Abstract
Abstract. The paper presents a theoretical analysis of seasonal brightness temperature variations at a number of large freshwater lakes: Baikal, Ladoga, Great Bear Lake (GBL), Great Slave Lake (GSL), and Huron, retrieved from Microwave Imaging Radiometer with Aperture Synthesis (MIRAS) data (1.4 GHz) of the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite. The analysis was performed using the model of microwave radiation of plane layered heterogeneous nonisothermal medium. The input parameters for the model were real regional climatological characteristics and glaciological parameters of ice cover of the study lakes. Three distinct seasonal brightness temperature time regions corresponding to different phenological phases of the lake surfaces: complete ice cover, ice melt and deterioration, and open water were revealed. The paper demonstrates the possibility to determine the beginning of ice cover deterioration from satellite microwave radiometry data. The obtained results can be useful for setting the operating terms of winter crossings and roads on ice, as with the beginning of ice deterioration, these transportation routes across water bodies (rivers, lakes, water reservoirs) become insecure and cannot be used any more.
Highlights
Satellite microwave radiometry is widely employed in studies of the Earth’s cryosphere (Tedesco, 2015)
During the cold winter period, when almost no liquid water is present in snow and lake ice, AMSR-E receives electromagnetic radiation emitted by the upper layer (∼ 30 cm) of the ice cover
Using the authors’ model of thermal emission of multilayered non-isothermal media, an analysis of ice cover phenology phases of large freshwater bodies based on Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) Microwave Imaging Radiometer with Aperture Synthesis (MIRAS) data (1.4 GHz) was performed by examples of lakes Baikal, Ladoga, Great Bear Lake (GBL), Great Slave Lake (GSL), and Huron
Summary
Satellite microwave radiometry is widely employed in studies of the Earth’s cryosphere (Tedesco, 2015). Kang et al (2010, 2012, 2014) analyzed seasonal variations of brightness temperature at GBL and GSL derived from AMSR-E (Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for EOS) data They demonstrated that the 18.7 GHz H-pol channel was the most sensitive to the phenology of ice cover. The MIRAS instrument on board the SMOS satellite operates at 1.4 GHz (Kerr et al, 2010) At this frequency, the electromagnetic penetration depth is considerably greater (Tikhonov et al, 2013, 2014) and, in contrast to AMSR, the radiation emitted from deeper layers of snow and ice cover can be received. Its analysis provides information on structural and physical changes practically along the whole column of snow cover and lake ice
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