Microwave Tomography-Enhanced GPR in Forensic Surveys: The Case Study of a Tropical Environment

Abstract

Ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a geophysical tool currently adopted by police forces to locate buried objects and missing human bodies. However, a systematic assessment of its achievable imaging capabilities is still an open issue. In addition, sometimes, conventional data processing tools do not provide accurate and reliable information, thus leading to a misinterpretation of the location and geometry estimation of the target. In this framework, this paper deals with a case study referred to a tropical environment, and investigates the imaging capabilities offered by a linear microwave tomography approach. The results of three experiments, referred to the same organic target and carried out at different times by means of 270- and 900-MHz antennas, are presented. The comparison between the microwave tomographic approach and the widely used Kirchhoff migration suggests that the former procedure allows improved performances in locating both the target and the grave.