Use of SAR in regional methane exchange studies

Significant sources of uncertainty in global trace gas budgets are due to lack of knowledge concerning the areal and temporal extent of source and sink areas. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is particularly suited to studies of northern ecosystems because of its all-weather operating capability which enables the acquisition of seasonal data. As key controls on methane exchange, the ability to differentiate major vegetation communities, inundation, and leaf area index (LAI) with satellite and airborne SAR data would increase the accuracy and precision of regional and seasonal estimates of methane exchange. The utility of SAR data for monitoring key controls on methane emissions from Arctic and boreal ecosystems is examined.