The NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) was launched August 20, 1996 aboard the National Space Development Agency of Japan's Advanced Earth Observing Spacecraft (ADEOS). NSCAT's primary mission was to measure radar backscatter over the world's oceans. These measurements are used to generate estimates of ocean wind speed and direction. Scatterometers must be calibrated before their measurements are scientifically useful. However, the calibration of NSCAT must be done in orbit. A new methodology for selecting land regions for use in extended target spaceborne scatterometer calibration is first developed. Next, a summary of the calibration technique used in this thesis is presented. While the foundation of this technique was previously developed theoretically, the work in this thesis is its first application for calibration/validation of an on-line spaceborne radar system. The technique is extended to estimate simultaneously NSCAT's calibration and the host spacecraft's attitude error. The attitude references reported by the attitude control system on-board ADEOS are deemed erroneous. Results of this expanded technique, applied under varying assumptions, are presented for consideration. A summary and suggestions for future research conclude this work.
","abstract_html":"<p>The NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) was launched August 20, 1996 aboard the National Space Development Agency of Japan's Advanced Earth Observing Spacecraft (ADEOS). NSCAT's primary mission was to measure radar backscatter over the world's oceans. These measurements are used to generate estimates of ocean wind speed and direction. Scatterometers must be calibrated before their measurements are scientifically useful. However, the calibration of NSCAT must be done in orbit. A new methodology for selecting land regions for use in extended target spaceborne scatterometer calibration is first developed. Next, a summary of the calibration technique used in this thesis is presented. While the foundation of this technique was previously developed theoretically, the work in this thesis is its first application for calibration/validation of an on-line spaceborne radar system. The technique is extended to estimate simultaneously NSCAT's calibration and the host spacecraft's attitude error. The attitude references reported by the attitude control system on-board ADEOS are deemed erroneous. Results of this expanded technique, applied under varying assumptions, are presented for consideration. A summary and suggestions for future research conclude this work.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Wilson, Clarence J., III"],"institution":"Brigham Young University - Provo","degree_name":"MS","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":null,"date_issued":"","date_published":null,"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:27:16Z","subjects":["radar backscatter","scatterometer","scatterometry","ADEOS","NSCAT","NASA Scatterometer","radar calibration","attitude estimation","Electrical and Computer Engineering"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/77","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Wilson, Clarence J., III"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2003-05-14T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Brigham Young University - Provo"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MS"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["radar backscatter","scatterometer","scatterometry","ADEOS","NSCAT","NASA Scatterometer","radar calibration","attitude estimation","Electrical and Computer Engineering"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/77","https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/context/etd/article/1076/viewcontent/ETD_CISOPTR_43.pdf"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology; Electrical and Computer Engineering"]},{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) was launched August 20, 1996 aboard the National Space Development Agency of Japan's Advanced Earth Observing Spacecraft (ADEOS). NSCAT's primary mission was to measure radar backscatter over the world's oceans. These measurements are used to generate estimates of ocean wind speed and direction. Scatterometers must be calibrated before their measurements are scientifically useful. However, the calibration of NSCAT must be done in orbit. A new methodology for selecting land regions for use in extended target spaceborne scatterometer calibration is first developed. Next, a summary of the calibration technique used in this thesis is presented. While the foundation of this technique was previously developed theoretically, the work in this thesis is its first application for calibration/validation of an on-line spaceborne radar system. The technique is extended to estimate simultaneously NSCAT's calibration and the host spacecraft's attitude error. The attitude references reported by the attitude control system on-board ADEOS are deemed erroneous. Results of this expanded technique, applied under varying assumptions, are presented for consideration. A summary and suggestions for future research conclude this work.
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"],"dc:format":["application:pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/77","https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/context/etd/article/1076/viewcontent/ETD_CISOPTR_43.pdf"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:publisher":["Brigham Young University - Provo"],"dc:source":["Brigham Young University - Provo"],"dc:subject":["radar backscatter","scatterometer","scatterometry","ADEOS","NSCAT","NASA Scatterometer","radar calibration","attitude estimation","Electrical and Computer Engineering"],"dc:title":["Calibration of and Attitude Error Estimation for a Spaceborne Scatterometer using Measurements Over Land"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["MS"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:27:16Z"}