2023 SnowEx field campaign in Alaska, U.S.
Abstract
NASA's SnowEx was initiated by the Terrestrial Hydrology Program in 2017 to study snow remote sensing challenges in different environments in preparation for a future snow mission opportunity. The specific focus of SnowEx is on testing and maturing technology for satellite remote sensing of global snow water equivalent (SWE) and albedo. Currently, the SnowEx team is conducting an airborne and ground-based snow campaign in Alaska in 2022─2023 to address SWE, snow depth and albedo measurement questions unique to taiga and tundra snowpacks. Three SnowEx sites are selected in Interior Alaska, a boreal forest environment with discontinuous permafrost and seasonal taiga snowpack. Two SnowEx sites are located on the North Slope of Alaska, a region dominated by low-stature land cover, tundra snowpack, and continuous permafrost. A suite of airborne and ground-based validation activities in fall 2022 and spring 2023 are planned to quantify and compare the capabilities of radar, altimetry and hyperspectral sensors to measure SWE and snow depth during one winter season and albedo during the spring melt period. The SnowEx field campaign will provide snow datasets in support of testing and advancement of remote sensing, modeling, and measurements techniques needed for the development of global SWE products. This presentation will provide an update on the fall field activities and upcoming spring campaign in Alaska.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2022
- Bibcode:
- 2022AGUFM.C16A..08V