Uncertainty analysis of EQeau, a remote sensing based model for snow water equivalent estimation

Abstract

This paper is dedicated to the application of uncertainty analysis on the EQeau model. EQeau is a semi‐empirical model that uses satellite C‐band SAR data to estimate Snow Water Equivalent. The uncertainty issues of this model's application have not yet been addressed. The uncertainty analysis permits the evaluation of the impact of input data and model parameters on the model outputs and the assessment of the implications and limitations of the model's application.

Acknowledgments

Many thanks to Canadian Space Agency, Hydro‐Quebec and VIASAT Geotechnologies for making available the data. The authors acknowledge funding from the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).

Notes

1. The spatial regression is conducted between ρ values and the correspondent altitude and spatial coordinates. Afterwards, the regression residuals are interpolated using inverse‐distance method. The ρ estimation at an unsampled location is then the sum of the value estimated by spatial regression and the interpolated residual at the same location.