ESA contribution to YOPP

Ola Gråbak ESA Earth Observation Directorate Frascati, Italy

Sea Level

Satellite derived information

Mass Balance Permafrost State

Ocean Circulation

Sea Ice

Methane Emission

Hydrology

Biodiversity

Cryosat

Glacier high resolution topography

Sub-Glacial Hydrology

Coastal altimetry: storm surge

Ice Sheet mass change

Sea level (MDT)

Grounding line location and thickness

Sea Ice thickness

SMOS also an Ice Mission: Thin Ice Thickness

Thin sea ice thickness derived from SMOS (<0.5) from July 2010 to January 2012. Credits: Lars Kaleschke, Xiangshan Tian-Kunze, Nina Maaß, KlimaCampus, University of Hamburg

Relative error in sea ice thickness for both SMOS and Cryosat (Kaleschke et al., TCD, 2009)

•  SMOS can be used to derive estimates of the thin sea ice thickness up to 0.5m complementing Cryosat measurements.

•  This will now be transfer to operations: i.e., systematic generation of the product;

SMOS to map frozen soil dynamics: SMOS+ Permafrost

SMOS has shown that it is able to detect frozen soil from space. The depth to which the soil is frozen can also be inferred. Credits: FMI, GAMMA

Detecting frozen soils and the depth to which they are frozen from space has been an unresolved scientific problem During the freezing process, SMOS brightness temperatures increase until the top 50 cm of the soil is frozen. Over winter the readings remain stable, even under the presence of deep snow. Thawing in spring then leads to a decrease in brightness temperature. This is work in progress!!

ADM-Aeolus – ESA‘s Wind Mission

•  Global observations of wind profiles for analysis of global 3D wind field •  Understanding of atmosphere dynamics and climate processes •  Improved weather forecasts and climate models: in particular for mid-

term forecasts.

•  Laser transmitter of Lidar has passed operational qualification tests •  Launch planned in 2016

Relevant ESA projects, programmes and collaborations

•  Climate Change Initiative (CCI) •  Arctic+ •  Polar TEP •  Polaris, Next Generation Observing systems •  Polar Space Task Group •  EC RTD

Earth observation: a necessity