Automated ice-sheet snowmelt detection using microwave radiometer measurements

Abstract

Monitoring ice-sheet snowmelt is fundamental to understanding global climate change. A simple and automated snowmelt detection process is critical to the establishment of an ice-sheet snowmelt monitoring system. However, different ice-sheet snowmelt detection methods are based on a variety of thresholding schemes using different melt signals for dry and wet snow; these complicate the regular operation of an ice-sheet snowmelt monitoring. We propose an automated melt signal detection method developed using melt signals derived from the cross-gradient polarization ratio snowmelt detection method over Greenland and the wavelet transformation-based snowmelt detection method over Antarctica. Initial results indicate that the proposed method not only increases computational efficiency, practicability and operability but is also more accurate.

Keywords: Ice sheet; snowmelt detection; radiometer; cross-gradient polarization ratio; wavelet transformation; generalized Gaussian model.

(Published: 27 December 2013)

To access the supplementary material for this article, please see Supplementary files in the column to the right (under Article Tools)

Citation: Polar Research 2013, 32, 19746, http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/polar.v32i0.19746