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International Polar Year 2007–2008 - WMO

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infrared snapshot of circumpolar permafrost.<br />

• Pan-Arctic high and moderate resolution Vis/IR<br />

snapshots of freshwater (lake and river) freeze-up<br />

and break-up.<br />

• Atmospheric dynamics and composition.<br />

The STG has made substantial progress towards<br />

these acquisition objectives (IPY-STG, 2010). Fig. 3.1-1<br />

shows a JAXA ALOS SAR mosaic image which covers<br />

the time between 8 December 2007 and 22 January<br />

2008. Yellow square areas show the location of several<br />

fast glaciers and also the location of important ice<br />

shelf retreat in the Antarctic Peninsula. Fig. 3.1-2 shows<br />

the first measurements of surface velocity along a<br />

250 km long tributary draining into Recovery Glacier,<br />

Coates Land, Antarctica (Floricioiu and Jezek, 2009).<br />

The tributary was discovered during the Radarsat-1<br />

Antarctic Mapping mission. TerraSAR-X was used<br />

to acquire interferometric data along the length of<br />

the glacier resulting in the first velocity map of this<br />

unusual feature. ASI, CSA, DLR, ESA and JAXA have<br />

worked together to acquire the first pole to coast<br />

InSAR data sets for measuring surface velocity on both<br />

ice sheets. Surface velocity from these campaigns<br />

will be used to study the ice flux from the ice sheets<br />

into the oceans and to better understand controls<br />

on the motion of ice streams and the break-up of ice<br />

shelves. Ice shelf studies included an intense, routinemonitoring<br />

campaign following the Wilkins Ice Shelf<br />

break up, which demonstrated the importance of<br />

SAR for satellite daily monitoring of the polar regions<br />

(Fig. 3.1-3). COSMO-SkyMed, the Italian X-band SAR<br />

constellation, contributed to observations of the<br />

Wilkins ice shelf by monitoring the disintegration<br />

events and ice movement over large and medium<br />

areas (Battazza et. al, 2009a). COSMO-SkyMed data<br />

were also used to measure the glacier velocity field<br />

of Patagonian glaciers using spotlight high resolution<br />

images with time intervals of 8 and 16 days (Fig. 3.1-4),<br />

(Battazza et al., 2009b). ESA and CSA have coordinated<br />

SAR campaigns to fill gaps in Arctic and Antarctic sea ice<br />

cover where either station masks or on-board recorder<br />

time have usually precluded routine coverage.<br />

Fig. 3.1-2. 2008-09<br />

TerraSAR-X mosaic (left<br />

inset) and 1997 RAMP<br />

mosaic (right inset) of<br />

Recovery Glacier tributary<br />

(Antarctica) The main<br />

trunk of Recovery Glacier<br />

is located in the upper<br />

part of the RAMP and<br />

TerraSAR-X mosaics.<br />

Scenes are centered on<br />

82.5°S 19°W. Central<br />

figure shows surface<br />

velocity along the entire<br />

250 km length of the<br />

tributary measured using<br />

TerraSAR-X data.<br />

(Image: DLR)<br />

o b s e r v I n g s Y s t e m s a n d d a t a m a n a g e m e n t 363

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