A prototype sea ice mapping system using a geographical information system and expert knowledge

An operational sea ice mapping system is being developed which will assist meteorologists at the Casey Antarctic Base to create sea ice maps, from NOAA AVHRR imagery received at the base itself. The system will take AVHRR imagery initially processed via the McIdas meteorological system, and initiate an interactive procedure which assists the expert interpreter to produce a sea ice map from the imagery. A prototype system, called ICEMAPPER, has been developed. It is based on an existing geographical information system and uses production rules, incorporating expert knowledge derived both from the scientific literature and from local sea ice interpreters, to provide an initial classification. If the expert is satisfied with the map produced it can be printed out. If not, thresholds used in the production rules can be altered interactively and the map recreated.