Sea Ice Surface Temperature Estimation Using MODIS and AMSR-E Data Within a Guided Variational Model Along the Labrador Coast

In this study, a new method, entitled as the multi-modality guided variational (MGV) method, is proposed, in which the data from a passive microwave sensor is used jointly with the data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) to estimate the sea ice surface temperature (IST). The method augments existing sea IST values from the MODIS IST map, while filling in areas in the MODIS image that may be sparsely sampled due to the cloud cover, or due to increased spacing between the pixels at the swath edges. The former issue is particularly problematic in the marginal ice zone, where the atmospheric conditions often lead to persistent cloud cover. The sea IST is of interest because it can be used to estimate the sea ice thickness, an important parameter for shipping, climate change, and weather forecasting applications. The impact of the MGV method is checked through a comparison between the sea ice thickness calculated using the swath surface temperature and that calculated using the surface temperature from MGV. Using the operational ice charts as a guideline, it is found that the sea ice thickness values calculated using the MGV surface temperature are realistic, and there is a 16% increase in the number of sea ice thickness data points available when the MGV method is used as compared to when the swath data are used.