Estimation of backscattered echoes from underwater targets using block sparsity

In this work, we introduce a block sparse reconstruction technique to estimate backscattered echoes from underwater targets. The backscattered field of a spherical shell or the broadside scattering of a cylindrical shell contains a specular reflection as well as some elastic leaky surface waves, while the elastic parts appear as a periodic signal, which may be modeled using a block pattern. Thus, the parameters detailing the reflectors may be estimated using a convex optimization problem imposing the expected block structure. Numerical simulations and experiment results indicate the performance of the proposed method.