Variability of sea ice emissivity estimated from airborne passive microwave measurements during FIRE SHEBA

Passive microwave radiometers with frequencies ranging from 37 GHz to 220 GHz were flown over the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic (SHEBA) experimental site in May and July 1998. These measurements were motivated by the possibility of determining cloud liquid water path, ice water path, and precipitation over sea ice from these frequencies. The comprehensive cloud data set collected in this experiment offers a unique opportunity for improving and adapting passive microwave retrieval methods for application to arctic clouds. However, retrieval of cloud properties from a downward looking radiometer requires an estimate of the surface emissivity and its spectral, spatial, and temporal variation. In this study, brightness temperature measurements are used to calculate sea ice emissivity at each frequency using ancillary aircraft data to characterize the atmosphere and obtain surface temperature. Surface emissivities on clear sky days during the FIRE Arctic Cloud Experiment (FIRE ACE) aircraft campaign have been calculated and compared with previous estimates cited in the literature. Average emissivity at nadir for snow-covered sea ice in the experimental region during late May is estimated as 0.89 at 37 GHz, 0.74 at 89 GHz, 0.72 at 90 GHz, 0.73 at 150 GHz, and 0.84 at 220 GHz. In early July the average nadir emissivity for melting sea ice is 0.86 for 37 GHz and 0.84 for 90 GHz. Estimates of emissivity at 50° off nadir are compared with previous satellite and ground-based measurements of dual polarized emissivities at 37 GHz and 90 GHz. Significant variability exists in published emissivity values due to variations in dielectric and physical properties of snow and ice, but our results fall within previously observed ranges. Uncertainties in the emissivity calculations are estimated, and the accuracy required for use of surface emissivity estimates in cloud retrieval methods is discussed.