Seasonal sea ice studies in the Kara Sea region using satellite radar data

Synthetic aperture radar images from ERS and Radarsat, as well as Okean Side-Looking Radar and passive microwave data, are used to study a number of different sea ice processes and signatures in the Russian Arctic coastal region, especially in the Kara Sea region where the seasonal ice cover is a dominant feature. This paper is focused on sea ice processes observed from sequence of SAR images, such as fast-ice and coastal polynyas, ice drift through straits, ice formation and motion in response to ocean and atmospheric forcing. Repeated SAR images obtained roughly every 3 days, combined with wind and temperature data, are used to describe the advance and retreat of coastal polynyas in southern Kara Sea during a winter season