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Unusual radar echoes from the greenland ice sheet.
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|September 24, 1993
Summary
Airborne radar reveals Greenland
Area of Science:
- Planetary Science
- Glaciology
- Remote Sensing
Background:
- Radar imaging is crucial for studying planetary surfaces.
- Terrestrial icy environments and outer solar system bodies can exhibit similar radar signatures.
- Understanding these similarities aids in remote sensing interpretations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare radar properties of Greenland's icy terrain with Jupiter's Galilean satellites.
- To investigate the unique radar echoes from the Greenland percolation zone.
- To analyze anomalous polarization ratios in radar signals.
Main Methods:
- Airborne radar imaging of the Greenland ice sheet.
- Analysis of radar echoes at 5.6 and 24 cm wavelengths.
- Comparison with existing radar data from icy satellites (3.5 and 13 cm wavelengths).
Main Results:
- Greenland's icy terrain exhibits unique radar properties compared to other terrestrial surfaces.
- Radar echoes from Greenland are intensely strong, similar to those from icy Galilean satellites.
- Anomalous circular and linear polarization ratios were observed in both Greenland and Galilean satellite radar echoes.
Conclusions:
- The radar properties of Greenland's percolation zone share similarities with Jupiter's icy moons.
- Subsurface heterogeneity differs significantly due to distinct formation processes (melting/refreezing vs. meteoroid bombardment).
- Radar remote sensing provides insights into diverse icy environments across the solar system.
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