Abstract

Ten fundamental polarimetric principles sufficient to characterize a quasi-monochromatic electro-magnetic field are presented. Although many of these may be familiar to readers, when collected together as an ordered set, they expose the inherent elegant simplicity that undergirds space-based radar polarimetry. Selected consequences are summarized. Appendices are included, one that reviews theoretical foundations that justify the claims made in the principles, and a second that briefly comments on traditional quad-pol radar polarimetry. The novel approach in Appendix I to normalization of polarimetric child parameters reveals simple proofs for several of the key principles.