Arctic 2006 Field Campaign

The Arctic 2006 field campaign will be the second Alaskan Arctic field campaign in support of the validation of satellite data from the EOS Aqua Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR-E), including standard sea ice products, sea ice concentration, sea ice temperature, and snow depth. AMSR-E was designed and built for NASA by the Japanese Space Agency NASDA (now part of the Japan Aerospace and Exploration Agency).

AMSR-E measures several important aspects of the Earth critical to global change science and monitoring efforts, including precipitation, oceanic water vapor, cloud water, near-surface wind speed, sea surface temperature, soil moisture, snow cover, and sea ice.

The first Arctic field campaign, completed in 2003, focused on the validation of the AMSR-E sea ice concentration product. The 2006 mission will utilize a new snow radar to validate the snow depth on sea ice product over a considerably wider area. The radar, funded jointly by the EOS Project Office and Cryospheric Science Program at NASA Headquarters, will also allow researchers to study AMSR-E data over a range of snow depths and sea ice types. The research will additionally rely on a variety of surface-based, airborne, and satellite measurements to achieve the goals and specific objectives of the mission.

Contacts:

Donald J. Cavalieri
Principal Investigator
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Donald.J.Cavalieri@nasa.gov

Thorsten Markus
Co-Principal Investigator
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Thorsten.Markus-1@nasa.gov

Science Goals:

• Validate the AMSR-E snow depth product over a wide range of snow depths and sea ice types.
• Study the influence of spatial heterogeneity on product retrievals.
• Employ a newly developed snow radar system to measure snow depth from aircraft.
• Take coordinated measurements of snow depth and snow physical properties from the ground with passive microwave measurements.
• Analyze the detailed snow depth information to validate the current AMSR-E snow depth algorithm and acquire the understanding needed to develop a more robust snow depth algorithm capable of providing Arctic-wide retrievals.

Partners:

NASA scientists will collaborate with researchers from other government agencies and universities, including the U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Lab, NOAA, the University of Kansas, and the University of Colorado.

When:

Mid March 2006

Where:

Research will be conducted over the Arctic including study areas near Barrow, Alaska, and portions of the Beaufort and Chukchi seas off the Alaskan coast.

Links:

Mission Web Site:

http://nsidc.org/data/amsr_validation/cryosphere/amsr_sea_ice/

NASA's AMSR-E Instrument:

http://www.ghcc.msfc.nasa.gov/AMSR/

NASA Sea Ice Validation:

http://polynya.gsfc.nasa.gov/seaice_project.html

NASAs Cryospheric Sciences Program:

http://ice.nasa.gov/