| In this thesis I evaluate the spatial and temporal variability of the melt pond stage of the FYI lifecycle in terms of its affect on the albedo of optical energy and the backscatter (sigmao) of synthetic aperture radar (SAR).; Results from the field study indicate that the physical and optical characteristics of the surface are represented by 16 discrete surfaces which are summarized by 3 surface categories; ponded, unponded and transitional. The relationship between pond fraction and albedo was shown to evolve within each of these stages as pond albedo decreased and unponded albedo increased over time. I developed a relationship between the physical state of the surface, optical albedo and microwave backscatter which explained 0.886 of the variance when corrected for the effect SAR viewing geometry. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
