Chapter 15
Ship Surveillance with High Resolution
TerraSAR-X Satellite in African Waters
Susanne Lehner, Andrey Pleskachevsky, Stephan Brusch, Miguel Bruck,
Matteo Soccorsi and Domenico Velotto
Abstract Ship detection is an important application of monitoring of environment
and security or safety issues in African Waters. In order to overcome the limitations
by other monitoring systems, e.g. coastal radar, surveillance with satellite Synthetic
Aperture Radar (SAR) is used because of its potential to detect ships at high resolution over wide swaths and in all weather conditions and independent from sun
illumination. TerraSAR-X (TS-X) is an X-band polarimetric SAR capable of imaging up to 1 m resolution in Spotlight mode. TS-X can be used for a wide variety
of applications and methods of analysis including visual interpretation, mapping,
digital-elevation-model creation, disaster monitoring, and oceanography. Results on
the combined use of TS-X ship detection, Automatic Identification System (AIS),
and satellite AIS (SatAIS) are presented. Using AIS is an effective terrestrial method
for tracking vessels in real time typically up to 40 km off the coast. SatAIS is a
space-based system with nearly global coverage for monitoring of AIS equipped
ships. Since not all ships operate their AIS and smaller ships are not equipped with
AIS, space borne SARs provide complimentary means for ship monitoring. As cases,
images were acquired over the Somali Coast Area, South African Coast and Gibraltar
in Stripmap mode with a resolution of 3 m at a coverage of 30 km × 50 km. The rapid
tasking performance as well as the short response time of the TS-X data acquisition
of the ground segment DLR-BN (Ground Station Neustrelitz, Germany), are very
helpful to monitor hotspot areas such as the Gulf of Aden. For ascending orbits the
delivery time of ship detection products is less than 20 min. Along with the detected
ship positions, estimated wave heights and wind fields derived from large-area TS-X
imagery can be used to get a detailed maritime picture of the situation.
15.1 Introduction
It is well known that the state of the world’s oceans is deteriorating due to human
activities. As noted by the African Maritime Safety and Security Agency (AMSSA)
the consequences of these activities is that the world’s oceans and coasts will be
S. Lehner () · A. Pleskachevsky · S. Brusch · M. Bruck · M. Soccorsi · D. Velotto
Institut für Methodik der Fernerkundung, SAR-Signalverarbeitung,
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (DLR),
Bremen Flughafen, Bremen, Germany
e-mail: Susanne.Lehner@dlr.de
V. Barale, M. Gade (eds.), Remote Sensing of the African Seas,
285
DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-8008-7_15,
© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014
Ship Surveillance with High Resolution
TerraSAR-X Satellite in African Waters
Susanne Lehner, Andrey Pleskachevsky, Stephan Brusch, Miguel Bruck,
Matteo Soccorsi and Domenico Velotto
Abstract Ship detection is an important application of monitoring of environment
and security or safety issues in African Waters. In order to overcome the limitations
by other monitoring systems, e.g. coastal radar, surveillance with satellite Synthetic
Aperture Radar (SAR) is used because of its potential to detect ships at high resolution over wide swaths and in all weather conditions and independent from sun
illumination. TerraSAR-X (TS-X) is an X-band polarimetric SAR capable of imaging up to 1 m resolution in Spotlight mode. TS-X can be used for a wide variety
of applications and methods of analysis including visual interpretation, mapping,
digital-elevation-model creation, disaster monitoring, and oceanography. Results on
the combined use of TS-X ship detection, Automatic Identification System (AIS),
and satellite AIS (SatAIS) are presented. Using AIS is an effective terrestrial method
for tracking vessels in real time typically up to 40 km off the coast. SatAIS is a
space-based system with nearly global coverage for monitoring of AIS equipped
ships. Since not all ships operate their AIS and smaller ships are not equipped with
AIS, space borne SARs provide complimentary means for ship monitoring. As cases,
images were acquired over the Somali Coast Area, South African Coast and Gibraltar
in Stripmap mode with a resolution of 3 m at a coverage of 30 km × 50 km. The rapid
tasking performance as well as the short response time of the TS-X data acquisition
of the ground segment DLR-BN (Ground Station Neustrelitz, Germany), are very
helpful to monitor hotspot areas such as the Gulf of Aden. For ascending orbits the
delivery time of ship detection products is less than 20 min. Along with the detected
ship positions, estimated wave heights and wind fields derived from large-area TS-X
imagery can be used to get a detailed maritime picture of the situation.
15.1 Introduction
It is well known that the state of the world’s oceans is deteriorating due to human
activities. As noted by the African Maritime Safety and Security Agency (AMSSA)
the consequences of these activities is that the world’s oceans and coasts will be
S. Lehner () · A. Pleskachevsky · S. Brusch · M. Bruck · M. Soccorsi · D. Velotto
Institut für Methodik der Fernerkundung, SAR-Signalverarbeitung,
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (DLR),
Bremen Flughafen, Bremen, Germany
e-mail: Susanne.Lehner@dlr.de
V. Barale, M. Gade (eds.), Remote Sensing of the African Seas,
285
DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-8008-7_15,
© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014