Abstract:听A decline in the听northern hemisphere terrestrial seasonal snow extent has been observed from听satellite observations, especially in the springtime at high听latitude. Snow mass or snow water equivalent听(SWE) is an important听variable in the annual water budget of river catchments in cold regions,听especially听in places that rely on seasonal snowmelt runoff for water听supply. 听Yet uncertainty persists in our ability to听quantify snow听mass from local to global scales using satellite observing instruments. This听presentation听considers conceptual advances in theory that underpin applications听to map SWE from satellite passive听microwave observations and illustrates how听progress is now constrained by instrument characteristics. It听then discusses听how recent field experiments to observe seasonal snow accumulation from radar听have听advanced our knowledge even further to the point where radar systems now听offer a viable solution to local听mapping of SWE. Two possibilities to map SWE听have emerged from this recent radar research, one that听uses Ku-band backscatter听signatures, and the other using radar interferometry. We focus on the first of听these two approaches, but recognize the opportunities for the second approach.听The challenge will be to听combine different observation methods (including those听from airborne systems), to optimize the long-term听satellite record of SWE,听thereby providing significant insight into SWE climatology. 听
Bio:听Richard Kelly received his PhD from the University of Bristol before becoming a Lecturer in Physical Geography at Birkbeck College, University of London, in 1994. In 2000 he was an Associate Research Scientist at NASA/GSFC & UMBC before joining the University of Waterloo, Canada in 2006, where he has been ever since. Along the way, he has been on the editorial board of IEEE JSTARS (past) and SPIE Journal of Applied Remote Sensing (current) and was the President of the Eastern Snow Conference. Recently he was the听Associate Dean of Research in the Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo and he will听be the Chair of the Department of Geography and Environmental Management from January 2017. His Research interests are concerned with the use of active and passive microwave remote sensing of snow and ice. He was the PI for the NASA AMSR-E snow product and currently leads the JAXA AMSR2 snow product team. He has conducted field research in Canada, USA, Finland, Norway, Switzerland, Pakistan and the UK. Currently is part of a team looking at rainwater harvesting in S. India in an era of climate change.