A Search Method for Missing Persons in Large-Scale Natural Disasters Using Ground Penetrating Radar and Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar

Abstract

This paper proposes searching for missing persons in large-scale natural disasters using ground-penetrating radar and airborne SAR. First, we experimentally confirm the detection of ground objects on a sandy beach using 800 MHz ground-penetrating radar and theoretically calculate the size and depth of the objects that can be detected using the FDTD method. Next, experiments on detecting ground objects by L-band aircraft-mounted SAR are described. Finally, we describe the number and type of objects detected on the ground and the depth of detection from September 2014 to March 2020 by applying the FDTD method to the actual search for missing persons on the Yuriage coast of Natori City, Miyagi Prefecture, where many people went missing after the tsunami disaster caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake.