Detection and monitoring of new-ice in the East Greenland Sea using the SeaWinds scatterometer

Space borne radar scatterometers are primarily designed to measure the wind vector over the world ocean; yet they also provide useful information on sea ice type and extent. In this paper, it is shown how the SeaWinds scatterometer can be used to detect new sea ice at the very beginning of its growth. Taking advantage of the very good coverage of the East Greenland Sea by SeaWinds on board the QuickSCAT satellite it has been possible to detect the early stage of formation of the sea ice peninsula, named the Odden, and to monitor its evolution during March 2001. The early sea ice detection has been validated by using RADARSAT Synthetic Aperture Radar scenes. It is also shown that microwave radiometers, such as the Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I), which are used as standard sensors for sea ice monitoring, do not detect the very early stage of sea ice growth and lag behind new sea ice occurrence by about twelve to twenty four hours.