Cho, J.H., Cho, J.M., Yun, H.S., Kim, T.W., Kim, C.W., 2013. A Study of Shoreline Changes in Antarctica (Terra Nova Bay) Based on SAR Data

Unlike optical imaging, Synthetic Aperture Radar imaging can produce images regardless of the weather and the time of day, which makes it a useful tool for collecting topographical data in tropical rainforests and in the North and South Poles, where traditional optical imaging is ineffective due to the rapidly changing weather. For this study, this researcher acquired SAR imagery of Terra Nova Bay, located near the South Pole, from October 8, 2011 to March 11, 2012 to observe the changes in its shoreline in summer. SAR imagery was captured once every 11th day to determine the exact time in summer when the glaciers and ice along the shore melt. The acquired stereo SAR imagery data were then processed by applying the radargrammetric method along the shoreline to reduce the speckles specific to the SAR data, and to ensure the accuracy of the coordinates and the size of the satellite imagery, before converting them to DEM at 10m intervals, which again generated orthorectified imagery. The generated orthorectified images were then converted to a digital map with the UTM coordinate system via vectorizing, which visually represented on the map the changes that took place in the shoreline in summer.The study showed that the region was covered with ice from March to early November, which affected the activity in the base, including the access of the ice breaker. Due to the warming climate, there was no sea ice in the Terra Nova Bay for about a month in February. The ice in that area started to melt on November 21 and froze again on February 28. Accordingly, it was concluded that the best time to access the South Pole to build the Antarctic base is mid-December, and the construction crew must evacuate the area no later than March to ensure the safety of the mission.