Spectral Bi-Directional Reflectance of Antarctic Snow and Ice

本研究旨在探讨南极雪粒的特性如何影响太阳辐射在可见光和近红外波段的反射率谱图的光谱和角度变化。该项目将增加我们对南极冰盖光学特性的了解，并将为极地陆地和行星遥感应用提供一个定量数据库。这项研究的目标是发展经验和定量方法，这些方法可用于将基于卫星和其他遥感的测量与雪面的微物理联系起来。由于南极内部的表面温度在很大程度上是由雪的光学特性决定的，因此该项目的影响还延伸到南极洲的气候学。此外，南极雪面比中纬度高山雪面稳定得多，因为太阳高度的日变化很少或没有。南极的雪和冰盖也比非极地的雪表面更少受到烟尘和其他沉积气溶胶的污染。该项目设计良好，以现有数据库为基础，是开发飞机和卫星观测解释算法的必要组成部分。

This study is an investigation of how the properties of antarctic snow grains affect spectral and angular variations in the reflectance pattern of solar radiation in the visible and near-infrared bands. The project will increase our understanding of the optical properties of the antarctic ice sheet, and will provide a quantitative data base for polar terrestrial and planetary remote sensing applications. The goal of this research is to develop empirical and quantitative methods which can be used to relate satellite-based and other remotely sensed measurements to the microphysical of the snow surface. The project has implications that extend to the climatology of Antarctica since surface temperatures in the interior are determined to a great extent by the optical properties of the snow. The antarctic snow surface is moreover much more stable than mid-latitude alpine snow surfaces since there is little or no diurnal variation in the elevation of the sun. The antarctic snow and ice sheet is also less contaminated with soot and other deposited aerosols then non-polar snow surfaces. The project is well-designed, builds upon the existing data base, and is a necessary component in the development of interpretation algorithms for aircraft and satellite observations.