Implementation of satellite based fractional water cover indices in the pan-Arctic region using AMSR-E and MODIS

Abstract

Abstract A new method to assess land surface fractional open water (fw) inundation dynamics was developed using high frequency (89 GHz) brightness temperatures (Tb) from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for EOS (AMSR-E), with other ancillary inputs from AMSR-E and MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer). The resulting 89 GHz fw (fwWBand) retrievals provide 10-day temporal fidelity and enhanced (5 km) resolution relative to other passive microwave sensor based land observations. A look-up table was first established to provide reference microwave emissivities for water and land endmembers under a range of atmosphere and land surface conditions. The fwWBand retrievals were then obtained on a per pixel basis using difference ratio and double difference methods for respective barren and vegetated soil conditions. The resulting fwWBand summer (JJA) seasonal composites correspond favorably (R ≥ 0.86, p