Infrared Temperature Sensing of Snow-Covered Terrain.
Abstract
The feasibility of remotely monitoring snow surface temperatures was investigated with a Barnes IT-3 infrared thermometer. Much of the work concentrated on determining the vertical emissivity of dry snow in the atmospheric infrared window region between 8 and 14 microns. The emissivity of various snow surface types was measured using an apparatus called an emissivity box. An average emissivity for the freshly fallen snow was found to be 0.975. An analysis of errors in radiometrically obtained snow surface temperatures revealed that the IT-3 is capable of accurately measuring the true surface temperature to within two degrees Celsius for the temperature range experimented. Remote radiometric temperature sensing of snow surfaces appears to offer a potentially useful tool for monitoring surface temperature gradients in arctic environments. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1971
- Accession Number
- AD0732849
Entities
People
- Arlin B. Super
- Bernard A. Shafer
Organizations
- Montana State University