USER INTERACTION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF ESA DUE PERMAFROST: A CIRCUMPOLAR REMOTE SENSING SERVICE FOR PERMAFROST

摘要

Permafrost has been addressed as one of the Essential Climate Variables (ECV’s) in the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS). The objective of the Data User Element (DUE) Permafrost project funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) was to establish a permafrost- related monitoring system based on satellite data. The international permafrost research community requires permafrost-related end-products that are valid for high-latitude landscapes. The products are regional and circumpolar Land Surface Temperature (LST), Surface Soil Moisture (SSM), ground frozen/ non frozen state, terrain parameters, Land Cover, and surface waters. Climate and permafrost modelers as well as field investigators are associated users including the International Permafrost Association (IPA). This paper provides detail on the user interaction, how the products were evaluated using data of the Global Terrestrial Network for Permafrost (GTN-P) and how remote sensing shall provide information on the current state of permafrost and add value to the existing ground-monitoring networks and model-based approaches.