Observed changes in the albedo of the Arctic sea-ice zone for the period 1982–2009

Riihelä, Aku; Manninen, Terhikki; Laine, Vesa

doi:10.1038/nclimate1963

Cited by 79 publications

(69 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Work aimed at quantifying observed changes in the albedo of the ice-covered Arctic (e.g. [10,47]) is important to better understand the changing Arctic system.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors affecting projected Arctic surface shortwave heating and albedo change in coupled climate models

Holland

Landrum

2015

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A.

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One contribution of 9 to a discussion meeting issue 'Arctic sea ice reduction: the evidence, models and impacts (part 1)' . We use a large ensemble of simulations from the Community Earth System Model to quantify simulated changes in the twentieth and twenty-first century Arctic surface shortwave heating associated with changing incoming solar radiation and changing ice conditions. For increases in shortwave absorption associated with albedo reductions, the relative influence of changing sea ice surface properties and changing sea ice areal coverage is assessed. Changes in the surface sea ice properties are associated with an earlier melt season onset, a longer snow-free season and enhanced surface ponding. Because many of these changes occur during peak solar insolation, they have a considerable influence on Arctic surface shortwave heating that is comparable to the influence of ice area loss in the early twenty-first century. As ice area loss continues through the twenty-first century, it overwhelms the influence of changes in the sea ice surface state, and is responsible for a majority of the net shortwave increases by the mid-twenty-first century. A comparison with the Arctic surface albedo and shortwave heating in CMIP5 models indicates a large spread in projected twenty-first century change. This is in part related to different ice loss rates among the models and different representations of the late twentieth century ice albedo and associated sea ice surface state.

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“…Work aimed at quantifying observed changes in the albedo of the ice-covered Arctic (e.g. [10,47]) is important to better understand the changing Arctic system.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors affecting projected Arctic surface shortwave heating and albedo change in coupled climate models

Holland

Landrum

2015

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A.

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“…According to the CM SAF validation report [25], the RMSEs of estimated albedo are 0.173 at Neumayer station (70.65 • S, 8.25 • W) and 0.188 at Syowa station (69 • S, 39.59 • E) over Antarctica, respectively. Recently, several studies used the CLARA A1 surface albedo data [26][27][28]. In this study, we selected monthly mean data of albedo to match the temporal resolution of the in situ temperature data during 1982 to 2009.…”

Section: Albedomentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-Term Variability of Surface Albedo and Its Correlation with Climatic Variables over Antarctica

et al. 2016

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Abstract:The cryosphere is an essential part of the earth system for understanding climate change. Components of the cryosphere, such as ice sheets and sea ice, are generally decreasing over time. However, previous studies have indicated differing trends between the Antarctic and the Arctic. The South Pole also shows internal differences in trends. These phenomena indicate the importance of continuous observation of the Polar Regions. Albedo is a main indicator for analyzing Antarctic climate change and is an important variable with regard to the radiation budget because it can provide positive feedback on polar warming and is related to net radiation and atmospheric heating in the mainly snow-and ice-covered Antarctic. Therefore, in this study, we analyzed long-term temporal and spatial variability of albedo and investigated the interrelationships between albedo and climatic variables over Antarctica. We used broadband surface albedo data from the Satellite Application Facility on Climate Monitoring and data for several climatic variables such as temperature and Antarctic oscillation index (AAO) during the period of 1983 to 2009. Time series analysis and correlation analysis were performed through linear regression using albedo and climatic variables. The results of this research indicated that albedo shows two trends, west trend and an east trend, over Antarctica. Most of the western side of Antarctica showed a negative trend of albedo (about −0.0007 to −0.0015 year −1 ), but the other side showed a positive trend (about 0.0006 year −1 ). In addition, albedo and surface temperature had a negative correlation, but this relationship was weaker in west Antarctica than in east Antarctica. The correlation between albedo and AAO revealed different relationships in the two regions; west Antarctica had a negative correlation and east Antarctica showed a positive correlation. In addition, the correlation between albedo and AAO was weaker in the west. This suggests that the eastern area is influenced by the atmosphere, but that the western area is influenced more strongly by other factors.

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“…Indeed, the temperature has risen in the past decades, and the albedo of the Arctic region seems to have decreased until 2011 [7] [8]. Yet, the total amount of sea ice on this planet has not changed from 1979, when measurements started, until now.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Negative Feedback in the Polar Ice System

Stallinga¹,

Khmelinskii²

2017

ACS

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One of the ingredients of the anthropogenic global warming hypothesis is the existence of large positive feedback in the climate system. An example is polar ice that, once melted, turns into blacker water that will increase radiation absorption and this reinforces the melting. This causes a run-away scenario with a point of no return. Here it is shown that the polar ice can also have negative feedback aspects, where a melting of polar ice will cause it to reappear.

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Observed changes in the albedo of the Arctic sea-ice zone for the period 1982–2009

Cited by 79 publications

References 23 publications

Factors affecting projected Arctic surface shortwave heating and albedo change in coupled climate models

Factors affecting projected Arctic surface shortwave heating and albedo change in coupled climate models

Long-Term Variability of Surface Albedo and Its Correlation with Climatic Variables over Antarctica

Negative Feedback in the Polar Ice System

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