Articles | Volume 11, issue 6
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2611-2017
© Author(s) 2017. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2611-2017
© Author(s) 2017. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
17 Nov 2017
Research article |
| 17 Nov 2017
Quantifying bioalbedo: a new physically based model and discussion of empirical methods for characterising biological influence on ice and snow albedo
Department of Geography, University of Sheffield, Winter Street,
Sheffield, UK
College of Life and Natural Sciences, University of Derby, Kedleston
Road, Derby, UK
Andrew J. Hodson
Department of Geography, University of Sheffield, Winter Street,
Sheffield, UK
University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS), Svalbard, Norway
Alex S. Gardner
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology,
Pasadena, USA
Mark Flanner
Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, University
of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA
Andrew J. Tedstone
Centre for Glaciology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Christopher Williamson
Centre for Glaciology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Tristram D. L. Irvine-Fynn
Centre for Glaciology, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, Wales, UK
Johan Nilsson
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology,
Pasadena, USA
Robert Bryant
Department of Geography, University of Sheffield, Winter Street,
Sheffield, UK
Martyn Tranter
Centre for Glaciology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Related authors
Andrew J. Tedstone, Joseph M. Cook, Christopher J. Williamson, Stefan Hofer, Jenine McCutcheon, Tristram Irvine-Fynn, Thomas Gribbin, and Martyn Tranter
The Cryosphere, 14, 521–538, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-521-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-521-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Albedo describes how much light that hits a surface is reflected without being absorbed. Low-albedo ice surfaces melt more quickly. There are large differences in the albedo of bare-ice areas of the Greenland Ice Sheet. They are caused both by dark glacier algae and by the condition of the underlying ice. Changes occur over centimetres to metres, so satellites do not always detect real albedo changes. Estimates of melt made using satellite measurements therefore tend to be underestimates.
Joseph M. Cook, Andrew J. Tedstone, Christopher Williamson, Jenine McCutcheon, Andrew J. Hodson, Archana Dayal, McKenzie Skiles, Stefan Hofer, Robert Bryant, Owen McAree, Andrew McGonigle, Jonathan Ryan, Alexandre M. Anesio, Tristram D. L. Irvine-Fynn, Alun Hubbard, Edward Hanna, Mark Flanner, Sathish Mayanna, Liane G. Benning, Dirk van As, Marian Yallop, James B. McQuaid, Thomas Gribbin, and Martyn Tranter
The Cryosphere, 14, 309–330, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-309-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-309-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is a major source of uncertainty for sea level rise projections. Ice-darkening due to the growth of algae has been recognized as a potential accelerator of melting. This paper measures and models the algae-driven ice melting and maps the algae over the ice sheet for the first time. We estimate that as much as 13 % total runoff from the south-western GrIS can be attributed to these algae, showing that they must be included in future mass balance models.
Alexandra T. Holland, Christopher J. Williamson, Fotis Sgouridis, Andrew J. Tedstone, Jenine McCutcheon, Joseph M. Cook, Ewa Poniecka, Marian L. Yallop, Martyn Tranter, Alexandre M. Anesio, and The Black & Bloom Group
Biogeosciences, 16, 3283–3296, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3283-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3283-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper provides a preliminary data set for dissolved nutrient abundance in the Dark Zone of the Greenland Ice Sheet. This 15-year marked darkening has since been attributed to glacier algae blooms, yet has not been accounted for in current melt rate models. We conclude that the dissolved organic phase dominates surface ice environments and that factors other than macronutrient limitation control the extent and magnitude of the glacier algae blooms.
Andrew J. Tedstone, Jonathan L. Bamber, Joseph M. Cook, Christopher J. Williamson, Xavier Fettweis, Andrew J. Hodson, and Martyn Tranter
The Cryosphere, 11, 2491–2506, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2491-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2491-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
The bare ice albedo of the south-west Greenland ice sheet varies dramatically between years. The reasons are unclear but likely involve darkening by inorganic particulates, cryoconite and ice algae. We use satellite imagery to examine dark ice dynamics and climate model outputs to find likely climatological controls. Outcropping particulates can explain the spatial extent of dark ice, but the darkening itself is likely due to ice algae growth controlled by meltwater and light availability.
Johan Nilsson and Alex S. Gardner
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-311, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-311, 2024
Preprint under review for ESSD
Short summary
Short summary
Integrating data from multiple satellite altimetry missions, we analyzed Greenland’s peripheral glaciers and Ice Sheet (GrIS) from 1992–2023. Our methodology ensures consistent, reliable elevation change data, now publicly available via NASA's ITS_LIVE project. The GrIS lost an average of -173 ± 19 Gt a-1 and peripheral glaciers -23 ± 5 Gt a-1 from 1992–2022. The study highlights the importance of continued monitoring to understand climate change impacts on Earth's Cryosphere.
Horst Machguth, Andrew Tedstone, Peter Kuipers Munneke, Max Brils, Brice Noël, Nicole Clerx, Nicolas Jullien, Xavier Fettweis, and Michiel van den Broeke
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2750, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2750, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Due to increasing air temperatures, surface melt expands to higher elevations on the Greenland ice sheet. This is visible on satellite imagery in the form of rivers of meltwater running across the surface of the ice sheet. We compare model results of meltwater at high elevations on the ice sheet to satellite observations. We find that each of the models shows strengths and weaknesses. A detailed look into the model results reveals potential reasons for the differences between models.
Ian Delaney, Andrew Tedstone, Mauro A. Werder, and Daniel Farinotti
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2580, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2580, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Sediment transport in rivers and under glaciers depends on water velocity and channel width. In rivers, water discharge changes affect flow depth, width, and velocity. Under glaciers, pressurized water changes velocity more than shape. Due to these differences, this study shows that sediment transport under glaciers varies widely and peaks before water flow does, creating a complex relationship. Understanding these dynamics helps interpret sediment discharge from glaciers in different climates.
Adrian Dye, Robert Bryant, Francesca Falcini, Joseph Mallalieu, Miles Dimbleby, Michael Beckwith, David Rippin, and Nina Kirchner
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2510, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2510, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Thermal undercutting of the terminus has driven recent rapid retreat of an Arctic glacier. Water temperatures (~4 °C) at the ice front were warmer than previously assumed and thermal undercutting was over several metres deep. This triggered phases of high calving activity, playing a substantial role in the rapid retreat of Kaskasapakte glacier since 2012, with important implications for processes occurring at glacier-water contact points and implications for hydrology and ecology downstream.
Lou-Anne Chevrollier, Adrien Wehrlé, Joseph M. Cook, Norbert Pirk, Liane G. Benning, Alexandre M. Anesio, and Martyn Tranter
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2583, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2583, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Light absorbing particles (LAPs) are often present as a mixture on snow surfaces, and are important to disentangle because their darkening effect varies, but also because the processes governing their presence and accumulation on snow surfaces are different. This study presents a novel method to retrieve the concentration and albedo reducing effect of different LAPs present at the snow surface from surface spectral albedo. The method is then successfully applied to observations on seasonal snow.
Eva L. Doting, Ian T. Stevens, Anne M. Kellerman, Pamela E. Rossel, Runa Antony, Amy M. McKenna, Martyn Tranter, Liane G. Benning, Robert G. M. Spencer, Jon R. Hawkings, and Alexandre M. Anesio
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-492, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-492, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study provides new insights into the transformation of dissolved organic matter (DOM) that takes place as meltwater flows through the porous crust of weathering ice that covers glacier ice surfaces during the melt season. Movement of water through the weathering crust is slow, allowing microorganisms and sunlight to alter the DOM in glacial meltwater. This is important as supraglacial meltwaters deliver DOM and nutrients to microorganisms living in downstream receiving aquatic environments.
Brian Menounos, Alex Gardner, Caitlyn Florentine, and Andrew Fountain
The Cryosphere, 18, 889–894, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-889-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-889-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Glaciers in western North American outside of Alaska are often overlooked in global studies because their potential to contribute to changes in sea level is small. Nonetheless, these glaciers represent important sources of freshwater, especially during times of drought. We show that these glaciers lost mass at a rate of about 12 Gt yr-1 for about the period 2013–2021; the rate of mass loss over the period 2018–2022 was similar.
Youngmin Choi, Helene Seroussi, Mathieu Morlighem, Nicole-Jeanne Schlegel, and Alex Gardner
The Cryosphere, 17, 5499–5517, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5499-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5499-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Ice sheet models are often initialized using snapshot observations of present-day conditions, but this approach has limitations in capturing the transient evolution of the system. To more accurately represent the accelerating changes in glaciers, we employed time-dependent data assimilation. We found that models calibrated with the transient data better capture past trends and more accurately reproduce changes after the calibration period, even with limited observations.
Timo Schmid, Valentina Radić, Andrew Tedstone, James M. Lea, Stephen Brough, and Mauro Hermann
The Cryosphere, 17, 3933–3954, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3933-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3933-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The Greenland Ice Sheet contributes strongly to sea level rise in the warming climate. One process that can affect the ice sheet's mass balance is short-term ice speed-up events. These can be caused by high melting or rainfall as the water flows underneath the glacier and allows for faster sliding. In this study we found three main weather patterns that cause such ice speed-up events on the Russell Glacier in southwest Greenland and analyzed how they induce local melting and ice accelerations.
Fernando S. Paolo, Alex S. Gardner, Chad A. Greene, Johan Nilsson, Michael P. Schodlok, Nicole-Jeanne Schlegel, and Helen A. Fricker
The Cryosphere, 17, 3409–3433, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3409-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3409-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We report on a slowdown in the rate of thinning and melting of West Antarctic ice shelves. We present a comprehensive assessment of the Antarctic ice shelves, where we analyze at a continental scale the changes in thickness, flow, and basal melt over the past 26 years. We also present a novel method to estimate ice shelf change from satellite altimetry and a time-dependent data set of ice shelf thickness and basal melt rates at an unprecedented resolution.
Rosemary Huck, Robert G. Bryant, and James King
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 6299–6318, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-6299-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-6299-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This study shows that mineral aerosol (dust) emission events in high-latitude areas are under-represented in both ground- and space-based detecting methods. This is done through a suite of ground-based data to prove that dust emissions from the proglacial area, Lhù’ààn Mân, occur almost daily but are not always recorded at different timescales. Dust has multiple effects on atmospheric processes; therefore, accurate quantification is important in the calibration and validation of climate models.
Alex S. Gardner, Nicole-Jeanne Schlegel, and Eric Larour
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 2277–2302, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2277-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-2277-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This is the first description of the open-source Glacier Energy and Mass Balance (GEMB) model. GEMB models the ice sheet and glacier surface–atmospheric energy and mass exchange, as well as the firn state. The model is evaluated against the current state of the art and in situ observations and is shown to perform well.
Inès N. Otosaka, Andrew Shepherd, Erik R. Ivins, Nicole-Jeanne Schlegel, Charles Amory, Michiel R. van den Broeke, Martin Horwath, Ian Joughin, Michalea D. King, Gerhard Krinner, Sophie Nowicki, Anthony J. Payne, Eric Rignot, Ted Scambos, Karen M. Simon, Benjamin E. Smith, Louise S. Sørensen, Isabella Velicogna, Pippa L. Whitehouse, Geruo A, Cécile Agosta, Andreas P. Ahlstrøm, Alejandro Blazquez, William Colgan, Marcus E. Engdahl, Xavier Fettweis, Rene Forsberg, Hubert Gallée, Alex Gardner, Lin Gilbert, Noel Gourmelen, Andreas Groh, Brian C. Gunter, Christopher Harig, Veit Helm, Shfaqat Abbas Khan, Christoph Kittel, Hannes Konrad, Peter L. Langen, Benoit S. Lecavalier, Chia-Chun Liang, Bryant D. Loomis, Malcolm McMillan, Daniele Melini, Sebastian H. Mernild, Ruth Mottram, Jeremie Mouginot, Johan Nilsson, Brice Noël, Mark E. Pattle, William R. Peltier, Nadege Pie, Mònica Roca, Ingo Sasgen, Himanshu V. Save, Ki-Weon Seo, Bernd Scheuchl, Ernst J. O. Schrama, Ludwig Schröder, Sebastian B. Simonsen, Thomas Slater, Giorgio Spada, Tyler C. Sutterley, Bramha Dutt Vishwakarma, Jan Melchior van Wessem, David Wiese, Wouter van der Wal, and Bert Wouters
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 1597–1616, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1597-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1597-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
By measuring changes in the volume, gravitational attraction, and ice flow of Greenland and Antarctica from space, we can monitor their mass gain and loss over time. Here, we present a new record of the Earth’s polar ice sheet mass balance produced by aggregating 50 satellite-based estimates of ice sheet mass change. This new assessment shows that the ice sheets have lost (7.5 x 1012) t of ice between 1992 and 2020, contributing 21 mm to sea level rise.
Beatriz Gill-Olivas, Jon Telling, Mark Skidmore, and Martyn Tranter
Biogeosciences, 20, 929–943, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-929-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-929-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Microbial ecosystems have been found in all subglacial environments sampled to date. Yet, little is known of the sources of energy and nutrients that sustain these microbial populations. This study shows that crushing of sedimentary rocks, which contain organic carbon, carbonate and sulfide minerals, along with previously weathered silicate minerals, produces a range of compounds and nutrients which can be utilised by the diverse suite of microbes that inhabit glacier beds.
Cynthia H. Whaley, Kathy S. Law, Jens Liengaard Hjorth, Henrik Skov, Stephen R. Arnold, Joakim Langner, Jakob Boyd Pernov, Garance Bergeron, Ilann Bourgeois, Jesper H. Christensen, Rong-You Chien, Makoto Deushi, Xinyi Dong, Peter Effertz, Gregory Faluvegi, Mark Flanner, Joshua S. Fu, Michael Gauss, Greg Huey, Ulas Im, Rigel Kivi, Louis Marelle, Tatsuo Onishi, Naga Oshima, Irina Petropavlovskikh, Jeff Peischl, David A. Plummer, Luca Pozzoli, Jean-Christophe Raut, Tom Ryerson, Ragnhild Skeie, Sverre Solberg, Manu A. Thomas, Chelsea Thompson, Kostas Tsigaridis, Svetlana Tsyro, Steven T. Turnock, Knut von Salzen, and David W. Tarasick
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 637–661, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-637-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-637-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This study summarizes recent research on ozone in the Arctic, a sensitive and rapidly warming region. We find that the seasonal cycles of near-surface atmospheric ozone are variable depending on whether they are near the coast, inland, or at high altitude. Several global model simulations were evaluated, and we found that because models lack some of the ozone chemistry that is important for the coastal Arctic locations, they do not accurately simulate ozone there.
Elias Nkiaka, Robert G. Bryant, Joshua Ntajal, and Eliézer I. Biao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 5899–5916, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5899-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5899-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Achieving water security in poorly gauged regions is hindered by a lack of in situ hydrometeorological data. In this study, we validated nine existing gridded water resource reanalyses and eight evapotranspiration products in eight representative gauged basins in Central–West Africa. Our results show the strengths and and weaknesses of the existing products and that these products can be used to assess water security in ungauged basins. However, it is imperative to validate these products.
Yang Lei, Alex S. Gardner, and Piyush Agram
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 5111–5137, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-5111-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-5111-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
This work describes NASA MEaSUREs ITS_LIVE project's Version 2 Sentinel-1 image-pair ice velocity product and processing methodology. We show the refined offset tracking algorithm, autoRIFT, calibration for Sentinel-1 geolocation biases and correction of the ionosphere streaking problems. Validation was performed over three typical test sites covering the globe by comparing with other similar global and regional products.
Nicole Clerx, Horst Machguth, Andrew Tedstone, Nicolas Jullien, Nander Wever, Rolf Weingartner, and Ole Roessler
The Cryosphere, 16, 4379–4401, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4379-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4379-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Meltwater runoff is one of the main contributors to mass loss on the Greenland Ice Sheet that influences global sea level rise. However, it remains unclear where meltwater runs off and what processes cause this. We measured the velocity of meltwater flow through snow on the ice sheet, which ranged from 0.17–12.8 m h−1 for vertical percolation and from 1.3–15.1 m h−1 for lateral flow. This is an important step towards understanding where, when and why meltwater runoff occurs on the ice sheet.
Zachary Fair, Mark Flanner, Adam Schneider, and S. McKenzie Skiles
The Cryosphere, 16, 3801–3814, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3801-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3801-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Snow grain size is important to determine the age and structure of snow, but it is difficult to measure. Snow grain size can be found from airborne and spaceborne observations by measuring near-infrared energy reflected from snow. In this study, we use the SNICAR radiative transfer model and a Monte Carlo model to examine how snow grain size measurements change with snow structure and solar zenith angle. We show that improved understanding of these variables improves snow grain size precision.
Sophie Goliber, Taryn Black, Ginny Catania, James M. Lea, Helene Olsen, Daniel Cheng, Suzanne Bevan, Anders Bjørk, Charlie Bunce, Stephen Brough, J. Rachel Carr, Tom Cowton, Alex Gardner, Dominik Fahrner, Emily Hill, Ian Joughin, Niels J. Korsgaard, Adrian Luckman, Twila Moon, Tavi Murray, Andrew Sole, Michael Wood, and Enze Zhang
The Cryosphere, 16, 3215–3233, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3215-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3215-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Terminus traces have been used to understand how Greenland's glaciers have changed over time; however, manual digitization is time-intensive, and a lack of coordination leads to duplication of efforts. We have compiled a dataset of over 39 000 terminus traces for 278 glaciers for scientific and machine learning applications. We also provide an overview of an updated version of the Google Earth Engine Digitization Tool (GEEDiT), which has been developed specifically for the Greenland Ice Sheet.
Johan Nilsson, Alex S. Gardner, and Fernando S. Paolo
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 3573–3598, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-3573-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-3573-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The longest observational record available to study the mass balance of the Earth’s ice sheets comes from satellite altimeters. This record consists of multiple satellite missions with different measurements and quality, and it must be cross-calibrated and integrated into a consistent record for scientific use. Here, we present a novel approach for generating such a record providing a seamless record of elevation change for the Antarctic Ice Sheet that spans the period 1985 to 2020.
Cynthia H. Whaley, Rashed Mahmood, Knut von Salzen, Barbara Winter, Sabine Eckhardt, Stephen Arnold, Stephen Beagley, Silvia Becagli, Rong-You Chien, Jesper Christensen, Sujay Manish Damani, Xinyi Dong, Konstantinos Eleftheriadis, Nikolaos Evangeliou, Gregory Faluvegi, Mark Flanner, Joshua S. Fu, Michael Gauss, Fabio Giardi, Wanmin Gong, Jens Liengaard Hjorth, Lin Huang, Ulas Im, Yugo Kanaya, Srinath Krishnan, Zbigniew Klimont, Thomas Kühn, Joakim Langner, Kathy S. Law, Louis Marelle, Andreas Massling, Dirk Olivié, Tatsuo Onishi, Naga Oshima, Yiran Peng, David A. Plummer, Olga Popovicheva, Luca Pozzoli, Jean-Christophe Raut, Maria Sand, Laura N. Saunders, Julia Schmale, Sangeeta Sharma, Ragnhild Bieltvedt Skeie, Henrik Skov, Fumikazu Taketani, Manu A. Thomas, Rita Traversi, Kostas Tsigaridis, Svetlana Tsyro, Steven Turnock, Vito Vitale, Kaley A. Walker, Minqi Wang, Duncan Watson-Parris, and Tahya Weiss-Gibbons
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 5775–5828, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5775-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5775-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Air pollutants, like ozone and soot, play a role in both global warming and air quality. Atmospheric models are often used to provide information to policy makers about current and future conditions under different emissions scenarios. In order to have confidence in those simulations, in this study we compare simulated air pollution from 18 state-of-the-art atmospheric models to measured air pollution in order to assess how well the models perform.
Chloe A. Whicker, Mark G. Flanner, Cheng Dang, Charles S. Zender, Joseph M. Cook, and Alex S. Gardner
The Cryosphere, 16, 1197–1220, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1197-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1197-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Snow and ice surfaces are important to the global climate. Current climate models use measurements to determine the reflectivity of ice. This model uses physical properties to determine the reflectivity of snow, ice, and darkly pigmented impurities that reside within the snow and ice. Therefore, the modeled reflectivity is more accurate for snow/ice columns under varying climate conditions. This model paves the way for improvements in the portrayal of snow and ice within global climate models.
Mark G. Flanner, Julian B. Arnheim, Joseph M. Cook, Cheng Dang, Cenlin He, Xianglei Huang, Deepak Singh, S. McKenzie Skiles, Chloe A. Whicker, and Charles S. Zender
Geosci. Model Dev., 14, 7673–7704, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-7673-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-7673-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We present the technical formulation and evaluation of a publicly available code and web-based model to simulate the spectral albedo of snow. Our model accounts for numerous features of the snow state and ambient conditions, including the the presence of light-absorbing matter like black and brown carbon, mineral dust, volcanic ash, and snow algae. Carbon dioxide snow, found on Mars, is also represented. The model accurately reproduces spectral measurements of clean and contaminated snow.
Chad A. Greene, Alex S. Gardner, and Lauren C. Andrews
The Cryosphere, 14, 4365–4378, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4365-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4365-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Seasonal variability is a fundamental characteristic of any Earth surface system, but we do not fully understand which of the world's glaciers speed up and slow down on an annual cycle. Such short-timescale accelerations may offer clues about how individual glaciers will respond to longer-term changes in climate, but understanding any behavior requires an ability to observe it. We describe how to use satellite image feature tracking to determine the magnitude and timing of seasonal ice dynamics.
Zachary Fair, Mark Flanner, Kelly M. Brunt, Helen Amanda Fricker, and Alex Gardner
The Cryosphere, 14, 4253–4263, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4253-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4253-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Ice on glaciers and ice sheets may melt and pond on ice surfaces in summer months. Detection and observation of these meltwater ponds is important for understanding glaciers and ice sheets, and satellite imagery has been used in previous work. However, image-based methods struggle with deep water, so we used data from the Ice, Clouds, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) and the Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) to demonstrate the potential for lidar depth monitoring.
Miranda J. Nicholes, Christopher Williamson, Martyn Tranter, Alexandra Holland, Marian Yallop, and Alexandre Anesio
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2020-227, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2020-227, 2020
Publication in BG not foreseen
Short summary
Short summary
This incubation experiment assessed the role of solar radiation and heterotrophic bacteria in the degradation of organic carbon in surface ice of the Greenland Ice Sheet. Although ultraviolet radiation was found to alter carbon composition, heterotrophic degradation caused the greatest changes to both carbon composition and quantity. Both processes are likely interlinked within the surface ice and are fundamental to controlling the composition of carbon exported to downstream environments.
Andrew J. Tedstone, Joseph M. Cook, Christopher J. Williamson, Stefan Hofer, Jenine McCutcheon, Tristram Irvine-Fynn, Thomas Gribbin, and Martyn Tranter
The Cryosphere, 14, 521–538, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-521-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-521-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Albedo describes how much light that hits a surface is reflected without being absorbed. Low-albedo ice surfaces melt more quickly. There are large differences in the albedo of bare-ice areas of the Greenland Ice Sheet. They are caused both by dark glacier algae and by the condition of the underlying ice. Changes occur over centimetres to metres, so satellites do not always detect real albedo changes. Estimates of melt made using satellite measurements therefore tend to be underestimates.
Joseph M. Cook, Andrew J. Tedstone, Christopher Williamson, Jenine McCutcheon, Andrew J. Hodson, Archana Dayal, McKenzie Skiles, Stefan Hofer, Robert Bryant, Owen McAree, Andrew McGonigle, Jonathan Ryan, Alexandre M. Anesio, Tristram D. L. Irvine-Fynn, Alun Hubbard, Edward Hanna, Mark Flanner, Sathish Mayanna, Liane G. Benning, Dirk van As, Marian Yallop, James B. McQuaid, Thomas Gribbin, and Martyn Tranter
The Cryosphere, 14, 309–330, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-309-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-309-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is a major source of uncertainty for sea level rise projections. Ice-darkening due to the growth of algae has been recognized as a potential accelerator of melting. This paper measures and models the algae-driven ice melting and maps the algae over the ice sheet for the first time. We estimate that as much as 13 % total runoff from the south-western GrIS can be attributed to these algae, showing that they must be included in future mass balance models.
Cheng Dang, Charles S. Zender, and Mark G. Flanner
The Cryosphere, 13, 2325–2343, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2325-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2325-2019, 2019
Alexandra T. Holland, Christopher J. Williamson, Fotis Sgouridis, Andrew J. Tedstone, Jenine McCutcheon, Joseph M. Cook, Ewa Poniecka, Marian L. Yallop, Martyn Tranter, Alexandre M. Anesio, and The Black & Bloom Group
Biogeosciences, 16, 3283–3296, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3283-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3283-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper provides a preliminary data set for dissolved nutrient abundance in the Dark Zone of the Greenland Ice Sheet. This 15-year marked darkening has since been attributed to glacier algae blooms, yet has not been accounted for in current melt rate models. We conclude that the dissolved organic phase dominates surface ice environments and that factors other than macronutrient limitation control the extent and magnitude of the glacier algae blooms.
Adam Schneider, Mark Flanner, Roger De Roo, and Alden Adolph
The Cryosphere, 13, 1753–1766, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1753-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1753-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
To study the process of snow aging, we engineered a prototype instrument called the Near-Infrared Emitting and Reflectance-Monitoring Dome (NERD). Using the NERD, we observed rapid snow aging in experiments with added light absorbing particles (LAPs). Particulate matter deposited on the snow increased absorption of solar energy and enhanced snow melt. These results indicate the role of LAPs' indirect effect on snow aging through a positive feedback mechanism related to the snow grain size.
Gerhard Krinner, Chris Derksen, Richard Essery, Mark Flanner, Stefan Hagemann, Martyn Clark, Alex Hall, Helmut Rott, Claire Brutel-Vuilmet, Hyungjun Kim, Cécile B. Ménard, Lawrence Mudryk, Chad Thackeray, Libo Wang, Gabriele Arduini, Gianpaolo Balsamo, Paul Bartlett, Julia Boike, Aaron Boone, Frédérique Chéruy, Jeanne Colin, Matthias Cuntz, Yongjiu Dai, Bertrand Decharme, Jeff Derry, Agnès Ducharne, Emanuel Dutra, Xing Fang, Charles Fierz, Josephine Ghattas, Yeugeniy Gusev, Vanessa Haverd, Anna Kontu, Matthieu Lafaysse, Rachel Law, Dave Lawrence, Weiping Li, Thomas Marke, Danny Marks, Martin Ménégoz, Olga Nasonova, Tomoko Nitta, Masashi Niwano, John Pomeroy, Mark S. Raleigh, Gerd Schaedler, Vladimir Semenov, Tanya G. Smirnova, Tobias Stacke, Ulrich Strasser, Sean Svenson, Dmitry Turkov, Tao Wang, Nander Wever, Hua Yuan, Wenyan Zhou, and Dan Zhu
Geosci. Model Dev., 11, 5027–5049, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-11-5027-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-11-5027-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
This paper provides an overview of a coordinated international experiment to determine the strengths and weaknesses in how climate models treat snow. The models will be assessed at point locations using high-quality reference measurements and globally using satellite-derived datasets. How well climate models simulate snow-related processes is important because changing snow cover is an important part of the global climate system and provides an important freshwater resource for human use.
Yang Li and Mark G. Flanner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 16005–16018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-16005-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-16005-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Light-absorbing impurities enhance snowmelt by boosting the absorption of solar energy. It is therefore important for coupled aerosol–climate and ice sheet models to include this effect, and yet most do not. We conduct several thousand simulations and develop a kernel and linear equations relating melt runoff on the Greenland Ice Sheet to the timing and amount of black carbon within precipitation and dry deposition, which can be used to extend the utility of state-of-the-art aerosol models.
Cenlin He, Mark G. Flanner, Fei Chen, Michael Barlage, Kuo-Nan Liou, Shichang Kang, Jing Ming, and Yun Qian
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 11507–11527, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-11507-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-11507-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Snow albedo plays a key role in the Earth and climate system. It can be affected by impurities and snow properties. This study implements new parameterizations into a widely used snow model to account for effects of snow shape and black carbon–snow mixing state on snow albedo reduction in the Tibetan Plateau. This study points toward an imperative need for extensive measurements and improved model characterization of snow grain shape and aerosol–snow mixing state in Tibet and elsewhere.
Alex S. Gardner, Geir Moholdt, Ted Scambos, Mark Fahnstock, Stefan Ligtenberg, Michiel van den Broeke, and Johan Nilsson
The Cryosphere, 12, 521–547, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-521-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-521-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
We map present-day Antarctic surface velocities from Landsat imagery and compare to earlier estimates from radar. Flow accelerations across the grounding lines of West Antarctica's Amundsen Sea Embayment, Getz Ice Shelf and the western Antarctic Peninsula, account for 89 % of the observed increase in ice discharge. In contrast, glaciers draining the East Antarctic have been remarkably stable. Our work suggests that patterns of mass loss are part of a longer-term phase of enhanced flow.
Ann V. Rowan, Lindsey Nicholson, Emily Collier, Duncan J. Quincey, Morgan J. Gibson, Patrick Wagnon, David R. Rounce, Sarah S. Thompson, Owen King, C. Scott Watson, Tristram D. L. Irvine-Fynn, and Neil F. Glasser
The Cryosphere Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-239, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-239, 2017
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Short summary
Many glaciers in the Himalaya are covered with thick layers of rock debris that acts as an insulating blanket and so reduces melting of the underlying ice. Little is known about how melt beneath supraglacial debris varies across glaciers and through the monsoon season. We measured debris temperatures across three glaciers and several years to investigate seasonal trends, and found that sub-debris ice melt can be predicted using a temperature–depth relationship with surface temperature data.
Andrew J. Tedstone, Jonathan L. Bamber, Joseph M. Cook, Christopher J. Williamson, Xavier Fettweis, Andrew J. Hodson, and Martyn Tranter
The Cryosphere, 11, 2491–2506, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2491-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2491-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
The bare ice albedo of the south-west Greenland ice sheet varies dramatically between years. The reasons are unclear but likely involve darkening by inorganic particulates, cryoconite and ice algae. We use satellite imagery to examine dark ice dynamics and climate model outputs to find likely climatological controls. Outcropping particulates can explain the spatial extent of dark ice, but the darkening itself is likely due to ice algae growth controlled by meltwater and light availability.
Katie E. Miles, Bryn Hubbard, Tristam D. L. Irvine-Fynn, Evan S. Miles, Duncan J. Quincey, and Ann V. Rowan
The Cryosphere Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-210, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2017-210, 2017
Preprint withdrawn
Short summary
Short summary
The production and routing of meltwater through glaciers is important because that water influences glacier sliding, and represents a resource in some instances and a hazard in others. Despite this importance, very little is known about the hydrology of debris-covered glaciers, which are commonly located at high altitudes. Here, we present a review of the hydrology of debris-covered glaciers, summarizing the current state of knowledge and identify potential future research priorities.
Christopher James Williamson, Rupert Perkins, Matthew Voller, Marian Louise Yallop, and Juliet Brodie
Biogeosciences, 14, 4485–4498, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-4485-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-4485-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Red calcified seaweeds in UK rock pools have seasonal patterns in growth and photosynthesis driven by seawater temperature, light and the chemistry of rock pool water. This is important given future changes in environmental factors such as climate change and ocean acidification. Photosynthesis and calcification are strongly coupled and depend on light and temperature, whilst dissolution is regulated by rock pool water chemistry and is thus particularly vulnerable to environmental change.
Gunnar Myhre, Wenche Aas, Ribu Cherian, William Collins, Greg Faluvegi, Mark Flanner, Piers Forster, Øivind Hodnebrog, Zbigniew Klimont, Marianne T. Lund, Johannes Mülmenstädt, Cathrine Lund Myhre, Dirk Olivié, Michael Prather, Johannes Quaas, Bjørn H. Samset, Jordan L. Schnell, Michael Schulz, Drew Shindell, Ragnhild B. Skeie, Toshihiko Takemura, and Svetlana Tsyro
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 2709–2720, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-2709-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-2709-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Over the past decades, the geographical distribution of emissions of substances that alter the atmospheric energy balance has changed due to economic growth and pollution regulations. Here, we show the resulting changes to aerosol and ozone abundances and their radiative forcing using recently updated emission data for the period 1990–2015, as simulated by seven global atmospheric composition models. The global mean radiative forcing is more strongly positive than reported in IPCC AR5.
Johan Nilsson, Alex Gardner, Louise Sandberg Sørensen, and Rene Forsberg
The Cryosphere, 10, 2953–2969, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2953-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2953-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we present a new processing methodology for retrieving surface elevations and elevation changes over glaciated terrain from CryoSat-2 data. The new methodology has been shown to be less sensitive to changes in near-surface dielectric properties and provides improved elevation and elevation change retrievals. This methodology has been applied to the Greenland Ice Sheet to provide an updated volume change estimate for the period of 2011 to 2015.
James A. Bradley, Sandra Arndt, Marie Šabacká, Liane G. Benning, Gary L. Barker, Joshua J. Blacker, Marian L. Yallop, Katherine E. Wright, Christopher M. Bellas, Jonathan Telling, Martyn Tranter, and Alexandre M. Anesio
Biogeosciences, 13, 5677–5696, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-5677-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-5677-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Soil development following glacier retreat was characterized using a novel integrated field, laboratory and modelling approach in Svalbard. We found community shifts in bacteria, which were responsible for driving cycles in carbon and nutrients. Allochthonous inputs were also important in sustaining bacterial production. This study shows how an integrated model–data approach can improve understanding and obtain a more holistic picture of soil development in an increasingly ice-free future world.
Bart van den Hurk, Hyungjun Kim, Gerhard Krinner, Sonia I. Seneviratne, Chris Derksen, Taikan Oki, Hervé Douville, Jeanne Colin, Agnès Ducharne, Frederique Cheruy, Nicholas Viovy, Michael J. Puma, Yoshihide Wada, Weiping Li, Binghao Jia, Andrea Alessandri, Dave M. Lawrence, Graham P. Weedon, Richard Ellis, Stefan Hagemann, Jiafu Mao, Mark G. Flanner, Matteo Zampieri, Stefano Materia, Rachel M. Law, and Justin Sheffield
Geosci. Model Dev., 9, 2809–2832, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-9-2809-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-9-2809-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
This manuscript describes the setup of the CMIP6 project Land Surface, Snow and Soil Moisture Model Intercomparison Project (LS3MIP).
Geir Vatne and Tristram D. L. Irvine-Fynn
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 2947–2964, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2947-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2947-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Ten years of direct observations of an englacial conduit in a cold based glacier in Svalbard document for the first time how a vertical meltwater waterfall (moulin) is formed from gradual incision of a meltwater channel. This evolution appears to be dominated by knickpoints that incise upstream at rates several times faster than the vertical incision in adjacent near horizontal channel sections.
Robert Raiswell, Jon R. Hawkings, Liane G. Benning, Alex R. Baker, Ros Death, Samuel Albani, Natalie Mahowald, Michael D. Krom, Simon W. Poulton, Jemma Wadham, and Martyn Tranter
Biogeosciences, 13, 3887–3900, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3887-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3887-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Iron is an essential nutrient for plankton growth. One important source of iron is wind-blown dust. The polar oceans are remote from dust sources but melting icebergs supply sediment that contains iron which is potentially available to plankton. We show that iceberg sediments contain more potentially bioavailable iron than wind-blown dust. Iceberg sources will become increasingly important with climate change and increased plankton growth can remove more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Emily C. O'Donnell, Jemma L. Wadham, Grzegorz P. Lis, Martyn Tranter, Amy E. Pickard, Marek Stibal, Paul Dewsbury, and Sean Fitzsimons
Biogeosciences, 13, 3833–3846, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3833-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3833-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
We use a novel ion chromatographic analysis that provides the first identification and quantification of major low-molecular-weight dissolved organic carbon (LMW-DOC) compounds in basal ice. LMW-DOC concentrations were dependent on the bioavailability of the overridden organic carbon, which in turn was influenced by the type of overridden material. The overridden material may thus act as a direct (abiotic leaching) and indirect (microbial cycling) source of DOC to the subglacial environment.
D. Singh, M. G. Flanner, and J. Perket
The Cryosphere, 9, 2057–2070, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-2057-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-2057-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
Our work quantifies the effect of snow/ice cover on Earth's top-of-atmosphere solar energy budget. We used higher resolution MODIS data, combined with microwave retrievals of snow presence and radiative kernels produced from 4 different models for Cryosphere Radiative Effect (CrRE) estimation. We have estimated a global land-based CrRE of about -2.6Wm-2 during 2001-2013, with about 59% of the effect originating from Antarctica. We were also be able to resolve contribution from mountain glaciers.
S. Eckhardt, B. Quennehen, D. J. L. Olivié, T. K. Berntsen, R. Cherian, J. H. Christensen, W. Collins, S. Crepinsek, N. Daskalakis, M. Flanner, A. Herber, C. Heyes, Ø. Hodnebrog, L. Huang, M. Kanakidou, Z. Klimont, J. Langner, K. S. Law, M. T. Lund, R. Mahmood, A. Massling, S. Myriokefalitakis, I. E. Nielsen, J. K. Nøjgaard, J. Quaas, P. K. Quinn, J.-C. Raut, S. T. Rumbold, M. Schulz, S. Sharma, R. B. Skeie, H. Skov, T. Uttal, K. von Salzen, and A. Stohl
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 15, 9413–9433, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-9413-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-15-9413-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
The concentrations of sulfate, black carbon and other aerosols in the Arctic are characterized by high values in late winter and spring (so-called Arctic Haze) and low values in summer. Models have long been struggling to capture this seasonality. In this study, we evaluate sulfate and BC concentrations from different updated models and emissions against a comprehensive pan-Arctic measurement data set. We find that the models improved but still struggle to get the maximum concentrations.
J. Nilsson, L. Sandberg Sørensen, V. R. Barletta, and R. Forsberg
The Cryosphere, 9, 139–150, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-139-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-139-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
The aim of this study is to determine and quantify the impact of different regionalization schemes on surface elevation changes, and how they affect the estimated spread in mass balance of Arctic ice caps and glaciers. The study found that the choice of regionalization has an important effect in regions with maritime climate and high variability in elevation change. In these areas the spread in mass balance was in many cases larger than the estimated errors of the individual methods.
S. J. Doherty, C. M. Bitz, and M. G. Flanner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 11697–11709, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-11697-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-11697-2014, 2014
Short summary
Short summary
Black carbon in snow lowers its albedo, increasing the absorption of sunlight, leading to positive radiative forcing, climate warming and earlier snow-melt. A series of recent studies have used prescribed rates of black carbon deposition to snow to assess the climate effects of black carbon in snow. Here we show that the use of prescribed deposition fluxes in these model studies leads to high biases in snow BC concentrations, caused by the decoupling of BC and snow deposition to the surface.
C. Zhao, Z. Hu, Y. Qian, L. Ruby Leung, J. Huang, M. Huang, J. Jin, M. G. Flanner, R. Zhang, H. Wang, H. Yan, Z. Lu, and D. G. Streets
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 11475–11491, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-11475-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-11475-2014, 2014
H. J. Langford, T. D. L. Irvine-Fynn, A. Edwards, S. A. Banwart, and A. J. Hodson
Biogeosciences, 11, 5365–5380, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-5365-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-5365-2014, 2014
E. C. Lawson, J. L. Wadham, M. Tranter, M. Stibal, G. P. Lis, C. E. H. Butler, J. Laybourn-Parry, P. Nienow, D. Chandler, and P. Dewsbury
Biogeosciences, 11, 4015–4028, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-4015-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-4015-2014, 2014
C. Jiao, M. G. Flanner, Y. Balkanski, S. E. Bauer, N. Bellouin, T. K. Berntsen, H. Bian, K. S. Carslaw, M. Chin, N. De Luca, T. Diehl, S. J. Ghan, T. Iversen, A. Kirkevåg, D. Koch, X. Liu, G. W. Mann, J. E. Penner, G. Pitari, M. Schulz, Ø. Seland, R. B. Skeie, S. D. Steenrod, P. Stier, T. Takemura, K. Tsigaridis, T. van Noije, Y. Yun, and K. Zhang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 2399–2417, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-2399-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-2399-2014, 2014
D. T. Shindell, J.-F. Lamarque, M. Schulz, M. Flanner, C. Jiao, M. Chin, P. J. Young, Y. H. Lee, L. Rotstayn, N. Mahowald, G. Milly, G. Faluvegi, Y. Balkanski, W. J. Collins, A. J. Conley, S. Dalsoren, R. Easter, S. Ghan, L. Horowitz, X. Liu, G. Myhre, T. Nagashima, V. Naik, S. T. Rumbold, R. Skeie, K. Sudo, S. Szopa, T. Takemura, A. Voulgarakis, J.-H. Yoon, and F. Lo
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 2939–2974, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-2939-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-2939-2013, 2013
Y. H. Lee, J.-F. Lamarque, M. G. Flanner, C. Jiao, D. T. Shindell, T. Berntsen, M. M. Bisiaux, J. Cao, W. J. Collins, M. Curran, R. Edwards, G. Faluvegi, S. Ghan, L. W. Horowitz, J. R. McConnell, J. Ming, G. Myhre, T. Nagashima, V. Naik, S. T. Rumbold, R. B. Skeie, K. Sudo, T. Takemura, F. Thevenon, B. Xu, and J.-H. Yoon
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 2607–2634, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-2607-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-2607-2013, 2013
K. M. Sterle, J. R. McConnell, J. Dozier, R. Edwards, and M. G. Flanner
The Cryosphere, 7, 365–374, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-365-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-365-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Energy Balance Obs/Modelling
Brief communication: Accurate and autonomous snow water equivalent measurements using a cosmic ray sensor on a Himalayan glacier
Surface heat fluxes at coarse blocky Murtèl rock glacier (Engadine, eastern Swiss Alps)
Modeling snowpack dynamics and surface energy budget in boreal and subarctic peatlands and forests
Evaluation of reanalysis data and dynamical downscaling for surface energy balance modeling at mountain glaciers in western Canada
Brief communication: Surface energy balance differences over Greenland between ERA5 and ERA-Interim
A computationally efficient statistically downscaled 100 m resolution Greenland product from the regional climate model MAR
Modeling of surface energy balance for Icelandic glaciers using remote-sensing albedo
Strategies for regional modeling of surface mass balance at the Monte Sarmiento Massif, Tierra del Fuego
A sensor-agnostic albedo retrieval method for realistic sea ice surfaces: model and validation
Estimating degree-day factors of snow based on energy flux components
Long-term firn and mass balance modelling for Abramov Glacier in the data-scarce Pamir Alay
The surface energy balance during foehn events at Joyce Glacier, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica
Sub-seasonal variability of supraglacial ice cliff melt rates and associated processes from time-lapse photogrammetry
Understanding wind-driven melt of patchy snow cover
Understanding model spread in sea ice volume by attribution of model differences in seasonal ice growth and melt
An 11-year record of wintertime snow-surface energy balance and sublimation at 4863 m a.s.l. on the Chhota Shigri Glacier moraine (western Himalaya, India)
Sensitivity of modeled snow grain size retrievals to solar geometry, snow particle asphericity, and snowpack impurities
Metamorphism of snow on Arctic sea ice during the melt season: impact on spectral albedo and radiative fluxes through snow
Cloud forcing of surface energy balance from in situ measurements in diverse mountain glacier environments
Modelling glacier mass balance and climate sensitivity in the context of sparse observations: application to Saskatchewan Glacier, western Canada
GABLS4 intercomparison of snow models at Dome C in Antarctica
Divergence of apparent and intrinsic snow albedo over a season at a sub-alpine site with implications for remote sensing
Understanding monsoon controls on the energy and mass balance of glaciers in the Central and Eastern Himalaya
A new Stefan equation to characterize the evolution of thermokarst lake and talik geometry
SNICAR-ADv4: a physically based radiative transfer model to represent the spectral albedo of glacier ice
Convective heat transfer of spring meltwater accelerates active layer phase change in Tibet permafrost areas
Modelling surface temperature and radiation budget of snow-covered complex terrain
Impact of the melt–albedo feedback on the future evolution of the Greenland Ice Sheet with PISM-dEBM-simple
Snow model comparison to simulate snow depth evolution and sublimation at point scale in the semi-arid Andes of Chile
Brief communication: Evaluation of multiple density-dependent empirical snow conductivity relationships in East Antarctica
Sensitivity of the surface energy budget to drifting snow as simulated by MAR in coastal Adelie Land, Antarctica
Firn changes at Colle Gnifetti revealed with a high-resolution process-based physical model approach
The surface energy balance in a cold and arid permafrost environment, Ladakh, Himalayas, India
The diurnal Energy Balance Model (dEBM): a convenient surface mass balance solution for ice sheets in Earth system modeling
Spectral attenuation coefficients from measurements of light transmission in bare ice on the Greenland Ice Sheet
On the statistical properties of sea-ice lead fraction and heat fluxes in the Arctic
Effect of small-scale snow surface roughness on snow albedo and reflectance
New insights into radiative transfer within sea ice derived from autonomous optical propagation measurements
Long-term surface energy balance of the western Greenland Ice Sheet and the role of large-scale circulation variability
Seasonal and interannual variability of melt-season albedo at Haig Glacier, Canadian Rocky Mountains
Surface energy fluxes on Chilean glaciers: measurements and models
Using 3D turbulence-resolving simulations to understand the impact of surface properties on the energy balance of a debris-covered glacier
Incorporating moisture content in surface energy balance modeling of a debris-covered glacier
Surface melt and the importance of water flow – an analysis based on high-resolution unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) data for an Arctic glacier
Impact of forcing on sublimation simulations for a high mountain catchment in the semiarid Andes
Intercomparison and improvement of two-stream shortwave radiative transfer schemes in Earth system models for a unified treatment of cryospheric surfaces
Water tracks intensify surface energy and mass exchange in the Antarctic McMurdo Dry Valleys
Quantifying the snowmelt–albedo feedback at Neumayer Station, East Antarctica
A key factor initiating surface ablation of Arctic sea ice: earlier and increasing liquid precipitation
Brief communication: An ice surface melt scheme including the diurnal cycle of solar radiation
Navaraj Pokhrel, Patrick Wagnon, Fanny Brun, Arbindra Khadka, Tom Matthews, Audrey Goutard, Dibas Shrestha, Baker Perry, and Marion Réveillet
The Cryosphere, 18, 5913–5920, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-5913-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-5913-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We studied snow processes in the accumulation area of Mera Glacier (central Himalaya, Nepal) by deploying a cosmic ray counting sensor that allows one to track the evolution of snow water equivalent. We suspect significant surface melting, water percolation, and refreezing within the snowpack, which might be missed by traditional mass balance surveys.
Dominik Amschwand, Martin Scherler, Martin Hoelzle, Bernhard Krummenacher, Anna Haberkorn, Christian Kienholz, and Hansueli Gubler
The Cryosphere, 18, 2103–2139, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2103-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2103-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Rock glaciers are coarse-debris permafrost landforms that are comparatively climate resilient. We estimate the surface energy balance of rock glacier Murtèl (Swiss Alps) based on a large surface and sub-surface sensor array. During the thaw seasons 2021 and 2022, 90 % of the net radiation was exported via turbulent heat fluxes and only 10 % was transmitted towards the ground ice table. However, early snowmelt and droughts make these permafrost landforms vulnerable to climate warming.
Jari-Pekka Nousu, Matthieu Lafaysse, Giulia Mazzotti, Pertti Ala-aho, Hannu Marttila, Bertrand Cluzet, Mika Aurela, Annalea Lohila, Pasi Kolari, Aaron Boone, Mathieu Fructus, and Samuli Launiainen
The Cryosphere, 18, 231–263, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-231-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-231-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The snowpack has a major impact on the land surface energy budget. Accurate simulation of the snowpack energy budget is difficult, and studies that evaluate models against energy budget observations are rare. We compared predictions from well-known models with observations of energy budgets, snow depths and soil temperatures in Finland. Our study identified contrasting strengths and limitations for the models. These results can be used for choosing the right models depending on the use cases.
Christina Draeger, Valentina Radić, Rachel H. White, and Mekdes Ayalew Tessema
The Cryosphere, 18, 17–42, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-17-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-17-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Our study increases our confidence in using reanalysis data for reconstructions of past glacier melt and in using dynamical downscaling for long-term simulations from global climate models to project glacier melt. We find that the surface energy balance model, forced with reanalysis and dynamically downscaled reanalysis data, yields <10 % difference in the modeled total melt energy when compared to the same model being forced with observations at our glacier sites in western Canada.
Uta Krebs-Kanzow, Christian B. Rodehacke, and Gerrit Lohmann
The Cryosphere, 17, 5131–5136, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5131-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5131-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We compare components of the surface energy balance from two datasets, ERA5 and ERA-Interim, which can be used to estimate the surface mass balance (SMB) on the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS). ERA5 differs significantly from ERA-Interim, especially in the melt regions with lower temperatures and stronger shortwave radiation. Consequently, methods that previously estimated the GrIS SMB from ERA-Interim need to be carefully recalibrated before conversion to ERA5 forcing.
Marco Tedesco, Paolo Colosio, Xavier Fettweis, and Guido Cervone
The Cryosphere, 17, 5061–5074, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5061-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5061-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We developed a technique to improve the outputs of a model that calculates the gain and loss of Greenland and consequently its contribution to sea level rise. Our technique generates “sharper” images of the maps generated by the model to better understand and quantify where losses occur. This has implications for improving models, understanding what drives the contributions of Greenland to sea level rise, and more.
Andri Gunnarsson, Sigurdur M. Gardarsson, and Finnur Pálsson
The Cryosphere, 17, 3955–3986, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3955-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3955-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
A model was developed with the possibility of utilizing satellite-derived daily surface albedo driven by high-resolution climate data to estimate the surface energy balance (SEB) for all Icelandic glaciers for the period 2000–2021.
Franziska Temme, David Farías-Barahona, Thorsten Seehaus, Ricardo Jaña, Jorge Arigony-Neto, Inti Gonzalez, Anselm Arndt, Tobias Sauter, Christoph Schneider, and Johannes J. Fürst
The Cryosphere, 17, 2343–2365, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2343-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-2343-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Calibration of surface mass balance (SMB) models on regional scales is challenging. We investigate different calibration strategies with the goal of achieving realistic simulations of the SMB in the Monte Sarmiento Massif, Tierra del Fuego. Our results show that the use of regional observations from satellite data can improve the model performance. Furthermore, we compare four melt models of different complexity to understand the benefit of increasing the processes considered in the model.
Yingzhen Zhou, Wei Li, Nan Chen, Yongzhen Fan, and Knut Stamnes
The Cryosphere, 17, 1053–1087, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1053-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1053-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We present a method to compute albedo (percentage of the light reflected) of the cryosphere surface using observations from optical satellite sensors. This method can be applied to sea ice, snow-covered ice, melt pond, open ocean, and mixtures thereof. Evaluation of the albedo values calculated using this approach demonstrated excellent agreement with observations. In addition, we have included a statistical comparison of the proposed method's results with those derived from other approaches.
Muhammad Fraz Ismail, Wolfgang Bogacki, Markus Disse, Michael Schäfer, and Lothar Kirschbauer
The Cryosphere, 17, 211–231, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-211-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-211-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Fresh water from mountainous catchments in the form of snowmelt and ice melt is of critical importance especially in the summer season for people living in these regions. In general, limited data availability is the core concern while modelling the snow and ice melt components from these mountainous catchments. This research will be helpful in selecting realistic parameter values (i.e. degree-day factor) while calibrating the temperature-index models for data-scarce regions.
Marlene Kronenberg, Ward van Pelt, Horst Machguth, Joel Fiddes, Martin Hoelzle, and Felix Pertziger
The Cryosphere, 16, 5001–5022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-5001-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-5001-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The Pamir Alay is located at the edge of regions with anomalous glacier mass changes. Unique long-term in situ data are available for Abramov Glacier, located in the Pamir Alay. In this study, we use this extraordinary data set in combination with reanalysis data and a coupled surface energy balance–multilayer subsurface model to compute and analyse the distributed climatic mass balance and firn evolution from 1968 to 2020.
Marte G. Hofsteenge, Nicolas J. Cullen, Carleen H. Reijmer, Michiel van den Broeke, Marwan Katurji, and John F. Orwin
The Cryosphere, 16, 5041–5059, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-5041-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-5041-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
In the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV), foehn winds can impact glacial meltwater production and the fragile ecosystem that depends on it. We study these dry and warm winds at Joyce Glacier and show they are caused by a different mechanism than that found for nearby valleys, demonstrating the complex interaction of large-scale winds with the mountains in the MDV. We find that foehn winds increase sublimation of ice, increase heating from the atmosphere, and increase the occurrence and rates of melt.
Marin Kneib, Evan S. Miles, Pascal Buri, Stefan Fugger, Michael McCarthy, Thomas E. Shaw, Zhao Chuanxi, Martin Truffer, Matthew J. Westoby, Wei Yang, and Francesca Pellicciotti
The Cryosphere, 16, 4701–4725, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4701-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4701-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Ice cliffs are believed to be important contributors to the melt of debris-covered glaciers, but this has rarely been quantified as the cliffs can disappear or rapidly expand within a few weeks. We used photogrammetry techniques to quantify the weekly evolution and melt of four cliffs. We found that their behaviour and melt during the monsoon is strongly controlled by supraglacial debris, streams and ponds, thus providing valuable insights on the melt and evolution of debris-covered glaciers.
Luuk D. van der Valk, Adriaan J. Teuling, Luc Girod, Norbert Pirk, Robin Stoffer, and Chiel C. van Heerwaarden
The Cryosphere, 16, 4319–4341, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4319-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4319-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Most large-scale hydrological and climate models struggle to capture the spatially highly variable wind-driven melt of patchy snow cover. In the field, we find that 60 %–80 % of the total melt is wind driven at the upwind edge of a snow patch, while it does not contribute at the downwind edge. Our idealized simulations show that the variation is due to a patch-size-independent air-temperature reduction over snow patches and also allow us to study the role of wind-driven snowmelt on larger scales.
Alex West, Edward Blockley, and Matthew Collins
The Cryosphere, 16, 4013–4032, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4013-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4013-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
In this study we explore a method of examining model differences in ice volume by looking at the seasonal ice growth and melt. We use simple physical relationships to judge how model differences in key variables affect ice growth and melt and apply these to three case study models with ice volume ranging from very thin to very thick. Results suggest that differences in snow and melt pond cover in early summer are most important in causing the sea ice differences for these models.
Arindan Mandal, Thupstan Angchuk, Mohd Farooq Azam, Alagappan Ramanathan, Patrick Wagnon, Mohd Soheb, and Chetan Singh
The Cryosphere, 16, 3775–3799, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3775-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3775-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Snow sublimation is an important component of glacier surface mass balance; however, it is seldom studied in detail in the Himalayan region owing to data scarcity. We present an 11-year record of wintertime snow-surface energy balance and sublimation characteristics at the Chhota Shigri Glacier moraine site at 4863 m a.s.l. The estimated winter sublimation is 16 %–42 % of the winter snowfall at the study site, which signifies how sublimation is important in the Himalayan region.
Zachary Fair, Mark Flanner, Adam Schneider, and S. McKenzie Skiles
The Cryosphere, 16, 3801–3814, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3801-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3801-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Snow grain size is important to determine the age and structure of snow, but it is difficult to measure. Snow grain size can be found from airborne and spaceborne observations by measuring near-infrared energy reflected from snow. In this study, we use the SNICAR radiative transfer model and a Monte Carlo model to examine how snow grain size measurements change with snow structure and solar zenith angle. We show that improved understanding of these variables improves snow grain size precision.
Gauthier Vérin, Florent Domine, Marcel Babin, Ghislain Picard, and Laurent Arnaud
The Cryosphere, 16, 3431–3449, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3431-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3431-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Snow physical properties on Arctic sea ice are monitored during the melt season. As snow grains grow, and the snowpack thickness is reduced, the surface albedo decreases. The extra absorbed energy accelerates melting. Radiative transfer modeling shows that more radiation is then transmitted to the snow–sea-ice interface. A sharp increase in transmitted radiation takes place when the snowpack thins significantly, and this coincides with the initiation of the phytoplankton bloom in the seawater.
Jonathan P. Conway, Jakob Abermann, Liss M. Andreassen, Mohd Farooq Azam, Nicolas J. Cullen, Noel Fitzpatrick, Rianne H. Giesen, Kirsty Langley, Shelley MacDonell, Thomas Mölg, Valentina Radić, Carleen H. Reijmer, and Jean-Emmanuel Sicart
The Cryosphere, 16, 3331–3356, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3331-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3331-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
We used data from automatic weather stations on 16 glaciers to show how clouds influence glacier melt in different climates around the world. We found surface melt was always more frequent when it was cloudy but was not universally faster or slower than under clear-sky conditions. Also, air temperature was related to clouds in opposite ways in different climates – warmer with clouds in cold climates and vice versa. These results will help us improve how we model past and future glacier melt.
Christophe Kinnard, Olivier Larouche, Michael N. Demuth, and Brian Menounos
The Cryosphere, 16, 3071–3099, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3071-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3071-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
This study implements a physically based, distributed glacier mass balance model in a context of sparse direct observations. Carefully constraining model parameters with ancillary data allowed for accurately reconstructing the mass balance of Saskatchewan Glacier over a 37-year period. We show that the mass balance sensitivity to warming is dominated by increased melting and that changes in glacier albedo and air humidity are the leading causes of increased glacier melt under warming scenarios.
Patrick Le Moigne, Eric Bazile, Anning Cheng, Emanuel Dutra, John M. Edwards, William Maurel, Irina Sandu, Olivier Traullé, Etienne Vignon, Ayrton Zadra, and Weizhong Zheng
The Cryosphere, 16, 2183–2202, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2183-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2183-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
This paper describes an intercomparison of snow models, of varying complexity, used for numerical weather prediction or academic research. The results show that the simplest models are, under certain conditions, able to reproduce the surface temperature just as well as the most complex models. Moreover, the diversity of surface parameters of the models has a strong impact on the temporal variability of the components of the simulated surface energy balance.
Edward H. Bair, Jeff Dozier, Charles Stern, Adam LeWinter, Karl Rittger, Alexandria Savagian, Timbo Stillinger, and Robert E. Davis
The Cryosphere, 16, 1765–1778, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1765-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1765-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Understanding how snow and ice reflect solar radiation (albedo) is important for global climate. Using high-resolution topography, darkening from surface roughness (apparent albedo) is separated from darkening by the composition of the snow (intrinsic albedo). Intrinsic albedo is usually greater than apparent albedo, especially during melt. Such high-resolution topography is often not available; thus the use of a shade component when modeling mixtures is advised.
Stefan Fugger, Catriona L. Fyffe, Simone Fatichi, Evan Miles, Michael McCarthy, Thomas E. Shaw, Baohong Ding, Wei Yang, Patrick Wagnon, Walter Immerzeel, Qiao Liu, and Francesca Pellicciotti
The Cryosphere, 16, 1631–1652, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1631-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1631-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The monsoon is important for the shrinking and growing of glaciers in the Himalaya during summer. We calculate the melt of seven glaciers in the region using a complex glacier melt model and weather data. We find that monsoonal weather affects glaciers that are covered with a layer of rocky debris and glaciers without such a layer in different ways. It is important to take so-called turbulent fluxes into account. This knowledge is vital for predicting the future of the Himalayan glaciers.
Noriaki Ohara, Benjamin M. Jones, Andrew D. Parsekian, Kenneth M. Hinkel, Katsu Yamatani, Mikhail Kanevskiy, Rodrigo C. Rangel, Amy L. Breen, and Helena Bergstedt
The Cryosphere, 16, 1247–1264, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1247-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1247-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
New variational principle suggests that a semi-ellipsoid talik shape (3D Stefan equation) is optimum for incoming energy. However, the lake bathymetry tends to be less ellipsoidal due to the ice-rich layers near the surface. Wind wave erosion is likely responsible for the elongation of lakes, while thaw subsidence slows the wave effect and stabilizes the thermokarst lakes. The derived 3D Stefan equation was compared to the field-observed talik thickness data using geophysical methods.
Chloe A. Whicker, Mark G. Flanner, Cheng Dang, Charles S. Zender, Joseph M. Cook, and Alex S. Gardner
The Cryosphere, 16, 1197–1220, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1197-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-1197-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Snow and ice surfaces are important to the global climate. Current climate models use measurements to determine the reflectivity of ice. This model uses physical properties to determine the reflectivity of snow, ice, and darkly pigmented impurities that reside within the snow and ice. Therefore, the modeled reflectivity is more accurate for snow/ice columns under varying climate conditions. This model paves the way for improvements in the portrayal of snow and ice within global climate models.
Yi Zhao, Zhuotong Nan, Hailong Ji, and Lin Zhao
The Cryosphere, 16, 825–849, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-825-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-825-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Convective heat transfer (CHT) is important in affecting thermal regimes in permafrost regions. We quantified its thermal impacts by contrasting the simulation results from three scenarios in which the Simultaneous Heat and Water model includes full, partial, and no consideration of CHT. The results show the CHT commonly happens in shallow and middle soil depths during thawing periods and has greater impacts in spring than summer. The CHT has both heating and cooling effects on the active layer.
Alvaro Robledano, Ghislain Picard, Laurent Arnaud, Fanny Larue, and Inès Ollivier
The Cryosphere, 16, 559–579, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-559-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-559-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Topography controls the surface temperature of snow-covered, mountainous areas. We developed a modelling chain that uses ray-tracing methods to quantify the impact of a few topographic effects on snow surface temperature at high spatial resolution. Its large spatial and temporal variations are correctly simulated over a 50 km2 area in the French Alps, and our results show that excluding a single topographic effect results in cooling (or warming) effects on the order of 1 °C.
Maria Zeitz, Ronja Reese, Johanna Beckmann, Uta Krebs-Kanzow, and Ricarda Winkelmann
The Cryosphere, 15, 5739–5764, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-5739-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-5739-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
With the increasing melt of the Greenland Ice Sheet, which contributes to sea level rise, the surface of the ice darkens. The dark surfaces absorb more radiation and thus experience increased melt, resulting in the melt–albedo feedback. Using a simple surface melt model, we estimate that this positive feedback contributes to an additional 60 % ice loss in a high-warming scenario and additional 90 % ice loss for moderate warming. Albedo changes are important for Greenland’s future ice loss.
Annelies Voordendag, Marion Réveillet, Shelley MacDonell, and Stef Lhermitte
The Cryosphere, 15, 4241–4259, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4241-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4241-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The sensitivity of two snow models (SNOWPACK and SnowModel) to various parameterizations and atmospheric forcing biases is assessed in the semi-arid Andes of Chile in winter 2017. Models show that sublimation is a main driver of ablation and that its relative contribution to total ablation is highly sensitive to the selected albedo parameterization and snow roughness length. The forcing and parameterizations are more important than the model choice, despite differences in physical complexity.
Minghu Ding, Tong Zhang, Diyi Yang, Ian Allison, Tingfeng Dou, and Cunde Xiao
The Cryosphere, 15, 4201–4206, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4201-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4201-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Measurement of snow heat conductivity is essential to establish the energy balance between the atmosphere and firn, but it is still not clear in Antarctica. Here, we used data from three automatic weather stations located in different types of climate and evaluated nine schemes that were used to calculate the effective heat diffusivity of snow. The best solution was proposed. However, no conductivity–density relationship was optimal at all sites, and the performance of each varied with depth.
Louis Le Toumelin, Charles Amory, Vincent Favier, Christoph Kittel, Stefan Hofer, Xavier Fettweis, Hubert Gallée, and Vinay Kayetha
The Cryosphere, 15, 3595–3614, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3595-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3595-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Snow is frequently eroded from the surface by the wind in Adelie Land (Antarctica) and suspended in the lower atmosphere. By performing model simulations, we show firstly that suspended snow layers interact with incoming radiation similarly to a near-surface cloud. Secondly, suspended snow modifies the atmosphere's thermodynamic structure and energy exchanges with the surface. Our results suggest snow transport by the wind should be taken into account in future model studies over the region.
Enrico Mattea, Horst Machguth, Marlene Kronenberg, Ward van Pelt, Manuela Bassi, and Martin Hoelzle
The Cryosphere, 15, 3181–3205, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3181-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3181-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
In our study we find that climate change is affecting the high-alpine Colle Gnifetti glacier (Swiss–Italian Alps) with an increase in melt amounts and ice temperatures.
In the near future this trend could threaten the viability of the oldest ice core record in the Alps.
To reach our conclusions, for the first time we used the meteorological data of the highest permanent weather station in Europe (Capanna Margherita, 4560 m), together with an advanced numeric simulation of the glacier.
John Mohd Wani, Renoj J. Thayyen, Chandra Shekhar Prasad Ojha, and Stephan Gruber
The Cryosphere, 15, 2273–2293, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-2273-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-2273-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We study the surface energy balance from a cold-arid permafrost environment in the Indian Himalayan region. The GEOtop model was used for the modelling of surface energy balance. Our results show that the variability in the turbulent heat fluxes is similar to that reported from the seasonally frozen ground and permafrost regions of the Tibetan Plateau. Further, the low relative humidity could be playing a critical role in the surface energy balance and the permafrost processes.
Uta Krebs-Kanzow, Paul Gierz, Christian B. Rodehacke, Shan Xu, Hu Yang, and Gerrit Lohmann
The Cryosphere, 15, 2295–2313, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-2295-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-2295-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The surface mass balance scheme dEBM (diurnal Energy Balance Model) provides a novel, computationally inexpensive interface between the atmosphere and land ice for Earth system modeling. The dEBM is particularly suitable for Earth system modeling on multi-millennial timescales as it accounts for changes in the Earth's orbit and atmospheric greenhouse gas concentration.
Matthew G. Cooper, Laurence C. Smith, Asa K. Rennermalm, Marco Tedesco, Rohi Muthyala, Sasha Z. Leidman, Samiah E. Moustafa, and Jessica V. Fayne
The Cryosphere, 15, 1931–1953, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1931-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1931-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We measured sunlight transmitted into glacier ice to improve models of glacier ice melt and satellite measurements of glacier ice surfaces. We found that very small concentrations of impurities inside the ice increase absorption of sunlight, but the amount was small enough to enable an estimate of ice absorptivity. We confirmed earlier results that the absorption minimum is near 390 nm. We also found that a layer of highly reflective granular "white ice" near the surface reduces transmittance.
Einar Ólason, Pierre Rampal, and Véronique Dansereau
The Cryosphere, 15, 1053–1064, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1053-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-1053-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We analyse the fractal properties observed in the pattern of the long, narrow openings that form in Arctic sea ice known as leads. We use statistical tools to explore the fractal properties of the lead fraction observed in satellite data and show that our sea-ice model neXtSIM displays the same behaviour. Building on this result we then show that the pattern of heat loss from ocean to atmosphere in the model displays similar fractal properties, stemming from the fractal properties of the leads.
Terhikki Manninen, Kati Anttila, Emmihenna Jääskeläinen, Aku Riihelä, Jouni Peltoniemi, Petri Räisänen, Panu Lahtinen, Niilo Siljamo, Laura Thölix, Outi Meinander, Anna Kontu, Hanne Suokanerva, Roberta Pirazzini, Juha Suomalainen, Teemu Hakala, Sanna Kaasalainen, Harri Kaartinen, Antero Kukko, Olivier Hautecoeur, and Jean-Louis Roujean
The Cryosphere, 15, 793–820, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-793-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-793-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The primary goal of this paper is to present a model of snow surface albedo (brightness) accounting for small-scale surface roughness effects. It can be combined with any volume scattering model. The results indicate that surface roughness may decrease the albedo by about 1–3 % in midwinter and even more than 10 % during the late melting season. The effect is largest for low solar zenith angle values and lower bulk snow albedo values.
Christian Katlein, Lovro Valcic, Simon Lambert-Girard, and Mario Hoppmann
The Cryosphere, 15, 183–198, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-183-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-183-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
To improve autonomous investigations of sea ice optical properties, we designed a chain of multispectral light sensors, providing autonomous in-ice light measurements. Here we describe the system and the data acquired from a first prototype deployment. We show that sideward-looking planar irradiance sensors basically measure scalar irradiance and demonstrate the use of this sensor chain to derive light transmittance and inherent optical properties of sea ice.
Baojuan Huai, Michiel R. van den Broeke, and Carleen H. Reijmer
The Cryosphere, 14, 4181–4199, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4181-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4181-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
This study presents the surface energy balance (SEB) of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) using a SEB model forced with observations from automatic weather stations (AWSs). We correlate ERA5 with AWSs to show a significant positive correlation of GrIS summer surface temperature and melt with the Greenland Blocking Index and weaker and opposite correlations with the North Atlantic Oscillation. This analysis may help explain melting patterns in the GrIS with respect to circulation anomalies.
Shawn J. Marshall and Kristina Miller
The Cryosphere, 14, 3249–3267, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3249-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3249-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Surface-albedo measurements from 2002 to 2017 from Haig Glacier in the Canadian Rockies provide no evidence of long-term trends (i.e., the glacier does not appear to be darkening), but there are large variations in albedo over the melt season and from year to year. The glacier ice is exceptionally dark in association with forest fire fallout but is effectively cleansed by meltwater or rainfall. Summer snowfall plays an important role in refreshing the glacier surface and reducing summer melt.
Marius Schaefer, Duilio Fonseca-Gallardo, David Farías-Barahona, and Gino Casassa
The Cryosphere, 14, 2545–2565, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-2545-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-2545-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Chile hosts glaciers in a large range of latitudes and climates. To project future ice extent, a sound quantification of the energy exchange between atmosphere and glaciers is needed. We present new data for six Chilean glaciers belonging to three glaciological zones. In the Central Andes, the main energy source for glacier melt is the incoming solar radiation, while in southern Patagonia heat provided by the mild and humid air is also important. Total melt rates are higher in Patagonia.
Pleun N. J. Bonekamp, Chiel C. van Heerwaarden, Jakob F. Steiner, and Walter W. Immerzeel
The Cryosphere, 14, 1611–1632, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1611-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1611-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Drivers controlling melt of debris-covered glaciers are largely unknown. With a 3D turbulence-resolving model the impact of surface properties of debris on micrometeorological variables and the conductive heat flux is shown. Also, we show ice cliffs are local melt hot spots and that turbulent fluxes and local heat advection amplify spatial heterogeneity on the surface.This work is important for glacier mass balance modelling and for the understanding of the evolution of debris-covered glaciers.
Alexandra Giese, Aaron Boone, Patrick Wagnon, and Robert Hawley
The Cryosphere, 14, 1555–1577, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1555-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-1555-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Rocky debris on glacier surfaces is known to affect the melt of mountain glaciers. Debris can be dry or filled to varying extents with liquid water and ice; whether debris is dry, wet, and/or icy affects how efficiently heat is conducted through debris from its surface to the ice interface. Our paper presents a new energy balance model that simulates moisture phase, evolution, and location in debris. ISBA-DEB is applied to West Changri Nup glacier in Nepal to reveal important physical processes.
Eleanor A. Bash and Brian J. Moorman
The Cryosphere, 14, 549–563, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-549-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-549-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
High-resolution measurements from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery allowed for examination of glacier melt model performance in detail at Fountain Glacier. This work capitalized on distributed measurements at 10 cm resolution to look at the spatial distribution of model errors in the ablation zone. Although the model agreed with measurements on average, strong correlation was found with surface water. The results highlight the contribution of surface water flow to melt at this location.
Marion Réveillet, Shelley MacDonell, Simon Gascoin, Christophe Kinnard, Stef Lhermitte, and Nicole Schaffer
The Cryosphere, 14, 147–163, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-147-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-147-2020, 2020
Cheng Dang, Charles S. Zender, and Mark G. Flanner
The Cryosphere, 13, 2325–2343, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2325-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2325-2019, 2019
Tobias Linhardt, Joseph S. Levy, and Christoph K. Thomas
The Cryosphere, 13, 2203–2219, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2203-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2203-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This study presents surface energy fluxes in an Antarctic polar desert in the summer season, comparing wetted soil at a water track with dominating dry soils. Elevated energy uptake, evaporation, and soil heat fluxes at the water track highlight the importance of wetted soils for water and energy cycling in polar deserts. This connection will grow more relevant, as wetted soils are expected to expand due to climate warming, with implications for landscape-scale hydrology and soil ecosystems.
Constantijn L. Jakobs, Carleen H. Reijmer, Peter Kuipers Munneke, Gert König-Langlo, and Michiel R. van den Broeke
The Cryosphere, 13, 1473–1485, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1473-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1473-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
We use 24 years of observations at Neumayer Station, East Antarctica, to calculate the surface energy balance and the associated surface melt, which we find to be mainly driven by the absorption of solar radiation. Meltwater can refreeze in the subsurface snow layers, thereby decreasing the surface albedo and hence allowing for more absorption of solar radiation. By implementing an albedo parameterisation, we show that this feedback accounts for a threefold increase in surface melt at Neumayer.
Tingfeng Dou, Cunde Xiao, Jiping Liu, Wei Han, Zhiheng Du, Andrew R. Mahoney, Joshua Jones, and Hajo Eicken
The Cryosphere, 13, 1233–1246, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1233-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1233-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
The variability and potential trends of rain-on-snow events over Arctic sea ice and their role in sea-ice losses are poorly understood. This study demonstrates that rain-on-snow events are a critical factor in initiating the onset of surface melt over Arctic sea ice, and onset of spring rainfall over sea ice has shifted to earlier dates since the 1970s, which may have profound impacts on ice melt through feedbacks involving earlier onset of surface melt.
Uta Krebs-Kanzow, Paul Gierz, and Gerrit Lohmann
The Cryosphere, 12, 3923–3930, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-3923-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-3923-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
We present a new surface melt scheme for land ice. Derived from the energy balance of melting surfaces, the scheme may be particularly suitable for long ice-sheet simulations of past and future climates. It is computationally inexpensive and can be adapted to changes in the Earth's orbit and atmospheric composition. The scheme yields a better spatial representation of surface melt than common empirical schemes when applied to the Greenland Ice Sheet under present-day climate conditions.
Cited articles
Alvarez, E., Nogueira, E., and Lopez-Urrutia, A.: In-vivo single cell fluorescence and the size scaling of phytoplankton chlorophyll content, Appl. Environ. Microbiol., AEM.03317-16, 83, https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.03317-16, 2017.
Aoki, T., Fukabori, M., Hachikubo, A., Tachibana, Y., and Nishio, F.: Effects of snow physical parameters on spectral albedo and bidirectional reflectance of snow surface, J. Geophys. Res., 105, 10219–10236, 2000.
Aoki, T., Kuchiki, K., Niwano, M., Kodama, Y., Hosaka, M., and Tanaka, T.: Physically based snow albedo model for calculating broadband albedos and the solar heating pro?le in snowpack for general circulat ion models, J. Geophys. Res., 116, D11114, https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JD015507, 2011.
Aoki, T., Kuchiki, K., Niwano, M., Mtoba, S., Uetake, J., Masuda, K., and Ishimoto, H.: Numerical simulation of spectral albedos of glacier surfaces covered with glacial microbes in northweatern Greenland, AIP Conference Proceedings 1531, 176, https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4804735 2013.
Arnold, G. T., Tsay, S.-C., King, M. D., Li, J. Y., and Soulen, P. F.: Airborne spectral measurements of surface-atmosphere anisotropy for arctic sea ice and tundra, Int. J. Remote Sens., 23, 3763–3781, 2002.
Berggren, S.: Alger fran Grönlands inlandsis, Svenska Vetenskapsakad, Öfvers, Förh, 28, 293–296, 1871.
Berk, A., Conforti, P., Kennett, R., Perkins, T., Hawes, F., and van den Bosch, J.: MODTRAN6: a major upgrade of the MODTRAN radiative transfer code Proc. SPIE 9088, Algorithms and Technologies for Multispectral, Hyperspectral, and Ultraspectral Imagery XX, 90880H (13 June 2014), https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2050433, 2014.
Bidigare, R. R., Ondrusek, M. E., Morow, J. H., and Kiefer, D. A.: In vivo absorption properties of algal pigments, Proc. SPIE, 1302, 290–302, 1990.
Bøggild, C. E., Brandt, R. E., Brown, K. J., and Warren, S. G.: The ablation zone in northeast Greenland: ice types, albedos and impurities, J. Glaciol., 56, 101–113, https://doi.org/10.3189/002214310791190776, 2010.
Bonnefoy, N.: Développement d'un spectrophoto-goniomètre pour l'étude de la réflectance bidirectionnelle de surfaces géophysiques, Ph.D. Thesis, University of Grenoble, 328 pp. 2001.
Brandt, R. E., Warren, S. G., and Clarke, A. D.: A controlled snowmaking experiment testing the relation between black carbon content and reduction of snow albedo, J. Geophys. Res., 116, D08109, https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JD015330, 2011.
Bricaud, A., Claustre, H., Ras, J., and Oubelkheir, K.: Natural variability of phytoplankton absorption in oceanic waters: influence of the size structure of algal populations, J. Geophys. Res., 109 C11010, https://doi.org/10.1029/2004JC002419, 2004.
Budyko, M. I.: The effect of solar radiation variations on the climate of the earth, Tellus, 21, 611–619, 1969.
Carns, R. C., Light, B., and Warren, S. G.: The spectral albedo of sea ice and salt crusts on the tropical ocean of Snowball Earth: II. Optical modeling, J. Geophys. Res.-Ocean., 121, 5217–5230, 2016.
Casey, K. A., Kaspari, S. D., Skiles, S. M., Kreutz, K., and Handley, M. J.: The spectral and chemical measurement of pollutants on snow near South Pole, Antarctica, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 122, 6592–6610, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JD026418, 2017.
Christaki, E., Bonos, E., and Florou-Paneri, P.: Functional Ingredients in Nutrition Pg 234, in: Handbook of Marine Microalgae: Biotech Advances, edited by: Se Kwon Kim, Academic Press, 30 April, 604 pp., ISBN: 0128011246, 9780128011249, 2015.
Cook, J. M., Edwards, A., Irvine-Fynn, T. D. I., and Takeuchi, N.: Cryoconite: Dark biological secret of the Cryosphere, Prog. Phys. Geogr., 40, 66–111, https://doi.org/10.1177/0309133315616574, 2015.
Cook, J. M., Hodson, A. J., Taggart, A. J., Mernild, S. H., and Tranter, M.: A predictive model for the spectral “bioalbedo” of snow, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth Surf., 122, 434–454, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JF003932 2017.
Cutler, P. M. and Munro, D. S.: Visible and near infrared reflectivity during the ablation period on Peyto Glacier, Alberta, Canada, J. Glaciol., 42, 333–340, 1996.
Dadic, R., Mullen, P., Schneebeli, M., Brandt, R., and Warren, S. G.: Effects of bubbles, cracks and volcanic tephra on the spectral albedo of bare ice near the Transantarctic Mountains: implications for sea glaciers on Snowball Earth, J. Geophys. Res., 118, 1658–1676, https://doi.org/10.1002/jgrf.20098, 2013.
Dang, C., Fu, Q., and Warren, S.: Effect of snow grain shape on snow albedo, J. Atmos. Sci., 73, 3573–3583, https://doi.org/10.1175/JAS-D-15-0276.1, 2016.
Dauchet, J., Blanco, S., Cornet, J.-F., and Fournier, R.: Calculation of radiative properties of photosynthetic microorganisms, J. Quant. Spectrosc. Ra., 161, 60–84, 2015.
Deems, J. S., Painter, T. H., Barsugli, J. J., Belnap, J., and Udall, B.: Combined impacts of current and future dust deposition and regional warming on Colorado River Basin snow dynamics and hydrology, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 4401–4413, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4401-2013, 2013.
Demers S., Roy, S., Gagnon, R., and Vignault, C.: Rapid light-induced changes in cell fluorescence and in xanthophyll-cycle pigments of textitAlexandrium excavatum (Dinophyceae) and Thalassiosira psuedonona (Bacillariophyceae): a photo-protection mechanism, Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser., 76, 185–193, 1991.
Dumont, M., Brissaud, O., Picard, G., Schmitt, B., Gallet, J.-C., and Arnaud, Y.: High-accuracy measurements of snow Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function at visible and NIR wavelengths – comparison with modelling results, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 10, 2507–2520, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-10-2507-2010, 2010.
Felip, M. and Catalan, J.: The relationship between phytoplankton biovolume and chlorophyll in a deep oligotrophic lake: decoupling in their spatial and temporal maxima, J. Plankton Res., 22, 91–106, https://doi.org/10.1093/plankt/22.1.91, 2000.
Flanner, M. G., Zender, C. S., Randerson, J. T., and Rasch, P. J.: Present-day climate forcing and response from black carbon in snow, J. Geophys. Res., 112, D11202, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006JD008003, 2007.
Flanner, M. G., Shell, K. M., Barlage, M., Perovich, D. K., and Tschudi, M. A.: Radiative forcing and albedo feedback from the Northern Hemisphere cryosphere between 1979 and 2008, Nat. Geosci., 4, 151–155, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1062, 2011.
Gallet, J.-C., Domine, F., and Dumont, M.: Measuring the specific surface area of wet snow using 1310 nm reflectance, The Cryosphere, 8, 1139–1148, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1139-2014, 2014.
Gardner, A. and Sharp, M.: A review of snow and ice albedo and the development of a new physically based broadband albedo parameterization, J. Geophys. Res., 115, F01009, https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JF001444, 2010.
Gerdel, R. W. and Drouet, F.: The cryoconite of the Thule area, Greenland, T. Am. Microsc. Soc., 79, 256–272, 1960.
Goss, R. and Jakob, T.: Regulation and function of xanthophyll cycle-dependent photoprotection in algae, Photosynth. Res., 106, 103–122, 2010.
Grant, C. S. and Louda, J. W.: Microalgal pigment ratios in relation to light intensity: implications for chemotaxonomy, Aquat. Biol., 11, 127–138, https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00298, 2010.
Green, R. O., Dozier, J., Roberts, D., and Painter, T. H.: Spectral snow-reflectance models for grain size and liquid water fraction in melting snow for the solar reflected spectrum, An. Glaciol., 34, 71–73, 2002.
Green, R. O., Painter, T. H., Roberts, D. A., and Dozier, J.: Measuring the expressed abundance of the three phases of water with an imaging spectrometer over snow, Water Resour. Res., 42, 1–12, https://doi.org/10.1029/2005WR004509, 2006.
Grenfell, T. C.: A visible and near-infrared scanning photometer for field measurements of spectral albedo and irradiance under polar conditions, J. Glaciol., 27, 476–481, 1981.
Grenfell, T. C.: Albedo, in: Encyclopedia of Snow, Ice and Glaciers, edited by: Singh, V., Singh, P., and Haritahya, U., Springer, the Netherlands, ISBN: 978-90-481-2643-9, 2011.
Grenfell, T. C. and Maykut, G. A.: The optical properties of ice and snow in the Arctic Basin, J. Glaciol., 18, 445–463, 1977.
Grenfell, T. C. and Perovich, D. K.: Spectral albedos of sea ice and incident solar irradiance in the southern Beaufort Sea, J. Geophys. Res., 89, 3573–3580, https://doi.org/10.1029/JC089iC03p03573, 1984.
Grenfell, T. C., Warren, S. G., and Mullen, P. C.: Reflection of solar radiation by the Antarctic snow surface at ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared wavelengths, J. Geophys. Res., 99, 18669–18684, 1994.
Griffiths, M. J., Garcin, C., van Hille, R. P., and Harrison, S. T.: Interferene by pigment in the estimation of microalgal biomass concentration by optical density, J. Microbiol. Meth., 85, 119–123, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mimet.2011.02.005, 2011.
Gruell, W. and de Ruyter de Wildt, M.: Anisotropic reflection by melting glacier ice: measurements and parameterizations in Landsat TM bands 2 and 4, Remote Sens. Environ., 70, 265–277, 1999.
Haardt, H. and Maske, H.: Specific in vivo absorption coefficient of chlorophyll a at 675 nm, Limnol. Oceanogr., 32, 608–619, 1987.
Hodson, A. J., Nowak, A., Sabacka, M., Cook, J., Wharfe, E. S., Pearce, D. A., Convey, P., and Viera, G.: Microbes influence the biogeochemical and optical properties of maritime Antarctic snow, J. Geophys. Res.-Biogeo., 122, 1456–1470, 2017.
Hubbard, B. and Glasser, N.: Field techniques in glaciology and glacial geomorphology. John Wiley and Sons Lts, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQm England, ISBN: 0-470-84426-4, 2005.
Hudson, S. R., Warren, S. G., Brandt, R. E., Grenfell, T. C., and Six, D.: Spectral bidirectional reflectance of Antarctic snow: Measurements and parameterization, J. Geophys. Res., 111, 18106, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006JD007290, 2006.
Jaglarz, J., Duraj, R., Szopa, P., Cisowski, J., and Czternastek, H.: Investigation of white standards by means of bidirectional reflectance distribution function and integrating sphere methods, Opt. Appl., XXXVI, 36, 97–103, 2006.
Jin, Z., Charlock, T.P.,, Rutledge, K., Stamnes, K., and Wang, Y.: Analytical solution of radiative transfer in the coupled atmosphere-ocean system with a rough surface, Appl. Opt., 45, 7443–7455, 2006.
Joint, I. and Groom, S. B.: Estimation of phytoplankton production from space: current status and future potential of satellite remote sensing, J. Exp. Mar. Bio. Ecol., 250, 233–255, 2000.
Kandilian, R., Soulies, A., Pruvost, J., Rousseau, B., Legrand, J., and Pilon, L.: Simple method for measuring the spectral absorption cross-section of microalgae, Chem. Eng. Sci., 146, 357–368, 2016.
Kaspari, S., Painter, T. H., Gysel, M., Skiles, S. M., and Schwikowski, M.: Seasonal and elevational variations of black carbon and dust in snow and ice in the Solu-Khumbu, Nepal and estimated radiative forcings, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 14, 8089–8103, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-8089-2014, 2014.
Kirk, J. T. O.: A theoretical analysis of the contribution of algal cells to the attenuation of light within natural waters, II. Spherical cells, New Phytol., 75, 21–36, 1975.
Kohshima, S., Seko, K., and Yoshimura, Y.: Biotic acceleration of glacier melting in Yala Glacier, Langtang Region, Nepal, Snow and Glacier Hydrology, Proceedings of the Kathmandu Symposium, November 1992, IAHS Publication 218, 1993.
Kopp, G., Lawrence, G., and Rottman, G.: The Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM): Science Results, Solar Phys., 230, 129–140, 2005.
Lamers, P. P., Janssen, M., De Vos, R. C. H., Bino, R. J., and Wijffels, R. H.: Exploring and exploiting carotenoid accumulation in Dunaliella salina for cell-factory applications, Trends Biotechnol., 26, 631–638, 2008.
Libois, Q., Picard, G., France, J., Arnaud, L., Dumont, M., Carmagnola, C., and King, M. D.: Influence of grain shape on light penetration in snow, The Cryosphere, 7, 1803–1818, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-7-1803-2013, 2013.
Light, B., Eicken, H., Maykut, G., and Grenfell, T.: The effect of included particulates on the spectral albedo of sea ice, J. Geophys. Res., 103, 27739–27752, 1998.
Liou, K. N.: An Introduction to Atmospheric Radiation, Academic Press, 2002.
Lutz, S., Anesio, A. M., Jorge Villar, S. E., and Benning, L. G.: Variations of algal communities cause darkening of a Greenland glacier, FEMS Microbiol. Ecol., 89, 402–414, https://doi.org/10.1111/1574-6941.12351, 2014.
Lutz, S., Anesio, A., Raiswell, R., Edwards, A., Newton, R. J., Gill, F., and Benning, L. G.: The biogeography of red snow microbiomes and their role in melting glaciers, Nat. Commun., 7, 11968, https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms11968, 2016.
MacArthur, A. and Robinson, I.: A critique of field spectroscopy and the challenges and opportunities it presents for remote sensing for agriculture, ecosystems, and hydrology, in: Proceedings of SPIE, SPIE, SPIE Remote Sensing 2015, Toulouse, UK, 21–24 September, vol. 9637, 11 pp., https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2201046, 2015.
MacArthur, A., MacLellan, C. J., and Malthus, T.: The Fields of View and Directional Response Functions of Two Field Spectroradiometers, IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens., 50, 3892–3907, 2012.
Marks, A., Fragiacomo, C., MacArthur, A., Zibordi, G., Fox, N., and King, M. D.: Characterisation of the HDRF (as a proxy for BRDF) of snow surfaces at Dome C, Antarctica, for the inter-calibration and inter-comparison of satellite optical data, Remote Sens. Environ., 158, 407–416, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2014.11.103, 2005.
McCoy, R. M.: Field methods in remote sensing, Guilford Press, 2005.
Milton, E. J., Schaepman, M. E., Anderson, K., Kneubühler, M., and Fox, N.: Progress in field spectroscopy, Remote Sens. Environ., 113, S92–S109, 2009.
Moisan, J. R., Moisan, T. A., and Linkswiler, M. A.: An inverse modelling approach to estimating phytoplankton pigment concentrations from phytoplankton absorption spectra, J. Geophys. Res.-Ocean., 116, https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JC006786 2011.
Morel, A. and Bricaud, A.: Theoretical results concerning light absorption in a discrete medium, and application to specific absorption of phytoplankton, Deep-Sea Res., 28, 1375–1393, 1981.
Naegeli, K., Damm, A., Huss, M., Schapeman, M., and Hoelze, M.: Imaging spectroscopy to assess the composition of ice surface materials and their impact on glacier mass balance, Remote Sens. Environ., 168, 388–402, 2015.
Naegeli, K., Damm, A., Huss, M., Shaepman, M., Wulf, H., and Hoelze, M.: Cross comparison of albedo products for glacier surfaces derived from airborne and satellite (Sentinel-2 and Landsat 8) optical data, Remote Sens., 9, 110 pp., https://doi.org/10.3390/rs9020110, 2017.
Negi, H. S., Singh, S. K., Kulkarni, A. V., and Semwal, B. S.: Field-based spectral reflectance measurements of seasonal snow cover in the Indian Himalaya, Int. J. Remote Sens., 31, 2393–2417, https://doi.org/10.1080/01431160903002417, 2010.
NERC Field Spectroscopic Facility: Field guide for the ASD Fieldspec Pro-Radiance/Irradiance measurements in raw DN mode, http://fsf.nerc.ac.uk/resources/guides/pdf_guides/asd_guide_v2_RadIrrad.pdf (last access: 14 November 2017), 2007.
Nicodemus, F. E., Richmond, J. C., Hsia, J. J., Ginsberg, I. W., and Limperis, T.: Geometrical Considerations and Nomenclature for Reflectance, report, Washington DC (digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc171061/; last access: 14 November 2017), University of North Texas Libraries, Digital Library, digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department, 1977.
Nicolaus, M., Hudson, S. R., Gerland, S., and Munderloh, K.: A modern concept for autonomous and continuous measurements of spectral albedo and transmittance of sea ice, Cold Reg. Sci. Technol., 62, 14–28, 2010.
Niyogi, K. K., Bjorkman, O., and Grossman, A. R.: The roles of specific xanthophylls in photoprotection, P. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA, 94, 14162–14167, 1997.
Nolin, A. W. and Dozier, J.: A hyperspectral method for remotely sensing the grain size of snow, Remote Sens. Environ., 74, 207–216, 2000.
Nolin, A. W. and Payne, M. C.: Classification of glacier zones in western Greenland using albedo and surface roughness from the Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR), Remote Sens. Environ., 107, 264–275, 2007.
Nordenskiöld, A. E.: Cryoconite found 1870, 19–25 July, on the inland ice, east of Auleitsivik Fjord, Disco Bay, Greenland, Geol. Mag., 2, 157–162, 1875.
Painter, T. H., Duval, B., and Thimas, W. H.: Detection and quantification of snow algae with an airborne imaging spectrometer, Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 67, 5267–5272, https://doi.org/10.1128/AEM.67.11.5267-5272.2001, 2001.
Painter, T. H., Molotch, N., Cassidy, M., Flanner, M., and Steffen, K.: Contact spectroscopy for the determination of stratigraphy of snow grain size, J. Glaciol., 53, 121–127, 2007.
Painter, T. H., Skiles, S. M., Deems, J. S., Bryant, A. C., and Landry, C. C.: Dust radiative forcing in snow of the Upper Colorado River Basin: 1. A 6 year record of energy balance, radiation, and dust concentrations, Water Resour. Res., 48, W07521, https://doi.org/10.1029/2012WR011985, 2012.
Painter, T. H., Seidel, F. C., Bryant, A. C., McKenzie Skiles, S., and Rittger, K.: Imaging spectroscopy of albedo and radiative forcing by light-absorbing impurities in mountain snow, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 118, 9511–9523, https://doi.org/10.1002/jgrd.50520, 2013.
Picard, G., Libois, Q., and Arnaud, L.: Refinement of the ice absorption spectrum in the visible using radiance profile measurements in Antarctic snow, The Cryosphere, 10, 2655–2672, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2655-2016, 2013.
Pottier, L., Pruvost, J., Deremetz, J., Cornet, J.-F., Legrand, J., and Dussap, C. G.: A fully predictive model for one-dimensional light attenuation bu Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in a torus photobioreactor, Biotechnol. Bioeng., 91, 569–582, 2005.
Remias, D., Lütz-Meindl, U., and Lütz, C.: Photosynthesis, pigments and ultrastructure of the alpine snow alga Chlamydomonas nivalis, Eur. J. Phycol., 40, 259–268, https://doi.org/10.1080/09670260500202148, 2005.
Remias, D., Holzinger A., and Lutz, C.: Physiology, ultrastructure and habitat of the ice alga Mesotaenium berggrenii (Zygnemaphyceae, Chlorophyta) from glaciers in the European Alps, Phycologia, 49, 302–312, 2009.
Remias, D., Albert, A., and Lutz, C.: Effects of realistically simulated, elevated UV irradiation on photosyntghesis and pigment composition of the alpine snow alga Chlamydomonas nivalis and the arctic soil alga Tetracystis sp. (Chlorophyceae), Photosynthetica, 48, 269–277, 2010.
Remias, D., Schwaiger, S., Aigner, S., Leya, T., Stuppner, H., and Lutz, C.: Characterization of an UV- and VIS-absorbing, purpurogallin-derived secondary pigment new to algae and highly abundant in Mesotaenium berggrenii (Zygnematophyceae, Chlorophyta), an extremophyte living on glaciers, FEMS Microbiol. Ecol., 79, 638–648, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1574-6941.2011.01245.x, 2012.
Ricchiazzi, P., Yang, S. R., Gautier, C., and Sowle, D.: Santa Barbara DISORT Atmospheric Radiative Transfer, http://arm.mrcsb.com/sbdart/, 1998.
Roling, W. F. M., Aorts, J. W., Patty, L., Loes ten Kate, I., Ehrenfreund, P., and Direito, S. O. L.: The significance of microbe-mineral-biomarker interactions in the detection of life on Mars and beyond, Astrobiology, 15, 492–507, https://doi.org/10.1089/ast.2014.1276, 2015.
Schaepman-Strub, G., Schaepman, M. E., Painter, T. H., Dangel, S., and Martonchik, J. V.: Reflectance quantities in optical remote sensing – definitions and case studies, Remote Sens. Environ., 103, 27–42, 2006.
Seager, S., Turner, E. L., Schafer, J., and Ford, E. B.: Vegetation's red edge: a possible spectroscopic biosignature of extraterrestrial plants, Astrobiology, 5, 372–390, 2005.
Shelley, D.: Optical Mineralogy. Elsevier Science Pub. Co., Inc., New York, NY, USA, 1985.
Shimada, R., Takeuchi, N., and Aoki, T.: Interannual and geographical variations in the extent of bare ice and dark ice on the Greenland Ice Sheet derived from MODIS satellite images, Frontiers in Cryospheric Science, Front. Earth Sci., 4, 43, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2016.00043, 2016.
Skiles, S. M. and Painter, T.: Daily evolution in dust and black carbon content, snow grain size, and snow albedo during snowmelt, Rocky Mountains, Colorado, J. Glaciol., 63, 118–132, 2017.
Skiles, S. M., Painter, T. H., and Okin, G. S.: A method to retrieve the spectral complex refractive index and single scattering optical properties of dust deposited in mountain snow, J. Glaciol., 63, 133–147, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2016.126, 2017.
Smeets, C. J. P. P. and van den Broecke, M. R.: Temporal and spatial variations of the aerodynamic roughness length in the ablation zone of the Greenland Ice Sheet, Bound.-Lay. Meteorol., 128, 315–338, 2008.
Smith, H. J., Schmidt, A., Foster, R., Littman, S., Kuypers, M. M. M., and Foreman, C. M.: Biofilms on glacial surfaces: hotspots for biological activity, Nature Biofilms and Microbiomes, 2, 16008, https://doi.org/10.1038/npjbiofilms.2016.8, 2016.
Stamnes, K., Tsay, S. C., Wiscombe, W. J., and Jayaweera, K.: Numerically stable algorithm for discrete-ordinates method radiative transfer in multiple scattering and emitting layered media, Appl. Optics, 27, 2502–2509, 1988.
Stibal, M., Sabacka, M., and Zarsky, J.: Biological processes on glacier and ice sheet surfaces, Nat. Geosci., 5, 771–774, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1611, 2012.
Stibal, M., Gözdereliler, E., Cameron, K. A., Box, J.E., Stevens, I. T., Gokul, J. K., Schostag, M., Zarsky, J. D., Edwards, A., Irvine-Fynn, T. D. L., and Jacobsen, C. S.: Microbial abundance in surface ice on the Greenland Ice Sheet, Front. Microbiol., 6, 225, https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2015.00225, 2015.
Takeuchi, N.: Surface albedo and characteristics of cryoconite (biogenic surface dust) on an Alaska glacier, Gulkana Glacier in the Alaska Range, Bull. Glaciol. Res., 19, 63–70, 2002.
Takeuchi, N.: Temporal and spatial variations in spectral reflectance and characteristics of surface dust on Gulkana Glacier, Alaska Range, J. Glaciol., 55, 701–709, 2009.
Takeuchi, N. and Kohshima, S.: A snow algal community on Tyndall Glacier in the Southern Patagonia icefield, Chile, Arct., Antarct. Alp. Res., 36, 92–99, 2004.
Takeuchi, N., Dial, R., Kohshima, S., Segawa, T., and Uetake, J.: Spatial distribution and abundance of red snow algae on the Harding Icefield, Alaska derived from a satellite image, Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, L21502, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006GL027819, 2006.
Takeuchi, N., Fujisawa, Y., Katoda, T., Tanaka, S., Miyairi, M., Shirakawa, T., Kusaka, R., Fedorov, A. N., Konstantinov, P., and Ohata, T.: The effect of impurities on the surface melt of a glacier in the Suntar-Khayata mountain range, Russian Siberia, Frontiers in Cryospheric Science, 3, 82, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2015.00082, 2015.
Uetake, J., Naganuma, T., Hebsgaard, M. B., and Kanda, H.: Communities of algae and cyanobacteria on glaciers in west Greenland, Polar Sci., 4, 71–80, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polar.2010.03.002, 2010.
Van Leuwenhook, A.: Observations, communicated to the publisher by Mr Antony van Leewenhoeck, in: a Dutch letter of the 9th October 1676, Here English'd: concerning Little Animals by him observed in rain-well-sea and snow water, as a, sp. in water wherein pepper had lain infused, Philosophical Transactions, 12, 821–831, https://doi.org/10.1098/rstl.1677.0003, 1676.
Verstraete, M. M., Pinty, B., and Myneni, B.: Potential and limitations of information extraction on the terrestrial biosphere from satellite remote sensing, Remote Sens. Environ., 58, 201–214, 1996.
Voss, K. J. and Zhang, H.: Bidirectional reflectance of dry and submerged Labsphere Spectralon plaque, Appl. Optics, 45, 7924–7927, 2006.
Warren, S. G.: Optical properties of snow, Rev. Geophys., 20, 67–89, https://doi.org/10.1029/RG020i001p00067, 1982.
Warren, S. G.: Impurities in snow: effects on albedo and snowmelt, Ann. Glaciol., 5, 177–179, 1984.
Warren, S. G.: Can black carbon in snow be detected by remote sensing?, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 118, 779–786, https://doi.org/10.1029/2012JD018476, 2013.
Warren, S. G. and Brandt, R. E.: Optical constants of ice from the ultraviolet to the microwave: A revised compilation, J. Geophys. Res., 113, D14220, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JD009744, 2008.
Warren, S. G. and Wiscombe, W. J.: A model for the spectral albedo of snow. 11. Snow containing atmospheric aerosols, J. Atmos. Sci., 37, 2734–2745, 1980.
Wientjes, I. G. M. and Oerlemans, J.: An explanation for the dark region in the western melt zone of the Greenland ice sheet, The Cryosphere, 4, 261–268, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-4-261-2010, 2010.
Wientjes, I. G. M., Van de Wal, R. S. W., Reichart, G. J., Sluijs, A., and Oerlemans, J.: Dust from the dark region in the western ablation zone of the Greenland ice sheet, The Cryosphere, 5, 589–601, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-5-589-2011, 2011.
Winchell, A. N.: Elements of optical mineralogy: an introduction to microscopic petrography, 4th Edn., Wiley, New York, 1951.
Winther, J.-G.: Landsat TM derived and in situ summer reflectance of glaciers in Svalbard, Pol. Res., 12, 37–55, 1993.
Yallop, M. L., Anesio, A. J., Perkins, R. G., Cook, J., Telling, J., Fagan, D., MacFarlane, J., Stibal, M., Barker, G., Bellas, C., Hodson, A., Tranter, M., Wadham, J., and Roberts, N. W.: Photophysiology and albedo-changing potential of the ice-algal community on the surface of the Greenland ice sheet, ISME J., 6, 2302–2313, 2012.
Yamaguchi, S., Motoyohi, H., Tanikawa, T., Aoki, T., Niwano, M., Takeuchi, Y., and Endo, Y.: Application of snow specific surface area measurement using an optical method based on near-infrared reflectance around 900 nm wavelength to wet snow zones in Japan, Bulletin of Glaciological Research, 32, 55–64, https://doi.org/10.5331/bgr3255, 2014.
Zender, C. S., Bush, B., Pope, S. K., Bucholtz, A., Collins, W. D., Kiehl, J. T., Valero, F. P. J., and Vitko Jr., J.: Atmospheric absorption during the atmospheric radiation measurement (ARM) enhanced shortwave experiment (ARESE), J. Geophys. Res., 102, 29901–29915, 1997.
Short summary
Biological growth darkens snow and ice, causing it to melt faster. This is often referred to as
bioalbedo. Quantifying bioalbedo has not been achieved because of difficulties in isolating the biological contribution from the optical properties of ice and snow, and from inorganic impurities in field studies. In this paper, we provide a physical model that enables bioalbedo to be quantified from first principles and we use it to guide future field studies.
Biological growth darkens snow and ice, causing it to melt faster. This is often referred to as...
