Surface classifications of Arctic sea ice from WorldView Satellite Imagery. Arctic Ocean, 2010-2015.

• Main Authors: Nicholas Wright, Chris Polashenski
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: Arctic Data Center 2019
• Subjects: EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE; EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE > SEA ICE; EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE > SEA ICE > ICE FLOES; EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE > SEA ICE > ICE GROWTH/MELT; EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE > SEA ICE > ICE TYPES; EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE > SEA ICE > REFLECTANCE; EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE > SEA ICE > SEA ICE CONCENTRATION; EARTH SCIENCE > CRYOSPHERE > SNOW/ICE > ALBEDO; EARTH SCIENCE SERVICES > DATA ANALYSIS AND VISUALIZATION > VISUALIZATION/IMAGE PROCESSING; Arctic; Arctic Ocean; albedo; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://search.dataone.org/view/urn:uuid:db08fed1-f9ec-47e7-8b67-f21d69664d7c

Snow, ice, and melt ponds cover the surface of the Arctic Ocean in fractions that change throughout the seasons. These surfaces control albedo and exert tremendous influence over the energy balance in the Arctic. Meter scale resolution WorldView optical satellite imagery is able to capture the evolution of the ice and ocean surface state directly. This dataset contains the results from processing a collection of WorldView imagery of sea ice using an open source system designed to provide a standardized, automated, and reproducible technique. This method classifies surface coverage into three main categories: (1) Snow and bare ice, (2) melt ponds and submerged ice, and (3) open water. These images capture a wide range of sea ice states spanning the melt season; from spring thaw to fall freeze-up. Tests show the classification accuracy of this method typically exceeds 96%. Each processed image is stored in a GeoTiff with values from 0 to 4. The pixel values correspond to the classification category: 1: Snow / Ice, 2: Dark and thin Ice, 3: Melt ponds and submerged ice, 4: Ocean. A metadata csv is included that contains details for each uploaded image. Metadata AREA units are sqkm of classified pixels. This data is based on the work presented in: https://www.the-cryosphere.net/12/1307/2018/tc-12-1307-2018.html