The quantification of sea ice melt features from low level-aerial photographs

The transition from a dry snow cover over Arctic sea ice to a prevalence of melt pond features can occur quickly-on the order of two weeks or less. As the energy absorption and scattering properties of a ponded sea ice surface differ radically from those of a snow covered surface, calculating the rate at which the snow cover to melt pond ratio changes is of great significance. With their high spatial resolution, low level aerial photographs are an excellent data source for monitoring the evolution of sea ice melt features. In this study the authors use a time series of low level sea ice photographs to quantify the changing evolution of melt pond coverage as the spring melt progresses. The data were collected as a component of the Seasonal Sea Ice Monitoring and Modeling Site (SIMMS) field experiment of 1995 conducted near Resolute, Northwest Territories in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago.