SNOWTRAN: a software package for the solution of direct and inverse problems of snow optics

We present a software suite SNOWTRAN aimed at the solution of forward and inverse problems of snow optics. The numerical procedure is based on the approximate solutions of the radiative transfer equation and the geometrical optics approximation for local optical parameters of snow such as the probability of photon absorption and the average cosine of the single light scattering angle. The model is validated using EnMAP and PRISMA spaceborne imaging spectroscopy data close to the Concordia research station in Antarctica. The SNOWTRAN is applied for the determination of the total ozone, the precipitable water vapor, the snow grain size and the assessment of the snowpack vertical inhomogeneity using EnMAP imagery over the Aviator Glacier and in the vicinity of the Concordia research station in Antarctica. The remote sensing results based on EnMAP measurements revealed a large increase in precipitable water vapor at the Concordia research station in February 2023 linked to warming event, and a 4 times larger grain size at Aviator Glacier compared to the Concordia station.