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INSAR MONITORING OF TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE IN PERMAFROST REGIONS

Session: GIS and Remote Sensing in Cold Regions / SIG et télédétection en régions nordiques

Jayson Eppler, MDA Systems Ltd (Canada)
Jayanti Sharma, MDA Systems Ltd (Canada)
Mike Kubanski, MDA Systems Ltd (Canada)
Jennifer Busler, MDA Systems Ltd (Canada)
Jonathan Roger, Centre d'Etudes Nordiques, Universite Laval (Canada)
Michel Allard, Centre d'Etudes Nordiques, Universite Laval (Canada)

The combined effect of climate change and accelerated economic development in Northern regions increases the threat of permafrost related surface deformation of transportation infrastructure. Satellite based Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry (InSAR) provides a means for monitoring deformation over remote and spatially extensive areas and is hence potentially well suited for monitoring Northern roadways.

However, permafrost poses challenges for InSAR monitoring due to complex deformation patterns caused by seasonal heave and settlement of the active layer with freeze-thaw cycles. We have developed an InSAR method that optimizes spatial and temporal resolution by joint adaptive filtering of multiple InSAR datasets.

The proposed InSAR method is demonstrated using data collected over the communities of Salluit and Umiujaq in Northern Quebec. Surface deformation estimates are compared to surficial geology maps provided by project partners from the Centre d'Études Nordiques and show potential for mapping risks to infrastructure posed by permafrost.