Analyzing TerraSAR-X staring spotlight mode data for archaeological prospections in the Altai Mountains

Abstract

Remotely sensed data can support archaeological prospections in many ways and is therefore widely used. However, synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data is far less commonly used, although with the newest generation of high-resolution SAR systems and the additional very high resolution staring spotlight mode of TerraSAR-X, the spatial resolution of spaceborne SAR systems are suitable for many archaeological applications. We demonstrate the suitability of very high resolution TerraSAR-X data for the detection of archaeological structures in the Chinese Altai Mountains. SAR interferometry can further enhance the interpretability of the remotely sensed data. However, interferometrie SAR is rather sensitive for atmospheric changes and changes on the ground and can therefore not always be used successfully.