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IRIS

Ice Ridging Information for Decision Making in Shipping Operations

Schelude: 01.01.2003 - 31.12.2005

Program:

Quantitative parameters of ridging are included to ice information delivered by ice services and used on board ships. Ridge parameter resolving forecast models and SAR classification algorithms are developed and the parameters are included to ice charts. Ground truth experiments are conducted. Methods to assist route selection in ice are developed, based on physical modelling of ship ice resistance and simulation of ship progress. These are implemented to a terminal applied to the presentation of ice charts and SAR images on board. The work is validated by routine ship operations. The end result is a system of ice information presentation, delivery and application, structured to facilitate the continuing assimilation of results.

The work is devided into four activities.

  1. Ridge research and modeling
  2. Ship passage through ice
  3. Implementation to operative framework
  4. Application tests by ship operations

Activity 1 has two parts. Activity 1A contains implementation of ridge parameters to dynamic models and development of routines for their determination from SAR images, and activity 1B is parameterisation by ground truth, planned to serve the specific objectives of Activity 1A. It includes also statistical studies extrapolating the ground truth results outside their temporal and geographical scope, and provides the ice cover description applied in Activity 2. Activity 2 uses the knowledge of ridged ice together with the modeling of ridge resistance of ships. This serves as an input to transit simulations of ship passage in ice cover. Basing on this, decision tools that can assist ice navigation are then developed. Activity 3 incorporates of ridging parameters to ice information products distributed by ice services, and to on board terminal software used to present it. The modeling and SAR interpretation results from Activity 1 are implemented to the on board terminal. Finally, Activity 4 receives the enhanced ice information on board during tests voyages which apply it using the on board terminal and the assisting tools. Feedback is to Activity 3 on the enhanced ice information, on the aplicability of the terminal software and the decision tools, and to Activity 2 is obtained on the validity of ship passage modeling.