A comparison between active and passive microwave measurements of the Antarctic ice sheet and their association with the surface katabatic winds

Abstract

Abstract The intensity of the Seasat altimeter return power over Antarctica varies in strong correlation with the intensity of model katabatic winds. It is also strongly correlated with the polarization of the passive microwave signal at 37 GHz of the Nimbus-7 SMMR data. It is shown that this is most likely the result of the wind-induced micro-roughness of the ice surface.