Satellite altimetry using ocean backscatter

A model for the signal received when satellite altimetry pulses are scattered back by the ocean's surface is postulated and analyzed. The second-order statistics of the complex nonstationary random process appearing at the detector input are graphically and analytically displayed as a function of the sea state. The standard deviation of various altitude estimates derived by subsequent operations on the detector output are computed, too. The analysis applies both to ordinary short-pulse altimeters and to systems that employ pulse compression.