Copernicus data utilization for polar research and monitoring purposes

The Polar Regions are remote and hard to reach and in the meantime they are distinguished by unique conditions, influencing in specific way processes occurring on the Earth’s surface. Their study is a challenging task that needs to utilize the whole potential of the available technologies to be solved. This paper outlines Copernicus data utilization for polar research and monitoring purposes using remote sensing methods for the retrieval of additional and valuable information. In our study, we present the ability of remote sensing technology for monitoring and assessment of processes influenced by climate change and global warming combining the advantages of three of the Copernicus satellites – Sentinel 1, 2, and 3. The satellite data used and the applied methods for retrieval of information were validated through field observation of distinct objects on the Earth’s surface including snow cover, wet snow, water, ice (glaciers and sea ice), vegetation (lichens and mosses), permafrost, and rocks. The monitoring of the fragile environment of the Polar Regions has extremely high ecological importance for tracking the dynamics of processes induced by climate change not only on a local but also on a global scale.