dual- and three-baseline forest height inversion scenarios. The single-baseline inversion approach is straightforward in interpretation and computationally efficient; however, it requires prior knowledge of the ground phase and assumptions regarding temporal decorrelation. In contrast, multi-baseline inversions (dual- and three-baseline) enable a more balanced estimation framework but may lead to ambiguous solutions and increased uncertainty in result interpretation [3]. This study will provide a full analysis of forest height inversion potential with BIOMASS, using its full dataset and addressing the inversion in physics-aware model-based framework. The primary focus is on assessing performance across the rainforests of the Amazon, Central Africa, and Southeast Asia. Results will be closely linked to the mission’s commissioning phase and critically validated using GEDI’s LiDAR-derived RH98 forest height data, ensuring the verification of BIOMASS-derived height products. REFERENCES [1] S. Quegan et al., The European Space Agency BIOMASS mission: Measuring forest above-ground biomass from space. Remote Sensing of Environment, 227, 44-60, 2019 [2] S. R. Cloude and K. P. Papathanassiou, "Polarimetric SAR interferometry," in IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, vol. 36, no. 5, pp. 1551-1565, Sept. 1998, doi: 10.1109/36.718859. [3] R. Guliaev, J. Su Kim, M. Pardini and K. P. Papathanassiou, "On the Use of Tomographically Derived Reflectivity Profiles for Pol-InSAR Forest Height Inversion in the Context of the BIOMASS Mission," in IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, vol. 62, pp. 1-12, 2024, [4] M. Pardini, M. Tello, V. Cazcarra-Bes, K. P. Papathanassiou and I. Hajnsek, "L- and P-Band 3-D SAR Reflectivity Profiles Versus Lidar Waveforms: The AfriSAR Case," in IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing, vol. 11, no. 10, pp. 3386-3401, Oct. 2018, doi: 10.1109/JSTARS.2018.2847033 | |
