LAUSR

ABSTRACT Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images are greatly affected by the speckle noise. In order to improve SAR data readability by human interpreters and information extraction performed by computer programs, a despeckling preprocessing step is mandatory. The authors recently presented a despeckling algorithm based on the a priori knowledge of the local topography. In this paper, an experimental sensitivity analysis of the aforementioned despeckling algorithm is conducted and the main results are discussed. In particular, the sensitivity of the filter against surface parameters and scattering behavior is analyzed. A comprehensive understanding of the role of the Digital Elevation Model resolution and the coregistration step is also provided.