Comparison and validation of four Arctic Sea ice thickness products of the EC POLAR ICE project

Sea ice thickness (SIT) is an important parameter for
monitoring Arctic change, modelling and predicting
weather and climate, and for navigation and offshore op-
erations. However, SIT is still not very well monitored
operationally. In the European Commission (EC) FP7
project “POLAR ICE”, three novel SIT products based on
different satellite data as well as SIT from a state-of-the-
art ocean and sea ice model are fed into a common data
handling and distribution system for end users. Each SIT
product has different scopes and limitations as to, e.g.,
spatial and temporal resolution, ice thickness range and
geographical domain. The aim of this study is to com-
pare the four different SIT products with each other and
with SIT in-situ measurements in order to better under-
stand the differences and limitations, and possibly give
recommendations on how to best profit from the synergy
of the different data.