On sea ice drift from the wavelet analysis of the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I) data

Abstract

Wavelet analysis of DMSP SSM/I 85GHz radiance data is used to obtain daily sea ice drift information for both the northern and southern polar regions. This technique provides improved spatial coverage over the existing array of Arctic Ocean buoys and better temporal resolution over techniques utilizing data from satellite synthetic aperture radars. Examples of derived ice-drift maps for both hemispheres illustrate large-scale circulation reversals over a period of one month. Comparisons with ice displacements derived from buoys give good quantitative agreement.