Tthe Electric & Magnetic Wave and Wavelet Reflection

Radar waves that move in both the air and the ground are a form of electromagnetic energy composed of cojoined oscillating electrical and magnetic fields (see figure below). These waves are produced when an electric current oscillates back and forth in a conductive body, producing a subsidiary magnetic field. Electromagnetic waves are then generated that propagates outward from the source, with the electrical portion of the waveform moving perpendicular to the magnetic. If either of the components of the field is lost (attenuated, absorbed or conducted away) the wave will cease propagating and die. Propagation of radar waves occurs readily in air, or space, and unless they encounter a medium that absorbs or reflects them, they will travel an infinite distance. Radar waves are capable of penetrating up to a few meters or more in some ground conditions, before they are attenuated and the energy is lost.

Propagation of an electromagnetic wave consisting of cojoined electrical and magnetic waves

The generation of one composite reflection trace is produced by recording a composite of a number of wavelets generated at many subsurface interfaces in the ground.