Observation of Sea Ice Using the 36-GHz Surface Contour Radar

In January 1984, a 36-GHz scanning pencil-beam radar was used at 175-m altitude over ice in the Greenland Sea to produce high-spatial-resolution (3 m by 5 m) topographic and backscattered power maps. Incidence angles from nadir to approximately 300 offnadir were included in the data set. When the radar maps were compared with the ice topography indicated by simultaneous photography and an analysis of the shadows of the ridges cast by the low sun angle (3.5°), it was found that the backscattered power data sharply delineated many of the features observed in the photography. The elevation data were less impressive but still consistent with the general variation of the topography.