Microwave Emission from Polar Surfaces
Abstract
LONG-TERM GOAL. Our long-term goals for this project have been to understand the relationships between microwave emission signatures from centimeter to millimeter wavelengths and the physical, structural, and optical properties of arctic and Antarctic sea ice. This has provided fundamental information for determining how effectively multifrequency multipolarization passive microwave satellite data can be used to identify the spatial and temporal distribution of the different types, ages and surface temperatures of sea ice. In the last five years we have concentrated on determining and understanding the microwave signatures of new and young ice from initial formation through to the development of thick first-year ice. Ice types in this range are difficult to resolve from space but play a major role in the transfer of energy between the polar oceans and the atmosphere. At the same time we have broadened our scope to include a comparison of the passive microwave signatures with radar, visible, and infrared in order to be able to combine the information from a wide variety of satellite sensors in a consistent fashion.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 30, 1997
- Accession Number
- ADA634937
Entities
People
- Thomas C. Grenfell
Organizations
- University of Washington