Abstract

Radar is a powerful tool for observing planet Earth from orbit. It has become one of the key techniques for understanding our planet, however all current radar missions are in low Earth orbit (LEO). From LEO , a satellite has global coverage every few weeks because its orbit is so low, and it cannot directly observe rapid processes such as weather during a day. Most weather satellites are in geosynchronous orbit (GEO) since this gives a permanent view of about a third of Earth’s surface – but there are no radars, yet, in GEO . Designing a radar mission for GEO takes us back to the basic principles of radar: we can’t simply adapt how we think for LEO radar, and our understanding of how to implement GEO radar is still evolving. This talk will cover the principles, challenges, potential, and prospects for radar imaging from GEO .