Spatiotemporal Characteristics of Seasonal Snow Cover in Northeast Greenland from in Situ Observations

Pedersen, Stine Højlund; Tamstorf, Mikkel P.; Abermann, Jakob; Westergaard‐Nielsen, Andreas; Lund, Magnus; Skov, Kirstine; Sigsgaard, Charlotte; Mylius, Maria Rask; Hansen, Birger Ulf; Liston, Glen E.; Schmidt, Niels Martin

doi:10.1657/aaar0016-028

Cited by 50 publications

(59 citation statements)

References 67 publications

(62 reference statements)

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“…However, the time series from PBP is brief, making it difficult to conclude that changes in snow cover duration are significant at PBP in relation to the regional signal (using Resolute as a regional indicator). Nevertheless, considerable variability from year-toyear exists at both at the point and regional scale, a finding observed elsewhere (e.g., Greenland, Pedersen et al 2016). …”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 59%

“…Others have observed similar patterns. Pedersen et al (2016) indicate that the duration of snowmelt at Zackenberg, Greenland was more than 1.5 times longer on hillslope sites where deep snow drifts developed than in the low-lying valley floor. Like PBP, these deep snowbeds often lingered into July and August, with some even persisting well into the following year.…”

Section: Snowmelt Durationmentioning

confidence: 87%

“…These changes can impact snow properties and runoff (Hansen et al 2014) which in turn will affect arctic ecosystems (Bokhorst et al 2016;Langlois et al 2017). Pedersen et al (2016) found that episodic mid-winter thaws in east and west Greenland coastal areas generated by foehn winds altered snowpack properties, depleted water storage by up to 52%, and led to an advance in snowmelt by 6-12 days. They acknowledged that the animals and birds that live in these areas have adapted to these infrequent melt events.…”

Section: Future Snow Conditions At Pbp and Bathurst Islandmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Snow cover variability at Polar Bear Pass, Nunavut

2018

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Information on arctic snow covers is relevant for climate and hydrology studies and investigations into the sustainability of both arctic fauna and flora. This study aims to (1) highlight the variability of snow cover at Polar Bear Pass (PBP) at a range of scales: point, local, and regional using both in situ snow cover measurements and remote sensing imagery products; and (2) consider how snow cover at PBP might change in the future. Terrain-based snow surveys documented the end-of-winter snowpacks over several seasons (2008)(2009)(2010)(2012)(2013), and snowmelt was measured daily at typical terrain types. MODIS products (snow cover) were used to document spatial snow cover variability across PBP and Bathurst and Cornwallis Islands. Due to limited data, no significant difference in snow cover duration can be identified at PBP over the period of record. Locally, end-of-winter snow cover does vary across a range of terrain types with snow depths and densities reflecting polar oasis sites. Aspect remains a defining factor in terms of snow cover variability at PBP. Northern areas of the Pass melt earlier. Regionally, PBP tends to melt out earlier than most of Bathurst Island. In the future, we surmise that snowpacks at PBP will be thinner and disappear earlier.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 59%

Section: Snowmelt Durationmentioning

confidence: 87%

Section: Future Snow Conditions At Pbp and Bathurst Islandmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Snow cover variability at Polar Bear Pass, Nunavut

2018

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“…Arthropod phenology in the high Arctic is also heavily influenced by the timing of snowmelt (Høye et al 2007b), with earlier exposure to higher solar radiation possibly accentuating the effects . The relative contributions of and possible synergistic effects between advancing snowmelt dates and rising growingperiod temperatures are currently unknown, because local snowmelt dynamics remain poorly explored (but see, e.g., Pedersen et al 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatiotemporal snowmelt patterns within a high Arctic landscape, with implications for flora and fauna

Kankaanpää

Skov

Abrego

et al. 2018

Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research

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Snow conditions are important drivers of the distribution and phenology of Arctic flora and fauna, but the extent and effects of local variation in snowmelt are still inadequately studied. We analyze snowmelt patterns within the Zackenberg valley in northeast Greenland. Drawing on landscapelevel snowmelt dates and meteorological data from a central climate station, we model snowmelt trends during 1998-2014. We then use time-lapse photographs to examine consistency in spatiotemporal snowmelt patterns during 2006-2014. Finally, we use monitoring data on arthropods and plants for 1998-2014 to investigate how snowmelt date affects the phenology of Arctic organisms. Despite large interannual variation in snowmelt timing, we find consistency in the relative order of snowmelt among sites within the landscape. With a slight overall advancement in snowmelt during the study period, early melting locations have advanced more than late-melting ones. Individual organism groups differ greatly in how their phenology shifts with snowmelt, with much variance attributable to variation in life history and diet. Overall, we note that local variation in snowmelt patterns may drive important ecological processes, and that more attention should be paid to variability within landscapes. Areas optimal for a given taxon vary between years, thereby creating spatial structure in a seemingly uniform landscape. ARTICLE HISTORY

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“…High mountains surround the Zackenberg valley to the west, east and north, with a fjord to the south, and snow cover is characterised by large interannual variability (Pedersen et al, 2016). Water availability is thus regulated by topography and snow distribution patterns.…”

Section: Zackenbergmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carbon stocks and fluxes in the high latitudes: using site-level data to evaluate Earth system models

et al. 2017

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Abstract. It is important that climate models can accurately simulate the terrestrial carbon cycle in the Arctic due to the large and potentially labile carbon stocks found in permafrost-affected environments, which can lead to a positive climate feedback, along with the possibility of future carbon sinks from northward expansion of vegetation under climate warming. Here we evaluate the simulation of tundra carbon stocks and fluxes in three land surface schemes that each form part of major Earth system models (JSBACH, Germany; JULES, UK; ORCHIDEE, France). We use a site-level approach in which comprehensive, high-frequency datasets allow us to disentangle the importance of different processes. The models have improved physical permafrost processes and there is a reasonable correspondence between the simulated and measured physical variables, including soil temperature, soil moisture and snow.We show that if the models simulate the correct leaf area index (LAI), the standard C3 photosynthesis schemes produce the correct order of magnitude of carbon fluxes. Therefore, simulating the correct LAI is one of the first priorities. LAI depends quite strongly on climatic variables alone, as we see by the fact that the dynamic vegetation model can simulate most of the differences in LAI between sites, based almost entirely on climate inputs. However, we also identify an influence from nutrient limitation as the LAI becomes too large at some of the more nutrient-limited sites. We conclude that including moss as well as vascular plants is of primary importance to the carbon budget, as moss contributes a large fraction to the seasonal CO 2 flux in nutrient-limited conditions. Moss photosynthetic activity can be strongly influenced by the moisture content of moss, and the carbon uptake can be significantly different from vascular plants with a similar LAI.The soil carbon stocks depend strongly on the rate of input of carbon from the vegetation to the soil, and our analysis suggests that an improved simulation of photosynthesis would also lead to an improved simulation of soil carbon stocks. However, the stocks are also influenced by soil carbon burial (e.g. through cryoturbation) and the rate of heterotrophic respiration, which depends on the soil physical state. More detailed below-ground measurements are needed to fully evaluate biological and physical soil processes. Furthermore, even if these processes are well modelled, the soil carbon profiles cannot resemble peat layers as peat accumulation processes are not represented in the models.Thus, we identify three priority areas for model development: (1) dynamic vegetation including (a) climate and (b) nutrient limitation effects; (2) adding moss as a plant functional type; and an (3) improved vertical profile of soil carbon including peat processes.

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Spatiotemporal Characteristics of Seasonal Snow Cover in Northeast Greenland from in Situ Observations

Cited by 50 publications

References 67 publications

Snow cover variability at Polar Bear Pass, Nunavut

Snow cover variability at Polar Bear Pass, Nunavut

Spatiotemporal snowmelt patterns within a high Arctic landscape, with implications for flora and fauna

Carbon stocks and fluxes in the high latitudes: using site-level data to evaluate Earth system models

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