Integration of DMRT and SNOWPACK Models for Simulating Backscattering and Comparison with COSMO-SkyMed Data

In this paper the integration between the Dense Media Radiative Transfer (DMRT-QMS) model and the SNOWPACK model was investigated in order to simulate snow parameters and the backscattering at X band (9.6 GHz) from nivo-meteorological data. The role of the stickiness parameter ( $\tau$ ) in DMRT-QMS was analyzed by using experimental data of backscattering collected from COSMO-SkyMed (CSK) and snow data generated by SNOWPACK. The relationships between $\tau$ and both ice volume fraction ( $\phi$ ) and coordination number ( $n_{c}$ ) were assessed. The DMRT and SNOWPACK simulations were compared with CSK backscattering measurements showing a significant agreement, although for a limited dataset.