One of the early pioneering applications for spectral observations was the study of snow and ice characteristics to better understand the Earth-atmosphere radiation balance. Concurrent directional-hemispherical and angular spectral reflectance studies have also shown correlations between snow reflectance and grain shape and size, hardness index, density, liquid water content, and snow temperature. Obvious applications include climatology, avalanche monitoring, and water management. Under-ice photo-biological studies are also of interest. Multi-spectral field validations have been critical in all of these applications and the ASD FieldSpec® line offers the configuration options for above-snow & ice and below-ice measurements.
The FieldSpec® Pro was featured in the Passport to Pluto documentary (broadcast on Discovery Science TV during January 2006) to demonstrate some of the experiments being carried out during NASA's New Horizons mission. Video excerpt…
Below are links to published white papers and articles by researchers utilizing ASD instrumentation.
