Tracking B-31 iceberg with two aircraft-deployed sensors

• Published in: Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
• Main Authors: D. H. Jones, G. H. Gudmundsson
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Copernicus Publications 2015
• Subjects: Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering; TD1-1066; Geography. Anthropology. Recreation; G; Environmental sciences; GE1-350; Geology; QE1-996.5; Arctic; Antarctic; Antarc*; Iceberg*
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-15-1243-2015; https://doaj.org/article/4d222efccb744b4e83d33e9d961e3e16

Icebergs are a natural hazard to maritime operations in polar regions. Iceberg populations are increasing, as is the demand for access to both Arctic and Antarctic seas. Soon the ability to reliably track icebergs may become a necessity for continued operational safety. The temporal and spatial coverage of remote sensing instruments is limited, and must be supplemented with in situ measurements. In this paper we describe the design of a tracking sensor that can be deployed from a fixed-wing aircraft during surveys of Antarctic icebergs, and detail the results of its first deployment operation on iceberg B-31.