Mapping greenland by ERS-1/2 insar for ice mass balance and dynamics studies

• Main Authors: Søren N. Madsen, Johan J. Mohr, Niels Reeh
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1999
• Subjects: Greenland; Ice Sheet
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.205.3194; http://earth.esa.int/pub/ESA_DOC/fringe1999/Papers/madsen.pdf

We are conducting an ESA ERS-AO3 study aiming at mapping ice elevations and flow rates for the Greenland ice sheet and glaciers. Such data are required by the Global Change community for monitoring changes of mass balance of ice sheets and glaciers, by ice modelers for verifying ice dynamics models, and for estimating changes in fresh-water input from land-ice masses to the sea, which have impact on global sea level and oceanic global circulation. There are many issues which needs to be considered when undertaking such a large scale mapping job. The data selection itself is a nontrivial matter. We have chosen an approach which utilizes the information in ESA's baseline files combined with automated selection filters and a graphical interface to support the final data selection. Also, to map Greenland's 2.3 mio. square kilometers, it is necessary to process long strips and to develop automated processing algorithms for data adjustment, interpretation, and mosaicking. In many areas we will never get optimal data coverage. Thus to complete a Greenland map, it is necessary to develop methods and models which provides solutions in areas where only one or two interferograms are available. At present the project is in an introductory phase, in which we focus on the development of the processing methods to be applied as well as on local phenomenological investigations.