Multi-frequency microwave remote sensing of ocean-sea ice-atmosphere dynamics in response to climate change

快速变化的北极海冰正在逐步挑战我们评估生态后果、在平衡环境风险的同时实现社会经济效益以及制定基于证据的政策决策的能力。新出现的北极海冰状况也给现有的基于卫星的观测系统带来了新的问题，而发展中的观测系统正在带来新的机会。该研究项目将北极海洋-海冰矩阵不断变化的地球物理特性的新信息与前沿的微波遥感技术相结合，以提高气候研究的海冰观测能力，重点研究局地到区域尺度的海洋-海冰-大气动力学。该项目的核心目标是开发新的海冰指标，利用目前的有源微波系统，即合成孔径雷达（SAR），以便在比目前已知的更广泛的环境条件下观察和研究海冰特性和相关的生物物理过程。这将通过解决海冰体积的原位地球物理、热力学和主动微波散射特性之间联系的关键知识空白，并将新知识与利用星载传感器的有效标度方法相结合来实现。在此背景下，将评估卫星成像能力的进步，如紧凑偏振测量（CP）、快速重访星座以及C和l波段频率SAR融合。从区域上看，该项目将重点关注加拿大北极群岛和邻近的海冰交换水域。通过发达的合作和伙伴关系实现的次要目标包括：(1)实施新开发的基于卫星的海冰和海洋表面检索，以及现场测量，以开发有效和改进的数值海冰-海洋模式参数化，从而改进大气-冰-海洋物理和海洋预报的模拟；(2)将探测到的海冰信息翻译给北极社区的居民，为安全有效的旅行提供信息，并保护与海冰有关的文化传统。

Rapidly changing Arctic sea ice is progressively challenging our capacity for evaluating ecological consequences, achieving socio-economic benefits while balancing environmental risks, and making evidence-based policy decisions. Emerging Arctic sea ice conditions are also creating new problems for existing, satellite-based, observation systems, while developing observation systems are introducing new opportunities. This research program merges new information about the evolving geophysical properties of the Arctic ocean-sea ice matrix with leading-edge microwave remote sensing technologies, to improve sea ice observational capacity for climate research, with emphasis on the study of ocean-sea ice-atmosphere dynamics at local to regional-scales. The core project objective is to develop new sea ice indicators that utilize current active microwave systems, namely synthetic aperture radar (SAR), so that sea ice properties and related biophysical processes can be observed and studied over a wider set of environmental conditions than are currently known. It will be achieved by addressing critical knowledge gaps in the connection between in situ geophysical, thermodynamic, and active microwave scattering properties of the sea ice volume, and merging new knowledge with effective scaling methods for exploitation of space-borne sensors. Within this context, advancements in satellite imaging capabilities, such as compact polarimetry (CP), rapid-revisit constellations, and C- and L-band frequency SAR fusion will be assessed. Regionally, the project will focus on the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and adjacent waters through which sea ice is exchanged. Secondary objectives, achievable through developed collaborations and partnerships, include: (1) implementation of newly developed satellite-based sea ice and ocean surface retrievals, along with in situ measurements, in the development of efficient and improved parameterizations for numerical sea ice-ocean models, leading to improved simulations of atmosphere-ice-ocean physics and marine forecasts; and (2) translation of detected sea ice information to residents of Arctic communities, to inform safe and efficient travel and preservation of sea ice-associated cultural traditions.