Significance of Surface Temperature in the Thermal Infrared Sensing of Sea and Lake Ice

Abstract Thermal infrared sensing can provide much information about sea ice, and some of the physical conditions associated with sea ice suggest that surface temperature may be a good indicator of ice thickness. However, steady-state heat-flow calculations suggest that the variable thickness of the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Glaciology
Main Author: Poulin, Ambrose O.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1975
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022143000034432
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143000034432
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Summary:Abstract Thermal infrared sensing can provide much information about sea ice, and some of the physical conditions associated with sea ice suggest that surface temperature may be a good indicator of ice thickness. However, steady-state heat-flow calculations suggest that the variable thickness of the snow-cover and its low. variable thermal conductivity would preclude the use of surface temperature alone as a suitable indicator of ice thickness. Measurements of surface temperature, snow depth, and ice thickness suggest that, in an area of relatively uniform ice thickness, surface temperature might be useful as an indicator of snow depth if some surface data can be obtained.