function of crop type, area, height and condition using multitemporal
data across the major crop and cover types. Forest
mapping is of particular interest in the humid tropics and
other persistently cloudy areas. Multi-temporal data sets from
ERS have been used for classification of forest types,
identification of burned forest, assessment of forest stress and
monitoring logging concessions. Soil moisture information
is important for some hydrological and agricultural
applications. Current research has investigated the relationship
between soil moisture and backscatter across a range of soil
conditions. Snow melt and hydrology applications require
information on snow cover distribution and snow-water
equivalent. The great potential of ERS SAR for snow
mapping during the melt period as well as for mapping the
snow line on glaciers has been demonstrated.