Sensitivity of BPA SAR Image Formation to Initial Position, Velocity, and Attitude Navigation Errors

Abstract: The Back-Projection Algorithm (BPA) is a time domain matched filtering technique to form synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. To produce high quality BPA images, precise navigation data for the radar platform must be known. Any error in position, velocity, or attitude results in improperly formed images corrupted by shifting, blurring, and distortion. This paper develops analytical expressions that characterize the relationship between navigation errors and image formation errors. These analytical expressions are verified via simulated image formation and real data image formation.