A Blended Ice Motion Product from VIIRS, AMSR2, and SAR

Knowledge of the characteristics of sea and lake ice is critical to navigation in ice-covered waters. One important property of the ice pack is its motion. Individual Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) and Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 2 (AMSR2) sea ice motion products have been developed and are running routinely (daily) at the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS). A blended VIIRS+AMSR2 product is also being generated. In the blended product, VIIRS provides small- and large-scale motion but only for clear sky areas while AMSR2 provides a more spatially complete but lower resolution motion field. Very recently, the VIIRS Day-Night Band (DNB) Near Constant Contrast (NCC) product was tested for ice motion derivation with positive results. Furthermore, STAR has begun the development and testing of a motion product based on synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data.

In this presentation, we will present a project to further develop the ice motion products from individual sensors, create new blended motion products, and implement and test the products in (near-) real-time operations. We will also investigate and prototype a relatively simple short-term ice motion forecast product, based on the derived ice motion vectors and a model surface wind field. The outcome of the project will be routinely-generated, near-operational, individual and blended ice motion products based on VIIRS, AMSR2, and SAR that have been thoroughly tested by users in operational or pseudo-operational applications. Additionally, a simple, short-term ice motion forecast product will be developed, tested, and routinely generated. Preliminary results of this blended ice motion product from this project will be shown.