Ground based oblique view photogrammetry and Sentinel1 spaceborne RADAR reflectivity snow melt processes assessment on an Arctic glacier
Résumé
The snowpack evolution during the melt season on an Arctic glacier
is assessed using ground-based oblique-view cameras, spaceborne
imaging and spaceborne RADAR. The repeated and systematic Synthetic
Aperture RADAR (SAR) imaging by the European Space Agency’s
Sentinel-1 spaceborne RADARs allows for all-weather,
all-illumination condition monitoring of the snowcovered fraction
of the glacier and hence assessing its water production potential.
A comparison of the RADAR reflectivity with optical and
multispectral imaging highlights the difference between the
observed quantities—water content in the former, albedo in the
latter—and the complementarity for understanding the snow melt
processes. This work highlights the temporal inertia between the
visible spring melting of the snowpack and the snow metamorphism.
It was found that the snowpack exhibits that approximately 30 days
before it starts to fade.