Temporal changes in snow algal abundance on surface snow in Tohkamachi, Japan

Onuma, Yukihiko; Takeuchi, Nozomu; Takeuchi, Yukari

doi:10.5331/bgr.16a02

Cited by 13 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Furthermore, field observations in a Greenlandic glacier showed that snow algal abundance exponentially increased with the duration of snow melting, provided there was no intervening snowfall, reaching the carrying capacity of the snowpack in late summer (Onuma et al, 2018). An increase in snow algal abundance with snow melting has also been reported for Alaska and Japan (Onuma et al, 2016;Takeuchi, 2013). Based on these field observations, Onuma et al (2018) established a numerical equation for snow algal growth referred to as the "snow algae model".…”

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confidence: 94%

Global Simulation of Snow Algal Blooming by Coupling a Land Surface and Newly Developed Snow Algae Models

2022

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Snow algae are photosynthetic microbes growing on snow and ice and are common globally in snowfields and glaciers. Snow algal blooms occur on thawing snow surfaces and change the color of the snow to red, orange, or green (Hoham & Remias, 2020). In particular, the red snow phenomenon, which is caused by blooms of Sanguina (S.) nivaloides (renamed from Chlamydomonas nivalis by Procházková et al., 2019) and Chloromonas sp., have been reported throughout spring and summer seasons worldwide (

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confidence: 94%

Global Simulation of Snow Algal Blooming by Coupling a Land Surface and Newly Developed Snow Algae Models

2022

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“…The period from the last snowfall appears to be important in initiating snow algal growth, as fresh snow coverage inhibits photosynthesis of the snow algae under the snow. Additionally, snowmelt is required for the initiation of algal growth (Fukushima, 1963;Onuma et al, 2016). Snow algae on a snowpack in Japan has been reported to appear when air temperatures exceed 0 • C for 24 h, which is likely the minimum requirement for initiating snow algal growth .…”

Section: Origin Of Snow Algae and Their Growth Condition On The Qaanamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Snow algal cells are typically present in the liquid water film surrounding snow grains when the snow melts (Fukushima, 1963). Field observations showed that snow algae begin to grow when the air temperature is above the freezing point for several days, suggesting that algal growth requires a certain amount of water content in the snow (Pollock, 1972;Onuma et al, 2016). A field study on algal photosynthesis suggested that algal growth requires at least 1 % of incident photosynthetically active radiation in the snowpack, promoting photosynthesis and germination of algae (Curl Jr. et al, 1972).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations and modelling of algal growth on a snowpack in north-western Greenland

Onuma¹,

Takeuchi²,

Tanaka³

et al. 2018

The Cryosphere

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Abstract. Snow algal bloom is a common phenomenon on melting snowpacks in polar and alpine regions and can substantially increase snow melt rates due to the effect of albedo reduction on the snow surface. In order to reproduce algal growth on the snow surface using a numerical model, temporal changes in snow algal abundance were investigated on the Qaanaaq Glacier in north-western Greenland from June to August 2014. Snow algae first appeared at the study sites in late June, which was approximately 94 h after air temperatures exceeded the melting point. Algal abundance increased exponentially after this appearance, but the increasing rate became slow after late July, and finally reached 3.5 × 10 7 cells m −2 in early August. We applied a logistic model to the algal growth curve and found that the algae could be reproduced with an initial cell concentration of 6.9 × 10 2 cells m −2 , a growth rate of 0.42 d −1 , and a carrying capacity of 3.5 × 10 7 cells m −2 on this glacier. This model has the potential to simulate algal blooms from meteorological data sets and to evaluate their impact on the melting of seasonal snowpacks and glaciers.

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“…CC BY 4.0 License. grow continuously during snow melting (Onuma et al, 2016;, the abundance of snow algae at the study site could differ each year. In this study, we simulated temporal changes in snow albedo during the late summer season using PBSAM coupled with an algal growth model, while assuming various surface snow temperatures to estimate the impact of red snow algal growth on snow albedo under global warming (Fig.…”

Section: Temporal Changes In Snow Albedo Reduction Caused By Red Algamentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal changes in snow albedo, including the possible effects of red algal growth, in northwest Greenland, simulated with a physically based snow albedo model

Onuma

Takeuchi

Tanaka

et al. 2019

Preprint

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Abstract. Surface albedo of snow and ice is substantially reduced by inorganic impurities, such as aeolian mineral dust (MD) and black carbon (BC), and also by organic impurities, such as microbes that live in the snow. In this paper, we present the temporal changes of surface albedo, snow grain size, MD, BC, and snow algal cell concentration observed on a snowpack in northwest Greenland during the ablation season of 2014 and our attempt to reproduce the changes in albedo with a physically based snow albedo model. We also attempt to reproduce the effects of inorganic impurities and the red snow algae (Chlamydomonas nivalis) on albedo. Concentrations of MD and red snow algae in the surface snow were found to increase in early August, while snow grain size and BC were found to not significantly change throughout the ablation season. Surface albedo was found to have decreased by 0.08 from late July to early August. The albedo simulated by the model agreed with the albedo observed during the study period. However, red snow algae exerted little effect on surface albedo in early August. This is probably owing to the abundance of smaller cells (4.9 × 104 cells L^-1) when compared with the cell abundance of typical red algal snow (~ 108 cells L−1). The simulation of snow albedo until the end of the melting season, with an algal growth model, revealed that the reduction in albedo attribute to red algae could equal 0.004, out of a total reduction of 0.102 arising from the three impurities on a snowpack in northwest Greenland. Finally, we conducted scenario simulations using the snow albedo model, coupled with the algal growth model, in order to simulate the possible effects of red algal blooming on snow albedo under warm conditions in northwest Greenland. The result suggests that albedo reduction by red snow algal growth under warm conditions (surface snow temperature of +1.5 °C) reached 0.04, equivalent to a radiative forcing of 7.5 W m−2 during the ablation season of 2014. This coupled albedo model has the potential to dynamically simulate snow albedo, including the effect of organic and inorganic impurities, leading to proper estimates of the surface albedo of snow cover in Greenland.

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Temporal changes in snow algal abundance on surface snow in Tohkamachi, Japan

Cited by 13 publications

References 19 publications

Global Simulation of Snow Algal Blooming by Coupling a Land Surface and Newly Developed Snow Algae Models

Global Simulation of Snow Algal Blooming by Coupling a Land Surface and Newly Developed Snow Algae Models

Observations and modelling of algal growth on a snowpack in north-western Greenland

Temporal changes in snow albedo, including the possible effects of red algal growth, in northwest Greenland, simulated with a physically based snow albedo model

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