BOREAS 1994 Radar Freeze/Thaw Backscatter Change Maps

BOREAS RSS-17 team provides 1994 ERS-1 radar backscatter change maps covering southern BOREAS sites in Canada. The dataset captures a complete annual cycle to detect environmental shifts related to soil and canopy thaw transitions. These derived binary image files help constrain the length of the growing season by observing thaw events.

Use Cases

• Detecting the onset of soil thaw in boreal ecosystems using radar backscatter change values.
• Analyzing canopy thaw transitions to estimate the start of the photosynthetic growing season.
• Constraining climate models by providing observational data on annual freeze-thaw cycle timing.
• Studying spatial patterns of environmental change across the southern BOREAS experimental sites.

Strengths

• Data covers a complete annual cycle from 1994, providing a full temporal context for freeze-thaw events.
• Analysis revealed two independent environmental transitions (soil thaw and possible canopy thaw).
• Dataset is hosted on multiple authoritative platforms (NASA EarthData, Data.gov), indicating recognized importance.

Limitations

• Critical reference image (01-March 1994) is not publicly available due to copyright restrictions.
• Specific row counts, column names, and exact file sizes are not provided across any source.
• Conflicting last updated dates exist between sources (1994-03-19 and 2026-03 13).

Provenance

Source

BOREAS RSS-17 team, using ESA's ERS-1 satellite.

Collection Method

Acquired and analyzed imaging radar data, with change maps derived from mosaicked backscatter images.

Time Range

1994 (complete annual cycle).

Freshness

2026-03-13 07:20:03.675203

Geography

Southern BOREAS sites in Canada.