Sensitivity of Multi-frequency Polarimetric SAR Data to Post-Fire Permafrost Changes and Recovery Processes in Arctic Tundra ...

• Main Author: Miller, Charles E
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: Root 2023
• Subjects: Alaska North Slope; Arctic; north slope; permafrost; Tundra; Alaska
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.48577/jpl.6fm72n; https://dataverse.jpl.nasa.gov/citation?persistentId=doi:10.48577/jpl.6FM72N

Abstract— We used full polarimetric L-band and P-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data collected from the recent NASA Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE) airborne campaign and Sentinel-1 C-band dual-polarization data to understand the sensitivity of radar backscatter intensity and phase to fire-induced changes in the surface and subsurface soil processes in Arctic tundra underlain by permafrost. The 2007 Anaktuvuk River fire on the Alaska North Slope was used as a case study. At ~10-year post-fire, we observed strong increases (> ~3-4 dB) in the low frequency radar backscatter in severely burned areas during the thaw season, in contrast to limited (< ~0.5 dB) C-band backscatter differences (VV, VH) between burned and unburned areas. However, C-band winter backscatter is generally higher (>1 dB) in burned areas than adjacent unburned areas. Polarimetric decomposition analysis indicated a general trend towards more random surface scattering, and strong increases in double-bounce and ...