Seasonal phase disturbances in satellite Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) measurements have been reported in other studies to suggest sub-centimetre land surface terrain motion. These have been interpreted in various ways because they correlate with multiple other (sub-)seasonal signatures of, e.g., clay swelling/shrinkage and groundwater level. Recent microwave radar studies mention the occurrence of phase disturbances in different soil types and soil moisture. This study further explored this topic by modeling phase disturbances caused by both soil and vegetation surface characteristics and aimed to interpret what their possible effects on InSAR-interpreted terrain motion is. Our models, based on fundamental microwave reflection and transmission theory, found phase disturbances caused by seasonal variation of soil and vegetation that have the same magnitude as interpreted seasonal land movement in earlier InSAR studies. We showed that small, temporal differences in soil moisture and vegetation can lead to relatively large phase disturbances in InSAR measurements. These disturbances are a result of waves having to comply with boundary conditions at the interface between media with different dielectric properties. The findings of this study explain the seasonal variations found in other InSAR studies and will therefore bring new insights and alternative explanations to help improve interpretation of InSAR-derived seasonal terrain motion.

中文翻译：

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通过土壤和植被的季节性特征解释InSAR相位扰动

在其他研究中也报告了卫星干涉式合成孔径雷达（InSAR）测量中的季节性相位扰动，表明亚厘米以下的陆地表面地形运动。这些以各种方式进行了解释，因为它们与多个其他（亚）季节特征相关，例如，粘土膨胀/收缩和地下水位。最近的微波雷达研究提到在不同土壤类型和土壤湿度中会发生相位干扰。这项研究通过对由土壤和植被表面特征引起的相位扰动进行建模来进一步探讨该主题，并试图解释其对InSAR解释的地形运动可能产生的影响。我们基于基本微波反射和透射理论的模型 他们发现由土壤和植被的季节性变化引起的相位扰动与早期InSAR研究中解释的季节性陆地运动具有相同的幅度。我们表明，InSAR测量中土壤水分和植被的细微时间差异会导致相对较大的相位干扰。这些干扰是由于波必须遵守介电特性不同的介质之间的界面处的边界条件所致。该研究的结果解释了其他InSAR研究中发现的季节性变化，因此将带来新的见解和替代解释，以帮助改善对InSAR衍生的季节性地形运动的解释。土壤水分和植被的时间差异会导致InSAR测量中相对较大的相位干扰。这些干扰是由于波必须遵守介电特性不同的介质之间的界面处的边界条件所致。该研究的结果解释了其他InSAR研究中发现的季节性变化，因此将带来新的见解和替代解释，以帮助改善对InSAR衍生的季节性地形运动的解释。土壤水分和植被的时间差异会导致InSAR测量中相对较大的相位干扰。这些干扰是由于波必须遵守介电特性不同的介质之间的界面处的边界条件所致。该研究的结果解释了其他InSAR研究中发现的季节性变化，因此将带来新的见解和替代解释，以帮助改善对InSAR衍生的季节性地形运动的解释。