Validation studies of AMSR-E ice concentrations in the Sea of Okhotsk

The data from aircraft and ship campaigns in February 2003 in conjunction with high resolution satellite images aid in validating sea ice concentrations derived from AMSR-E brightness temperatures. Patrol Vessel SOYA conducted time series observations of geophysical parameters such as ice type, floe size, snow cover vertical profiles of snow and ice surface temperature, density, grain size, and salinity. Surface data were used to interpret aircraft microwave and visible channel data used to interpret high resolution Landsat-7 and MODIS images. The latter were then utilized to interpret the ice concentration data derived from AMSR-E. The co-registered images of aircraft PSR: Landsat-7 and MODIS data exhibit good coherence in signatures. In highly consolidated ice cover, the ice concentrations were in agreement to within 5 to 10% in ice concentration. However, in highly divergent areas, the derived ice concentration has a negative bias due to the dominant presence of new ice. The new ice has relatively lower emissivity than first year ice which is snow cover and is affected by waves and wetness. The relationship between the thickness and brightness temperature of sea ice was studied in detail