Bistatic quasi-mirror radar of the sea surface

The main features of a bistatic quasi-mirror radar of the sea surface are considered in an approximation of quasi-mirror scattering from isotropic surface waves. Surface-wave scattering plots determining the energetics and width of the view area of airspace radars are constructed under horizontal polarization and surface-radiating ray fall angles that are away from the nadir. We consider the factors determining the form of the “flare track”: projections of the difference-wave vector in the lateral and transversal directions; the rates of tilt of the wind waves; and the finite radius of the Earth’s curvature, which is important for ocean sounding from space. The resolution with respect to an axis of horizontal length is the worst at the mirror point; however, in most of the wide viewing area, this resolution is only a few times lower than the resolution of a conventional (monostatic) radar for the same width of the signal spectrum. We also consider the conditions for synthesizing the directional diagrams of a receiving antenna when there are two viewing areas that are not separated with respect to the slant range, as well as the influence that surface nonstationarity has on the synthetic aperture radar focusing.