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Analysis of Daily, Seasonal, and Interannual Changes in Hofsjokull Ice Cap, Iceland, using Satellite DataAnalysis of a time series of European Remote Sensing Satellite (ERS)-1 and -2, RADARSAT ScanSAR synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and Landsat images from 1973 to 1998, shows daily to interannual changes in Hofsjokull, a 923 sq km ice cap in central Iceland. A digital elevation model of Hofsjokull was constructed using interferometry, and then SAR backscatter coefficient (d) was plotted with elevation, and air temperature along a transect across the ice cap. Most of the a' changes measured along the transect are caused by a change in the state (frozen or thawed) of the surficial snow or ice when air temperature rises above or below about -5 to O C. Seasonal (sigma)deg patterns are identified in a 4-year time series of 57 ERS-1 and -2 images. In addition, June 1997 ScanSAR images display rapid changes in brightness that are tied closely to daily meteorological events. SAR and Landsat data were also used to measure changes in the areal extent of Hofsjokull, from 1973 to 1997, and to locate (sigma)deg and reflectance boundaries that relate to the glacier facies. Late-summer 1997 (sigma)deg and reflectance boundaries agree and are coincident with the approximate location of the fim line, and the January 1998 position of the equilibrium line as determined from ERS-2 data.
Document ID
19990042088
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Other
Authors
Hall, D. K.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Garvin, J. B.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Williams, R. S., Jr.
(Geological Survey Woods Hole, MA United States)
Barton, J. S.
(General Sciences Corp. Laurel, MD United States)
Sigurosson, O.
(National Energy Authority Iceland)
Smith, L. C.
(California Univ. Los Angeles, CA United States)
Date Acquired
August 19, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1998
Subject Category
Earth Resources And Remote Sensing
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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