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Satellite Glaciology - Satellite and remote sensing methods

Entry ID: ASAC_291

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Summary

Abstract: Metadata record for data from ASAC Project 291
See the link below for public details on this project.

From the abstracts of the referenced papers:

Ground surveys of the ice sheet in Wilkes Land, Antarctica, have been made on oversnow traverses operating out of Casey. Data collected include surface elevation, accumulation rate, snow ... temperature, and physical surveys, the data are mostly restricted to line profiles. In some regions, aerial surveys of surface topology have been made over a grid network. Satellite imagery and remote sensing are two means of extrapolating the results from measurements along lines to an areal presentation. They are also the only source of data over large areas of the continent. Landsat images in the visible and near infra-red wavelengths clearly depict many of the large- and small-scale features of the surface. The intensity of the reflected radiation varies with the aspect and magnitude of the surface slope to reveal the surface topography. The multi-channel nature of the Landsat data are exploited to distinguish between different surface types through their different spectral signatures, e.g. bare ice, glaze, snow, etc. Additional information on surface type can be gained at a coarser scale from other satellite-borne sensors such as the ESMR, SMMR, etc. Textural enhancement of the Landsat images reveals the surface micro-relief. Features in the enhanced images are compared to ground-truth data from the traverse surveys to produce a classification of the surface types across the images and to determine the magnitude of the surface topography and micro-relief observed. The images can then be used to monitor changes over time.

Landsat imagery of the Antarctic ice sheet and glaciers exhibit features that move with the ice and others that are fixed in space. Two images covering the same area but acquired at different times are compared to obtain the displacement of features. Where the time lapse is large, the displacement of obvious features can be scaled from photographic prints. When the two images are co-registered finer features and displacements can be resolved to give greater detail.

Remote sensing techniques can be used to investigate the dynamics and surface characteristics of the Antarctic ice sheet and its outlet glaciers. This paper describes a methodology developed to map glacial movement velocities from LANDSAT MSS data, together with an assessment of the accuracy achieved. The velocities are derived by using digital image processing to register two temporally separated LANDSAT images of the Denman glacier and Shackleton Ice Shelf region. A derived image map is compared with existing maps of the region to substantiate the measured velocities. The velocity estimates from this study were found to correspond closely with ground-based measurements in the study area.

Related URL

Link: VIEW PROJECT HOME PAGE

Description: Public information for ASAC project 291

Geographic Coverage

(Click for Interactive Map)

Spatial coordinates

N: -60.0

S: -90.0

E: 180.0

W: -180.0

Temporal Coverage

Start Date: 1986-09-30

Stop Date: 1995-03-31

Location Keywords

CONTINENT > ANTARCTICA

GEOGRAPHIC REGION > POLAR

Science Keywords

ATMOSPHERE > PRECIPITATION > SNOW

CRYOSPHERE > GLACIERS/ICE SHEETS > GLACIERS

ISO Topic Category

CLIMATOLOGY/METEOROLOGY/ATMOSPHERE

GEOSCIENTIFIC INFORMATION

INLAND WATERS

OCEANS

Platform

LANDSAT

SATELLITES

Quality Values provided in temporal and spatial coverage are approximate only.

This record was created by staff at the Australian Antarctic Data Centre. Guarantees cannot be made for its quality or accuracy.

Access Constraints PDF copies of the referenced papers are available for download from the provided URL.

Use Constraints This data set conforms to the PICCCBY Attribution License
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).

Please follow instructions listed in the citation reference at the provided URL when using these data.

Ancillary Keywords

Digital image processing

Displacement of features

Data Set Progress

COMPLETE

Data Center

Australian Antarctic Data Centre, Australia

Data Center URL: http://data.aad.gov.au

Data Center Personnel
Name: DATA OFFICER AADC Phone: +61 3 6232 3244 Fax: +61 3 6232 3351 Email: metadata at aad.gov.au Contact Address: Australian Antarctic Division 203 Channel Highway City: Kingston Province or State: Tasmania Postal Code: 7050 Country: Australia

Distribution

Distribution Media: HTTP

Distribution Size: 3.9 MB

Distribution Format: pdf

Fees: free

Personnel

IAN ALLISON

Role: INVESTIGATOR

Role: TECHNICAL CONTACT

Role: DIF AUTHOR

Phone: +61 3 6226 7648

Fax: +61 3 6226 7650

Email: ian.allison at aad.gov.au

Contact Address:

Australian Antarctic Division

203 Channel Highway

City: Kingston

Province or State: Tasmania

Postal Code: 7050

Country: Australia

Publications/References

Young N., Goodwin I. (1987) Comparison of surface characteristics of the Antarctic ice sheet with satellite observations (Abstract). Annals of Glaciology 9. 253

Young N.W., Jones S. (1987) Measurement of Antarctic glacier movements using Landsat images Proceedings of the 4th Australasian Remote Sensing Conference, Adelaide 1987 842

Allison I., ...

Creation and Review Dates

DIF Creation Date: 2000-07-25

Last DIF Revision Date: 2010-07-20

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