Role of Ku-band (13.5 GHz) based Scatterometer Satellite (SCATSAT-1) in Cryospheric applications

As an active microwave remote sensing sensor, Scatterometer measures the earth’s surface in the form of a radar cross-section. In the past few decades, several scatterometers were launched into space and found numerous applications in earth observations. The scatterometer satellite (SCATSAT-1) is one of the ISRO’s (Indian Space Research Organization) scatterometer based on Ku-band (13.5 GHz) which recently completed its mission in 2021. It was launched on 26th September 2016 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, India. Due to the measurements over the land surface and non-land surfaces, the major scientific domains of scatterometer application may include oceanography, hydrology, cryosphere, and agriculture. This article highlights the major milestones of the SCATSAT-1 in the field cryosphere which were achieved in nearly five years of its operation. Due to its measurement over the land surface, snow cover monitoring over the Himalayan region is one of the major applications of SCATSAT-1. It also took measurements over the wide coverage of polar regions which plays an important role in the monitoring of sea-ice extent or tracking large icebergs and hence, the particular interest for climate change research communities. This article also highlights the potential applications of recently launched (26
^th
November 2022) oceansat-3 (a successor of OCSCAT and SCATSAT-1) in the field of the cryosphere.