## 1 Introduction
The best resolution to detect EIFs was RADARSAT-1 Extended High with 18 to 27 m resolution. Studies have been carried out with multiple SAR acquisition frequencies, but other differences in imaging parameters make it difficult to make definitive conclusions regarding the preferred frequency band. Comparisons between C-band and L-band data [10] indicated that L-band data had better contrast between deformed and level ice and tended to image the full extent of deformation, whereas only select parts of the deformation were visible in C-band. There are many operational SAR sensors at various frequencies and polarizations. The systems reviewed in paper [10] are suitable for EIF monitoring, but there are trade-offs for their use. The current trends of increasing air temperature at northern high latitudes have been at more than twice the rate of the global average since the middle of the 20 th century. Climate warming has significant impacts on northern infrastructure, hydrology and ecosystems, precipitation and snow depth and the global climate [11]. Radar backscattering properties can be extremely sensitive to the freeze/thaw states of the surface [12]. Snow cover, especially wet snow, may influence SAR backscatter, including polarimetric scattering mechanisms [13; 14]. Therefore, the interpretation of SAR signals from targets with variable dielectric properties can be limited without understanding the actual scattering processes. In a study conducted by Canatec [15], ENVISAT 30 m data were utilized along with RADARSAT-2 fine-mode data (8 m) for distinguishing small features. Only some of the data sources were of sufficient resolution to detect such targets. ENVISAT and RADARSAT-2 Wide (both 30 m resolution) were suitable for targets that covered 2-3 pixels. RADARSAT-2 ScanSAR Wide (100 m resolution) and MODIS (240 m resolution) were too coarse to detect targets of the minimum size. RADARSAT-2 ScanSAR Wide imagery could not clearly identify MY floes because of its resolution, despite several \"bright returns\" from locations known to contain MY ice. Aerial and satellite SAR sensors are capable of collecting data with multiple polarizations. With full polarimetric data, it is possible to resolve the unique signatures associated with particular radar scattering mechanisms related to different surface features. Therefore, full polarimetry offers, in principle, a means of discriminating between different ice features in terms of physical properties that generate these unique scattering processes. Polarimetricdecompositions have been used to identify three types of FY sea ice (i.e., deformed ice, rough ice and smooth ice) and wind-roughened open water [16]. Work by [17] demonstrated the capabilities of detecting icebergs in sea ice using polarimetric decompositions by relating the dominant volume scattering mechanism to glacial ice. Ice ridges and icebergs pose a major threat to both ships and offshore facilities, and these features have to be considered for structural design loads on a ship hull [18]. Satellite observations can be used for sea ice ridge identification and characterization [19; 20; 21]. Icebergs in open water have been operationally monitored with SAR satellites over the last two decades [22; 23]. In the past, various studies have been undertaken to address the presence of EIFs in the Beaufort Sea, including their impact frequencies, sizes and thicknesses. Ice features that fit into this category include large ice islands and ice-island fragments, rubble fields, multiyear hummock fields (MYHF) and other EIFs, such as fragments of MYHF and large, newly formed hummock fields. Airborne electromagnetic surveys [24] enabled observations of the thickness of different sea ice types and EIFs in the Canadian Beaufort Sea. In the seasonal ice zone, there are regions with heavily deformed ice thicker than 10 m, and occasional multiyear hummock fields of similar thicknesses occur.