Analysis of Antarctic Iceberg and Sea Ice Melting Patterns using QuikSCAT

QuikSCAT tracking of Antarctic icebergs is discussed, and iceberg movement trends are illustrated. Iceberg melting factors are explored and a backscatter time-series is presented. Interactions between ice-berg and sea ice are examined using QuikSCAT data. To improve QuikSCAT sea ice mapping capability, a threshold algorithm to detect polynyas is developed. The 2006-2007 Antarctic ablation season is analyzed and correlations between polynya formation and sea ice melting are explored. General sea ice melting patterns are discussed, and statistics are derived from QuikSCAT's life mission and compared with SSM/I measurements. This study finds that while average Antarctic sea ice coverage is increasing, minimum sea ice extent is decreasing.