Multiple-input multiple-output radar, ground-based MIMO SAR for ground deformation monitoring

ABSTRACT This study focuses on investigating the capabilities of a Multiple-input multiple-output RADAR. A Radar interferometer, based on an electronically scanned array in MIMO configuration (MIMO‐SAR), has been assessed for operational use in monitoring phenomena of geological interest, such as landslides unstable slopes. The system applies the very well‐known and proven Ground-Based Interferometric technique. It guarantees a very short refreshing time compared to traditional systems based on the mechanical movement of the radar transceiver on a rail or the mechanical steering of a real antenna. The system can monitor several phenomena having deformation rates too high to be correctly retrieved by traditional systems currently in use. Implementing a prototype termed MELISSA allowed the testing technique’s performances in two real case studies: a landslide and an unstable volcanic flank. The experimental results were compared with LISA, a well-known Ground-Based Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (GBInSAR) interferometer. MELISSA allows for obtaining an excellent accuracy, better than 0.01 mm. The range and angular resolution are on the same order of magnitude as those obtained through LISA. However, the refreshing rate obtained from MELISSA, 0.01 s, guarantees a strong coherence even in challenging environmental scenarios as a flank of an active volcano.