Delay-Doppler radar observations of Saturn's rings

The relative radar reflectiveness of Saturn's classical ring sections were estimated from delay-Doppler observations made at 12.6-cm wavelength. The A and B rings are responsible for most, if not all, of the radar echo. The average radar reflectivity per unit projected area of the A ring is nearly (～90%) as large as that of the B ring. The outer half of the B ring contains the most reflective part of the ring system. There is no firm evidence for detection of radar backscattering from particles interior to the B ring, exterior to the A ring, or from the planet itself. The radar reflectivity of the C ring is certainly no more than one-half that of the B ring, and probably is much less. Unexpectedly large amounts of power at Doppler shifts near the center of the echo spectrum, previously reported at both λ3.5 and λ12.6 cm for ring-plane tilt angles δ ≥ 24.4°, are not apparent in λ3.5- or 12.6-cm spectra obtained at δ ≤ 21.4°.