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ISSN 2070-7401 (Print), ISSN 2411-0280 (Online)
Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa
CURRENT PROBLEMS IN REMOTE SENSING OF THE EARTH FROM SPACE

  

Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa, 2026, V. 23, No. 5, pp. 69-87

VASIA2 algorithm: Accuracy assessment of sea ice concentration retrieval based on AMSR2 radiometer data

J.V. Sokolova 1 , V.V. Tikhonov 1, 2 
1 Space Research Institute RAS, Moscow, Russia
2 Institute for Water and Environmental Problems SB RAS, Barnaul, Russia
Accepted: 28.07.2026
DOI: 10.21046/2070-7401-2026-23-5-69-87
The paper explores the possibility of using data from AMSR2 (Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 2) to determine sea ice concentration (SIC) by the VASIA2 (Variation Arctic Sea Ice Algorithm 2) algorithm. VASIA2 was developed by a group of scientists from Space Research Institute RAS, A. M. Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics RAS, and Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute initially for the SSM/I (Special Sensor Microwave Imager/Sounder) radiometers. The accuracy of SIC retrievals by VASIA2 was assessed for four regions of Canadian Arctic for the period 2022–2024 using in situ ice and meteorological data from polar stations, as well as ice charts from the Canadian Ice Service. The obtained results were compared with estimates calculated by the ASI (Arctic Radiation and Turbulence Interaction) algorithm for various ice and meteorological conditions. Error analysis demonstrated that VASIA2 showed the best results during the winter period. Melting and freezing periods under fast ice conditions were characterized by high error values, but comparable with ASI error estimates. In compact old drift ice (95–100 %), VASIA2 showed smaller average errors during the melting period compared to first-year ice.
Keywords: sea ice concentration, fast ice, satellite microwave radiometry, VASIA2, ASI, AMSR2
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