Using the Space-Borne NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) to Determine The Frozen and Thawed Seasons of a Boreal Landscape

Abstract

We hypothesize that the strong sensitivity of radar backscatter to surface dielectric properties, and hence to the phase (solid or liquid) of any water near the surface, should make space-borne radar observations a powerful tool for large-scale spatial monitoring of the freeze/thaw state of the land surface, and thus ecosystem growing season length.