Combined use of radar and microwave radiometer in retrieval of snow characteristics

Data from three sensors, ESA ERS-1 SAR, the Helsinki University of Technology (HUT) airborne scatterometer HUTSCAT and the HUT airborne microwave radiometer, were used to investigate remote sensing of snow. A test site, located in Sodankyla, northern Finland, was used from the fall of 1991 through the spring of 1993 for data collection. Six airborne campaigns, covering snowfree (frozen and thawed soil), dry snow and wet snow conditions were carried out. A total of 21 ERS-1 SAR images was acquired. The two main goals of the investigation were: (1) to determine the effect of various land use categories to the capability of microwave sensors to provide snow information; and (2) to study combined use of radar and microwave radiometer in snow mapping.