Using satellite thermal infrared imagery to study boundary layer structure in an Antarctic katabatic wind region

• Published in: International Journal of Remote Sensing
• Main Authors: King, J. C., Varley, M. J., Lachlan-Cope, T. A.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: Taylor and Francis 1998
• Subjects: Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica; Ice Shelf
• Online Access: http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/504120/; https://doi.org/10.1080/014311698214028

We use snow surface temperatures obtained from thermal infrared (TIR) satellite imagery, together with radiosonde profiles of free-air temperature and high-resolution topographic data to study the thermal structure of the atmospheric boundary layer in a coastal region ofEast Antarctica. Surface temperatures over a coastal ice shelf are shown to be significantly lower than those observed on the lower part of the adjoining coastal slopes as a result of the strong surface temperature inversion that forms over the ice shelf. Between 400 and 1500 m elevation the surface temperature lapse rate is close to the dry adiabatic value while the free-air temperature profile is significantly stable over this height range. We argue that this implies that the strength of the surface inversion increases with increasing elevation. Above 1500 m the surface temperature lapse rate becomes significantly superadiabatic and the coldest surface temperatures are found a few 10s of kilometres inland of the highest topography. The technique may prove useful for studying boundary layer structure in other regions of Antarctica where suitable high-resolution topographic data are available.