FW: Re: Readjustment of ASTER imaging priorities

[Jeffrey Kargel]

Dear all,

Please be patient with the large volume of email traffic regarding imaging 
reprioritization.  We will soon implement the ASTER HAGGLING discussion 
board which will make it easier to transmit, archive, and read the email 
traffic on this discussion string.  In the mean time, I pass along Andy 
Kaab's remarks, below.  Although glacier imaging by ASTER is doing much 
better overall than a couple years ago, it is clear that we have far to go; 
thankfully ASTER is still alive, and hopefully it will hang in there another 
three years.  It is evident to anybody who has taken a global view of ASTER 
imaging that we need to make adjustments in ASTER imaging acquisition 
prioritization through our selection of parameters and criteria, and we 
probably also should get an increase in the quota of our images.

Andy's comments, and those of several other people, reinforce my statements 
that we need to have more active feedback from regional centers (a few of 
you have been really good about this already, including before this latest 
email string-- THANK YOU!).  I believe that it will be a natural result of 
the discussion in this email string and the soon-to-be-implemented 
discussion board, that the regional centers who provide adequate feedback 
will be more readily accomodated in the final revised imaging plan.  I will 
do my best to take a long-range overall view, recognizing that GLIM S is 
serving not only our group's immediate data needs, but the glaciology 
community of the late 21st century as well.  Nevertheless, please take note 
of the general trend of this extended discussion.  ASTER PRIORITIES WILL BE 
SHIFTING, and the ASTER glaciology user community has a chief role to play 
in determining how it shifts.  We will see how the image-success/failure 
analysis shakes out, but I expect that we will have to reduce the priority 
of areas that have been imaged quite well already, and increase other areas. 
  Probably this will mean taking a finer approach than "all of Greenland," 
or "all of Bhutan," as there are parts that in anybody's assessment have 
been splendidly covered, and other areas that have not been.  I expect that 
as a result of this overdue activity, ASTER will become more efficient at 
obtaining quality images on thge basis of experience gained to date, so 
hopefully everybody will end up a winner.

About the acronym ASTER HAGGLING (Himalaya, Alaska, and Greenland GLacier 
Imaging Negotiation Group), we can already see that this group will have to 
encomass more areas.  I am inclined to forget the acronym and just use the 
phrase, ASTER Haggling, because that's what it is! (necessarily)  I nominate 
Andy Kaab to take the lead for mainland Scandinavia.

--Jeff K


>From: Andreas Kääb <andreas.kaab at geo.uio.no>
>To: jeffreyskargel at hotmail.com
>CC: braup at nsidc.org, lma at nve.no
>Subject: Re: Readjustment of ASTER imaging priorities
>Date: Tue, 6 Dec 2005 18:37:25 +0100 (MET)
>
>Hei Jeff
>
>I followed all the GLIMS e-mails on ASTER imaging priorities. I just did a
>first survey of available ASTER scenes over Norway, my new working field. 
>The NVE (where we were invited for the GLIMS workshop last year) and me are 
>in the process of planning a satellite-derived glacier inventory for 
>Norway.
>
>After the mentioned assessment I was very disappointed. There are very few 
>useful scenes! But many many scenes with complete cloud cover were 
>processed to level 1B. There seems no way to base the planned inventory on 
>ASTER! From my work in the Himalayas or European Alps, e.g., I have the 
>impression that the availablity of good ASTER scenes there is much better.
>
>The mail by Ian Brown from Sweden confirms this impression.
>
>So, as yet, my conclusion is that the imaging/cloud cover statistics don't 
>tell the full story. It might be dangerous to base a revised imaging 
>priority on that alone. Somehow we have to include the regional center's 
>expertise without starting a fight for new scenes ;-) To base on the 
>regional centers expertise is one of the fundamental ideas of GLIMS.
>
>Have fun in San Fran. Best wishes to my wife if you meet her ;-) Buy her a 
>beer! I will reduce your huge debt accordingly ;-)
>
>Best wishes!
>
>Andy
>