A Novel Algorithm for Tree Height Inversion with Improved Ground Phase Estimation

Polarimetric Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolInSAR) possesses unique advantages in forest parameter retrieval due to its all-weather, all-day observation capability and effective acquisition of vertical structure information of ground targets. Based on the Random Volume over Ground (RVoG) model, the existing three-stage method fits the coherent line to estimate the ground phase. However, the accuracy of tree height inversion is restricted by noise during the estimation process. A new ground phase estimation method was proposed by fitting coherent lines using multiple pixels, improving the SNR. Results demonstrate that, compared to the existing three-stage algorithm, our method performs better in the tree height inversion of managed and natural forests.