River ice jams are a primary supply of flood threat in chilly areas. In April 2020, an ice jam developed on the Athabasca River in Canada – resulting in the flooding of Fort McMurray. Satellite tv for pc information offered by the European Union’s Copernicus Sentinels, are lending a hand to observe river ice circumstances.
This false-colour picture was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission and exhibits the extent of the flooding. This composite picture comprises photographs acquired on 28 April (majority of picture, backside proper) and 29 April 2020 (high left). White strains within the picture point out the traditional extent of the river channel.
Ice jams can happen at any time in winter, however the ones that happen throughout spring’s river ice breakup are typically the commonest and damaging. The flooding in Fort McMurray displaced some 13 000 folks and broken 1200 properties.
The impartial Dutch institute for utilized analysis, Deltares, are working along with the River Ice Group of Alberta Surroundings and Parks and, with scientific assist from Pure Assets Canada, to set-up operational entry to close real-time satellite tv for pc information, and develop and implement strategies to detect and classify river ice.
Learn full story: Copernicus Sentinels help classify river ice
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