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Progress in AMSR Snow Algorithm DevelopmentAdvanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR) will be flown on-board of the Japanese Advanced Earth Observing Satellite-II (ADEOS-II) and United States Earth Observation System (EOS) PM-1 satellite. AMSR is a passive microwave radiometer with frequency ranges from 6.9 GHz to 89 GHz. It scans conically with a constant incidence angle of 55 deg at the Earth's surface. The swath width is about 1600 km. With a large antenna, AMSR will provide the best spatial resolution of multi-frequency radiometer from space. This provides us an opportunity to improve the snow parameter retrieval. Accurate determination of snow parameters from space is a challenging effort. Over the years, many different techniques have been used to account for the complicated snow parameters such as the density, stratigraphy, snow grain size, temperature variation of the snow-pack. Forest type, fractional forest cover and land use type also need to be considered in developing an improved retrieval algorithm. However, snow is such a dynamic variable, snow-pack parameter keeps changing once the snow is deposited on the earth surface. Currently, NASDA and NASA are developing AMSR snow retrieval algorithms. These algorithms are now being carefully tested and evaluated using the SSM/I data. Due to limited snow-pack data available for comparison, this activity is progressing slowly. However, it is clear that in order to improve the snow retrieval algorithm, it is necessary to model the metamorphism history of the snow-pack.
Document ID
19990089717
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Chang, Alfred
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Koike, Toshio
(Nagaoka Univ. of Technology Nagaoka, Japan)
Date Acquired
August 19, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1998
Subject Category
Earth Resources And Remote Sensing
Meeting Information
Meeting: Specialist
Location: Florence
Country: Italy
Start Date: March 15, 1998
End Date: March 18, 1998
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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