Estimation of Arctic Sea Ice Thickness Using HY-2B Altimeter Data

Sea ice thickness is an important component of the Arctic environment, bearing crucial significance in investigations pertaining to global climate and environmental changes. This study employs data from the HaiYang-2B satellite altimeter (HY-2B ALT) for the estimation of Arctic Sea ice thickness from November 2021 to April 2022. The HY-2B penetration coefficient is calculated for the first time to correct the freeboard in areas with sea ice concentration greater than 90%. The estimation accuracy is improved by enhancing the data on sea ice density, seawater density, snow depth, and snow density. The research analyzed the effects of snow depth and penetration coefficient on sea ice thickness results. The results of sea ice type classification were compared with OSI-SAF ice products, and the sea ice thickness estimation results were compared with four satellite ice thickness products (CryoSat-2 and SMOS (CS-SMOS), Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling Data (CPOM), CryoSat-2 (CS-2), and Pan-Arctic Ice-Ocean Modeling and Assimilation System (PIOMAS)) as well as two validation ice thickness data sets (Operation IceBridge (OIB) and ICEBird). The accuracy of sea ice classification exceeds 92%, which is in good agreement with ice type product data. The RMSD of sea ice thickness estimation is 0.56 m for CS-SMOS, 0.68 m for CPOM, 0.47 m for CS-2, 0.69 m for PIOMAS, and 0.79 m for validation data.