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© 2024. This work is published under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

To better understand the interactions between C-band radar waves and snow, a tower-based experiment was set up in the Idaho Rocky Mountains for the period of 2021–2023. The experiment objective was to improve understanding of the sensitivity of Sentinel-1 C-band backscatter radar signals to snow. The data were collected in the time domain to measure the backscatter profile from the various snowpack and ground surface layers. The data show that scattering is present throughout the snow volume, although it is limited for low snow densities. Contrasting layer interfaces, ice features and metamorphic snow can have considerable impact on the backscatter signal. During snowmelt periods, wet snow absorbs the signal, and the soil backscatter becomes negligible. A comparison of the vertically integrated tower radar data with Sentinel-1 data shows that both systems have similar temporal behavior, and both feature an increase in backscatter during the dry-snow period in 2021–2022, even during weeks of nearly constant snow depth, likely due to morphological changes in the snowpack. The results demonstrate that C-band radar is sensitive to the dominant seasonal patterns in snow accumulation but that changes in microstructure, stratigraphy, melt–freeze cycles and snow wetness may complicate satellite-based snow depth retrievals.

Details

Title
Tower-based C-band radar measurements of an alpine snowpack
Author
Brangers, Isis 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Marshall, Hans-Peter 2 ; De Lannoy, Gabrielle 1 ; Dunmire, Devon 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Mätzler, Christian 3 ; Lievens, Hans 4   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

 Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, Heverlee, Belgium 
 Department of Geosciences, Boise State University, Boise, ID, USA 
 GAMMA Remote Sensing, Gümligen, Switzerland 
 Department of Environment, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, Heverlee, Belgium 
Pages
3177-3193
Publication year
2024
Publication date
2024
Publisher
Copernicus GmbH
ISSN
19940424
e-ISSN
19940416
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3075918082
Copyright
© 2024. This work is published under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.