An examination of multi-frequency microwave radiomtry for probing subsurface ice sheet temperature

Many quantities describing ice sheet dynamics can be measured via remote sensing. However, subsurface ice sheet temperature, a very important parameter which determines in part internal deformation and ice flow, is not currently measured remotely. Direct knowledge is available only through measurements from a small number of boreholes. This paper presents the concept of utilizing microwave radiometry in the 0.5-2GHz frequency band to probe subsurface ice sheet temperatures. Ice sheet geophysical properties and the resulting microwave emission are reviewed, and an initial retrieval algorithm for subsurface ice sheet temperatures is described. Finally an ultrawideband radiometer design to realize the proposed measurements is summarized.