Application of synthetic-aperture radars for measuring the Faraday rotation angle

The influence of the ionosphere on polarization characteristics of the electromagnetic radiation of a spacebome synthetic-aperture radar is analyzed. The value of the Faraday rotation angle of a linearly polarized wave radiated by this radar into the ionosphere is estimated for a comparatively long-wave band. A technique is proposed for determining the Faraday rotation angle by measuring the reflectivity of the Earth’s surface with a polarimetric radar. This technique is independent of the mapped geometry and orientation of reflected elements of the Earth’s surface.