Synthetic Aperture Radar imaging of ocean and ice phenomena 1995 - 1998. Final report

Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data from satellites are used increasingly for earth observation and particularly for studies and monitoring of the marine environment. It is data from the European Space Agency’s ERS programme which has triggered this development. Since 1991the ERS-1 and -2 satellites have provided the research community with large amounts of SAR images with about 20 m resolution and in 100 km wide swaths. Norwegian scientists who need SAR data are in a favourable position because Tromsø Satellite Station has been built up to an excellent facility for downloading, processing and distribution of SAR data in near real time. The station delivers SAR data for Northern Europe and large parts of the Arctic. Through demonstration projects funded by the Norwegian Space Centre, the European Commission and the European Space Agency it has been possible to identify a number of applications for SAR within environmental research and monitoring. Through the SAR strategy programme it has been possible to carry out basic research in some of these applications, addressing surface waves, surface winds, waves, surface slicks, eddies, fronts and sea ice. The research tasks have been focused on algorithm development for SAR wind retrieval in coastal and ice edge regions, studies of wave breaking by SAR, ocean fronts and eddies, detection of oil spill and natural films, and investigations of sea ice processes and phenomena. Field validation of results obtained with SAR data has been an important element in the SAR strategy programme. Through the SAR strategy programme the Nansen Center has built up its expertise to an international level in detection and monitoring ocean and ice features by SAR. Spin-off effects have been projects supported by ESA, EU and oil companies where SAR products and services have been used such as wind monitoring, oil spill and slick monitoring, detection of natutral oil seeps, mapping of eddies and fronts and operational ice monitoring. Further refinement of SAR algorithms, processing and interpretation techniques, and integration with other types of remote sensing and field data as well as numerical model results is required in order to produce viable products which can be offered to potential users in a commercial or operational context.NERSC Technical Report no. 172. Funded by Research Council of Norway, Project no. 107628/42