ALBERT

Description: This paper summarises developments in understanding sea level change during the Quaternary in Scotland since the publication of the Quaternary of Scotland Geological Conservation Review volume in 1993. We present a review of progress in methodology, particularly in the study of sediments in isolation basins and estuaries as well as in techniques in the field and laboratory, which have together disclosed greater detail in the record of relative sea level (RSL) change than was available in 1993. However, progress in determining the record of RSL change varies in different areas. Studies of sediments and stratigraphy offshore on the continental shelf have increased greatly, but the record of RSL change there remains patchy. Studies onshore have resulted in improvements in the knowledge of rock shorelines, including the processes by which they are formed, but much remains to be understood. Studies of Late Devensian and Holocene RSLs around present coasts have improved knowledge of both the extent and age range of the evidence. The record of RSL change on the W and NW coasts has disclosed a much longer dated RSL record than was available before 1993, possibly with evidence of Meltwater Pulse 1A, while studies in estuaries on the E and SW coasts have disclosed widespread and consistent fluctuations in Holocene RSLs. Evidence for the meltwater pulse associated with the Early Holocene discharge of Lakes Agassiz–Ojibway in N America has been found on both E and W coasts. The effects of the impact of storminess, in particular in cliff-top storm deposits, have been widely identified. Further information on the Holocene Storegga Slide tsunami has enabled a better understanding of the event, but evidence for other tsunami events on Scottish coasts remains uncertain. Methodological developments have led to new reconstructions of RSL change for the last 2000 years, utilising state-of-the-art GIA models and alongside coastal biostratigraphy to determine trends to compare with modern tide gauge and documentary evidence. Developments in GIA modelling have provided valuable information on patterns of land uplift during and following deglaciation. The studies undertaken raise a number of research questions which will require addressing in future work.

Description: For 3 months in 1978, the 14.6 GHz Seasat-A scatterometer (SASS) measured the normalized microwave-radar back-scatter coefficient of the Earth’s surface for the purpose of estimating near-surface vector winds over the ocean. SASS also made back-scatter measurements over land and ice regions; however, the application of this data has been limited due to the low (50 km) resolution of the measurements. Using a new technique for generating 6 km enhanced-resolution SASS images of the radar back-scatter characteristics, we present a study of the 1978 condition of the Greenland ice sheet. We derive a time-series of back-scatter images spanning the period July–September 1978. These images show the extent of summer ablation along the ice-sheet periphery. Using the data and models relating firn structure and condition to radar back-scatter characteristics, we delineate and map the seasonal extent of zones which appear to correspond to dry-snow, percolation, wet-snow, and ablation facies, over virtually the entire ice sheet. The results provide a base line with which to compare current (ERS-1) and future Greenland radar maps of snow-and ice-surface conditions.

Description: Azimuth dependence of a normalized radar cross-section (σº) over the Greenland ice sheet is modeled with a simple surface scattering model. The model assumes that azimuth anisotropy in surface roughness at scales of 3–300 m is the primary mechanism driving the modulation. To evaluate the contribution of azimuth anisotropy in surface roughness to the radar backscatter, the model is compared to models based on isotropic surface roughness. The models are inverted to estimate snow surface properties using σº measurements from the C-band European Remote-sensing Satellite advanced microwave instrument in scatterometer mode. Results indicate that the largest mesoscale rms surface slopes are found in the lower portions of the dry snow zone. Estimates of the preferential direction in surface roughness are highly correlated with katabatic wind fields over Greenland, which is consistent with wind-formed sastrugi as the dominant mechanism causing azimuth modulation of σº. The maximum improvement of the azimuth modulation surface model compared to its isotropic counterparts occurs in the lower regions of the dry snow zone where the azimuth variability of σº is the largest. In regions with azimuth modulation over 1 dB, the mean root-mean-square error estimate of the azimuth-dependent surface scattering model is 0.46 dB compared with 0.70 dB for similar models using isotropic roughness.

Description: For 3 months in 1978, the 14.6 GHz Seasat-A scatterometer (SASS) measured the normalized microwave-radar back-scatter coefficient of the Earth’s surface for the purpose of estimating near-surface vector winds over the ocean. SASS also made back-scatter measurements over land and ice regions; however, the application of this data has been limited due to the low (50 km) resolution of the measurements. Using a new technique for generating 6 km enhanced-resolution SASS images of the radar back-scatter characteristics, we present a study of the 1978 condition of the Greenland ice sheet. We derive a time-series of back-scatter images spanning the period July–September 1978. These images show the extent of summer ablation along the ice-sheet periphery. Using the data and models relating firn structure and condition to radar back-scatter characteristics, we delineate and map the seasonal extent of zones which appear to correspond to dry-snow, percolation, wet-snow, and ablation facies, over virtually the entire ice sheet. The results provide a base line with which to compare current (ERS-1) and future Greenland radar maps of snow-and ice-surface conditions.

Description: Daily acquisitions from satellite microwave sensors can be used to observe the spatial and temporal characteristics of the Arctic sea-ice snowmelt onset because the initial presence of liquid water in a dry snowpack causes a dramatic change in the active-and passive-microwave response. A daily sequence of backscatter coefficient images from the NASA scatterometer (NSCAT) clearly shows the spatially continuous progression of decreasing backscatter associated with snowmelt onset across the Arctic Ocean during spring 1997. A time series of the active NSCAT backscatter and a scattering index from the passive Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) show similar trends during the time of the melt onset. An NSCATsnowmelt-onset detection algorithm is developed using the derivative of the backscatter with respect to time to select a melt-onset date for each pixel, generating a melt map for the Arctic sea ice. Comparison between this melt map and one previously generated from an SSM/I scattering index shows the NSCAT algorithm predicts the onset occurs 1−10 days earlier than the SSM/I-based algorithm for most portions of multi-year ice.