Thermal response of the active layer to climatic warming in a permafrost environment

Kane, D. L.; Hinzman, L. D.; Zarling, John P.

doi:10.1016/0165-232x(91)90002-x

Cited by 184 publications

(125 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Thawing then proceeds to the south into the Brooks Range and to the north on to the Coastal Plain as has been observed in previous field studies of snowmelt [Hinzman et al, 1991 a]. By July 1, thawing on the Coastal Plain has progressed to nearly the same extent as in the southern region (Plate 3).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 52%

A distributed thermal model for calculating soil temperature profiles and depth of thaw in permafrost regions

Hinzman¹,

Goering²,

Kane³

1998

J. Geophys. Res.

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139

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Abstract. A spatially distributed thermal model has been developed that simulates thermal processes at the surface of the tundra, within the active layer, and in the underlying permafrost. This model was developed and applied to simulate processes on the Kuparuk River watershed on the North Slope of Alaska. Gridded meteorological data came from seven stations. Meteorologic data to calculate the surface energy balance at each of the nodes were distributed across the watershed using kriging. The kriged air temperature was also adjusted to account for elevation differences using the dry or wet adiabatic lapse rate as appropriate, and incident shortwave radiation was adjusted to consider slope effects. The equations describing the thermal processes of the surface energy balance were solved simultaneously for the surface temperature. This calculated surface temperature was then used in the subsurface finite element formulation to calculate the temperature profile and depth of thaw in the soil. Thermal properties of the soil were estimated spatially on the basis of measurements collected in typical landform vegetation units and then distributed on the basis of a vegetation map. Performance of the model was judged on the basis of comparison to measurements of soil temperatures and thaw depths. The model performs quite well in areas where subsurface thermal properties are well known. The model explains greater than 80% of variance at the surface when comparing predicted subsurface temperatures versus measured soil temperatures, and it increases in performance at greater depths. The model explains 82% of variance when comparing predicted thaw depths versus thaw depths measured over 1 km 2 grids.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 52%

A distributed thermal model for calculating soil temperature profiles and depth of thaw in permafrost regions

Hinzman¹,

Goering²,

Kane³

1998

J. Geophys. Res.

Self Cite

139

119

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“…However, further investigation must be conducted to verify this hypothesis and identify and quantify the processes that control methane inputs from the active layer to Arctic lakes. Importantly, the controls on methane input to lakes from the active layer are fundamentally different from those impacting in situ methane production rates within the lakes, and the response of these disparate processes to climate and environmental change is also likely to be distinct (28). Future methane and other carbon emissions from the Arctic, as well as the ecological and economic impacts of these sources and their response to climate change remain topics of great interest (3,(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methane transport from the active layer to lakes in the Arctic using Toolik Lake, Alaska, as a case study

Paytan

Lecher

Dimova

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Methane emissions in the Arctic are important, and may be contributing to global warming. While methane emission rates from Arctic lakes are well documented, methods are needed to quantify the relative contribution of active layer groundwater to the overall lake methane budget. Here we report measurements of natural tracers of soil/groundwater, radon, and radium, along with methane concentration in Toolik Lake, Alaska, to evaluate the role active layer water plays as an exogenous source for lake methane. Average concentrations of methane, radium, and radon were all elevated in the active layer compared with lake water (1.6 × 104 nM, 61.6 dpm⋅m−3, and 4.5 × 105 dpm⋅m−3 compared with 1.3 × 102 nM, 5.7 dpm⋅m−3, and 4.4 × 103 dpm⋅m−3, respectively). Methane transport from the active layer to Toolik Lake based on the geochemical tracer radon (up to 2.9 g⋅m−2⋅y−1) can account for a large fraction of methane emissions from this lake. Strong but spatially and temporally variable correlations between radon activity and methane concentrations (r2 > 0.69) in lake water suggest that the parameters that control methane discharge from the active layer also vary. Warming in the Arctic may expand the active layer and increase the discharge, thereby increasing the methane flux to lakes and from lakes to the atmosphere, exacerbating global warming. More work is needed to quantify and elucidate the processes that control methane fluxes from the active layer to predict how this flux might change in the future and to evaluate the regional and global contribution of active layer water associated methane inputs.

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“…Under warming climate conditions, frozen ground regions are vulnerable to subsidence, especially ice-rich permafrost and relatively warm discontinuous permafrost (Morison et al, 2000;Osterkamp et al, 2000;Stendel and Christensen, 2002). Maximum soil freeze depth (SFD) of SFG and active layer depth over permafrost play a significant role in cold environments, and all hydrological, ecological, biological, and pedological activities occur within this layer Kane et al, 1991;Zhao et al, 2004). Simultaneously, SFD influences the surface and subsurface hydrologic cycle, promotes soil texture changes, and alters the availability of soil nutrients for plant growth.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Response of seasonal soil freeze depth to climate change across China

et al. 2017

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Abstract. The response of seasonal soil freeze depth to climate change has repercussions for the surface energy and water balance, ecosystems, the carbon cycle, and soil nutrient exchange. Despite its importance, the response of soil freeze depth to climate change is largely unknown. This study employs the Stefan solution and observations from 845 meteorological stations to investigate the response of variations in soil freeze depth to climate change across China. Observations include daily air temperatures, daily soil temperatures at various depths, mean monthly gridded air temperatures, and the normalized difference vegetation index. Results show that soil freeze depth decreased significantly at a rate of −0.18 ± 0.03 cm yr −1 , resulting in a net decrease of 8.05 ± 1.5 cm over 1967-2012 across China. On the regional scale, soil freeze depth decreases varied between 0.0 and 0.4 cm yr −1 in most parts of China during 1950-2009. By investigating potential climatic and environmental driving factors of soil freeze depth variability, we find that mean annual air temperature and ground surface temperature, air thawing index, ground surface thawing index, and vegetation growth are all negatively associated with soil freeze depth. Changes in snow depth are not correlated with soil freeze depth. Air and ground surface freezing indices are positively correlated with soil freeze depth. Comparing these potential driving factors of soil freeze depth, we find that freezing index and vegetation growth are more strongly correlated with soil freeze depth, while snow depth is not significant. We conclude that air temperature increases are responsible for the decrease in seasonal freeze depth. These results are important for understanding the soil freeze-thaw dynamics and the impacts of soil freeze depth on ecosystem and hydrological process.

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Thermal response of the active layer to climatic warming in a permafrost environment

Cited by 184 publications

References 13 publications

A distributed thermal model for calculating soil temperature profiles and depth of thaw in permafrost regions

A distributed thermal model for calculating soil temperature profiles and depth of thaw in permafrost regions

Methane transport from the active layer to lakes in the Arctic using Toolik Lake, Alaska, as a case study

Response of seasonal soil freeze depth to climate change across China

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