Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model
Monitoring of lake ice is important to maintain transportation routes, but in recent decades the number of in situ observations have declined. Remote sensing has worked to fill this gap in observations, with active microwave sensors, particularly synthetic-aperture radar (SAR), being a crucial techn...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:267968b6a1d44951bfeb50290bea936a 2024-09-15T18:38:59+00:00 Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model J. Murfitt C. Duguay G. Picard J. Lemmetyinen 2024-02-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-869-2024 https://doaj.org/article/267968b6a1d44951bfeb50290bea936a EN eng Copernicus Publications https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/18/869/2024/tc-18-869-2024.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-18-869-2024 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/267968b6a1d44951bfeb50290bea936a The Cryosphere, Vol 18, Pp 869-888 (2024) Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 article 2024 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-869-2024 2024-08-05T17:49:57Z Monitoring of lake ice is important to maintain transportation routes, but in recent decades the number of in situ observations have declined. Remote sensing has worked to fill this gap in observations, with active microwave sensors, particularly synthetic-aperture radar (SAR), being a crucial technology. However, the impact of wet conditions on radar and how interactions change under these conditions have been largely ignored. It is important to understand these interactions as warming conditions are likely to lead to an increase in the occurrence of slush layers. This study works to address this gap using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model to conduct forward-modelling experiments of backscatter for Lake Oulujärvi in Finland. Experiments were conducted under dry conditions, under moderate wet conditions, and under saturated conditions. These experiments reflected field observations during the 2020–2021 ice season. Results of the dry-snow experiments support the dominance of surface scattering from the ice–water interface. However, conditions where layers of wet snow are introduced show that the primary scattering interface changes depending on the location of the wet layer. The addition of a saturated layer at the ice surface results in the highest backscatter values due to the larger dielectric contrast created between the overlying dry snow and the slush layer. Improving the representation of these conditions in SMRT can also aid in more accurate retrievals of lake ice properties such as roughness, which is key for inversion modelling of other properties such as ice thickness. Article in Journal/Newspaper The Cryosphere Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles The Cryosphere 18 2 869 888 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
spellingShingle |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 J. Murfitt C. Duguay G. Picard J. Lemmetyinen Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model |
topic_facet |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
Monitoring of lake ice is important to maintain transportation routes, but in recent decades the number of in situ observations have declined. Remote sensing has worked to fill this gap in observations, with active microwave sensors, particularly synthetic-aperture radar (SAR), being a crucial technology. However, the impact of wet conditions on radar and how interactions change under these conditions have been largely ignored. It is important to understand these interactions as warming conditions are likely to lead to an increase in the occurrence of slush layers. This study works to address this gap using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model to conduct forward-modelling experiments of backscatter for Lake Oulujärvi in Finland. Experiments were conducted under dry conditions, under moderate wet conditions, and under saturated conditions. These experiments reflected field observations during the 2020–2021 ice season. Results of the dry-snow experiments support the dominance of surface scattering from the ice–water interface. However, conditions where layers of wet snow are introduced show that the primary scattering interface changes depending on the location of the wet layer. The addition of a saturated layer at the ice surface results in the highest backscatter values due to the larger dielectric contrast created between the overlying dry snow and the slush layer. Improving the representation of these conditions in SMRT can also aid in more accurate retrievals of lake ice properties such as roughness, which is key for inversion modelling of other properties such as ice thickness. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
J. Murfitt C. Duguay G. Picard J. Lemmetyinen |
author_facet |
J. Murfitt C. Duguay G. Picard J. Lemmetyinen |
author_sort |
J. Murfitt |
title |
Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model |
title_short |
Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model |
title_full |
Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model |
title_fullStr |
Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model |
title_full_unstemmed |
Forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the Snow Microwave Radiative Transfer (SMRT) model |
title_sort |
forward modelling of synthetic-aperture radar (sar) backscatter during lake ice melt conditions using the snow microwave radiative transfer (smrt) model |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-869-2024 https://doaj.org/article/267968b6a1d44951bfeb50290bea936a |
genre |
The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 18, Pp 869-888 (2024) |
op_relation |
https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/18/869/2024/tc-18-869-2024.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-18-869-2024 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/267968b6a1d44951bfeb50290bea936a |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-869-2024 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
18 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
869 |
op_container_end_page |
888 |
_version_ |
1810483383403282432 |