Remote sensing based retrieval of snow cover properties

Abstract

In order to overcome the restrictions of conventional observation methods, novel remote monitoring techniques such as terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and ground based interferometric synthetic aperture radar (GB SAR) are concurrently operated. Snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE) or the snow mass on ground are some of the key parameters in the assessment of avalanche hazard, for snow, snow drift and avalanche modelling as well as model verification. While the TLS provides maps of the spatial snow depth distribution, the GB SAR can in principle be used to retrieve snow depth and SWE. Remote sensing results are compared to traditional field work, additionally advantages and limitations of the techniques are identified. Finally, the applicability of the remote sensing based retrieval of these snow cover properties for snow and snow avalanche applications is summarized.