Decadal-Length Composite Inland West Antarctic Temperature Records

Shuman, Christopher A.; Stearns, Charles R.

doi:10.1175/1520-0442(2001)014<1977:dlciwa>2.0.co;2

Cited by 32 publications

(50 citation statements)

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“…This source of concern is somewhat mitigated by comparing the AWS-generated Byrd record with a record infilled with passive microwave satellite observations (e.g. Shuman and Stearns 2001;; the independent passive microwave record also suggests strong upward trends in spring. Nonetheless, the 0.87°C/decade trend in the M10 record should be considered an upper bound.…”

Section: Linear Temperature Trendsmentioning

confidence: 71%

An assessment and interpretation of the observed warming of West Antarctica in the austral spring

2011

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We synthesize variability and trends in multiple analyses of Antarctic near-surface temperature representing several independent source datasets and spatially complete reconstructions, and place these into the broader context of the behavior of other components of the climate system during the past 30-50 years. Along with an annual-mean trend during the past 50 years of about 0.1°C/decade averaged over Antarctica, there is a distinct seasonality to the trends, with insignificant change (and even some cooling) in austral summer and autumn in East Antarctica, contrasting with warming in austral winter and spring. Apart from the Peninsula, the seasonal warming is largest and most significant in West Antarctica in the austral spring since the late 1970s. Concurrent trends in sea ice are independent evidence of the observed warming over West Antarctic, with the decrease in sea ice area in the Amundsen and Bellingshausen Seas congruent with at least 50% of the inland warming of West Antarctica. Trends in near surface winds and geopotential heights over the high-latitude South Pacific are consistent with a role for atmospheric forcing of the sea ice and air temperature anomalies. Most of the circulation trend projects onto the two Pacific South American (PSA) modes of atmospheric circulation variability, while the Southern Annular Mode lacks a positive trend in spring that would otherwise cause a cooling tendency. The largest circulation trend is associated with the PSA-1 mode, a wave-train extending from the tropics to the high Southern latitudes. The PSA-1 mode is significantly correlated with SSTs in the southwestern tropical and subtropical Pacific. The increased SSTs in this region, together with the observed increase in rainfall, suggest that anomalous deep convection has strengthened or increased the occurrence of the Rossby wave-train associated with PSA-1. This hypothesis is supported by results from two ensembles of SST-forced atmospheric general circulation model simulations. Finally, the implications of the seasonality, timing, and spatial patterns of Antarctic temperature trends with respect to interpreting the relative roles of stratospheric ozone depletion, SSTs and increased atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gasses are discussed.

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Section: Linear Temperature Trendsmentioning

confidence: 71%

An assessment and interpretation of the observed warming of West Antarctica in the austral spring

2011

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“…In our full 50-year reconstruction, the trends are significant, although smaller, at both Byrd (0.23 6 0.09 uC per decade) and Siple (0.18 6 0.06 uC per decade). Furthermore, the seasonal characteristics of these data 13 agree well with those from our reconstructions, with the greatest amount of warming in austral spring and winter (Fig. 3).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At Siple Station (76u S, 84u W) and Byrd Station (80u S, 120u W), short intervals of data from AWSs were spliced with 37-GHz (microwave) satellite observations, which are not affected by clouds, to obtain continuous records from 1979 to 1997 (ref. 13). The results show mean trends of 1.1 6 0.8 uC per decade and 0.45 6 1.3 uC per decade at Siple and Byrd, respectively 13 .…”

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confidence: 99%

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Warming of the Antarctic ice-sheet surface since the 1957 International Geophysical Year

Steig

Schneider

Rutherford

et al. 2009

Nature

651

524

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“…Here, we present a new reconstruction of the Byrd temperature record that aims to improve on previous infilling methods 14,[18][19][20] . The observations from the initial year-round occupied station (1957)(1958)(1959)(1960)(1961)(1962)(1963)(1964)(1965)(1966)(1967)(1968)(1969)(1970)(1971)(1972)(1973)(1974)(1975) are combined with updated and corrected data from the automatic weather station (AWS) maintained since 1980 by the US Antarctic AWS Program 21 .…”

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confidence: 99%

Central West Antarctica among the most rapidly warming regions on Earth

et al. 2012

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There is clear evidence that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is contributing to sea-level rise. In contrast, West Antarctic temperature changes in recent decades remain uncertain. West Antarctica has probably warmed since the 1950s, but there is disagreement regarding the magnitude, seasonality and spatial extent of this warming. This is primarily because long-term near-surface temperature observations are restricted to Byrd Station in central West Antarctica, a data set with substantial gaps. Here, we present a complete temperature record for Byrd Station, in which observations have been corrected, and gaps have been filled using global reanalysis data and spatial interpolation. The record reveals a linear increase in annual temperature between 1958 and 2010 by 2.4±1.2 • C, establishing central West Antarctica as one of the fastest-warming regions globally. We confirm previous reports of West Antarctic warming, in annual average and in austral spring and winter, but find substantially larger temperature increases. In contrast to previous studies, we report statistically significant warming during austral summer, particularly in December-January, the peak of the melting season. A continued rise in summer temperatures could lead to more frequent and extensive episodes of surface melting of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. These results argue for a robust long-term meteorological observation network in the region.

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Decadal-Length Composite Inland West Antarctic Temperature Records

Cited by 32 publications

References 0 publications

An assessment and interpretation of the observed warming of West Antarctica in the austral spring

An assessment and interpretation of the observed warming of West Antarctica in the austral spring

Warming of the Antarctic ice-sheet surface since the 1957 International Geophysical Year

Central West Antarctica among the most rapidly warming regions on Earth

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