Spaceborn imaging radar in support of forest resource management

Imaging radar systems have a unique potential for monitoring certainbiophysical characteristics of forest ecosystems, but the extent andlimitations of this technology for forest management applications have not been assessed. An ongoing series of studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Affiliated Research Center (ARC) is addressingthese applications, using dual-wavelength, multipolarization ShuttleImaging Radar-C (SIR-C) imagery for a variety of sites in the western Great Lakes region. The initial research focused on the combinationof optical and radar data for land-cover mapping; this developed into an investigation of biometric applications of radar imagery, deriving various stand parameters of interest to forestland managers. A third question is now being addressed - how the complex mosaic of foresttypes in the region affects the accuracy of interferometric radar-based estimates of elevation. Further research is needed on practical applications of multiwavelength radar systems for monitoring changing conditions in natural and managed forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]