Articles | Volume 13, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1983-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-1983-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
17 Jul 2019
Research article |
| 17 Jul 2019
| 17 Jul 2019
Observation of the process of snow accumulation on the Antarctic Plateau by time lapse laser scanning
Ghislain Picard
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
UGA, CNRS, Institut des Géosciences de l'Environnement (IGE), UMR 5001, Grenoble, 38041, France
Laurent Arnaud
UGA, CNRS, Institut des Géosciences de l'Environnement (IGE), UMR 5001, Grenoble, 38041, France
Romain Caneill
UGA, CNRS, Institut des Géosciences de l'Environnement (IGE), UMR 5001, Grenoble, 38041, France
now at: Department of Marine Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
Eric Lefebvre
UGA, CNRS, Institut des Géosciences de l'Environnement (IGE), UMR 5001, Grenoble, 38041, France
Maxim Lamare
UGA, CNRS, Institut des Géosciences de l'Environnement (IGE), UMR 5001, Grenoble, 38041, France
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37 citations as recorded by crossref.
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37 citations as recorded by crossref.
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- Spatial variation in the specific surface area of surface snow measured along the traverse route from the coast to Dome Fuji, Antarctica, during austral summer R. Inoue et al. 10.5194/tc-18-3513-2024
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- Widespread longitudinal snow dunes in Antarctica shaped by sintering M. Poizat et al. 10.1038/s41561-024-01506-1
- Snowfall and Water Stable Isotope Variability in East Antarctica Controlled by Warm Synoptic Events A. Servettaz et al. 10.1029/2020JD032863
- Water Isotopic Signature of Surface Snow Metamorphism in Antarctica M. Casado et al. 10.1029/2021GL093382
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- FlakeOut: A geometric approach to remove wind-blown snow from terrestrial laser scans D. Clemens-Sewall et al. 10.1016/j.coldregions.2022.103611
- Spatial and temporal stable water isotope data from the upper snowpack at the EastGRIP camp site, NE Greenland, sampled in summer 2018 A. Zuhr et al. 10.5194/essd-16-1861-2024
- Simulation of snow albedo and solar irradiance profile with the Two-streAm Radiative TransfEr in Snow (TARTES) v2.0 model G. Picard & Q. Libois 10.5194/gmd-17-8927-2024
- New Estimation of the NOx Snow‐Source on the Antarctic Plateau A. Barbero et al. 10.1029/2021JD035062
- A Snapshot on the Buildup of the Stable Water Isotopic Signal in the Upper Snowpack at EastGRIP on the Greenland Ice Sheet A. Zuhr et al. 10.1029/2022JF006767
- Spatiotemporal patterns of accumulation and surface roughness in interior Greenland with a GNSS-IR network D. Pickell et al. 10.5194/tc-19-1013-2025
- Extraterrestrial dust flux monitoring at Antarctic Vostok station: New collection of extraterrestrial spherules fallen from May to September 2017 Y. Chetverikov et al. 10.1111/maps.13991
- Snow cover at the Akademik Vernadsky station: response on wind, temperature and precipitation variations V. Shpyg et al. 10.33275/1727-7485.1.2024.724
- Antarctic ozone hole modifies iodine geochemistry on the Antarctic Plateau A. Spolaor et al. 10.1038/s41467-021-26109-x
- A decade (2008–2017) of water stable isotope composition of precipitation at Concordia Station, East Antarctica G. Dreossi et al. 10.5194/tc-18-3911-2024
- Stratigraphic noise and its potential drivers across the plateau of Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica N. Hirsch et al. 10.5194/tc-17-4207-2023
- Greenland Ice Sheet surface roughness from Ku- and Ka-band radar altimetry surface echo strengths K. Scanlan et al. 10.5194/tc-19-1221-2025
- Sensitivity of Antarctic surface climate to a new spectral snow albedo and radiative transfer scheme in RACMO2.3p3 C. van Dalum et al. 10.5194/tc-16-1071-2022
- Local-scale deposition of surface snow on the Greenland ice sheet A. Zuhr et al. 10.5194/tc-15-4873-2021
- Climatic information archived in ice cores: impact of intermittency and diffusion on the recorded isotopic signal in Antarctica M. Casado et al. 10.5194/cp-16-1581-2020
- Sunlight-driven nitrate loss records Antarctic surface mass balance P. Akers et al. 10.1038/s41467-022-31855-7
- A wind-driven snow redistribution module for Alpine3D v3.3.0: adaptations designed for downscaling ice sheet surface mass balance E. Keenan et al. 10.5194/gmd-16-3203-2023
- Spatial distribution of vertical density and microstructure profiles in near-surface firn around Dome Fuji, Antarctica R. Inoue et al. 10.5194/tc-18-425-2024
- Photolytic modification of seasonal nitrate isotope cycles in East Antarctica P. Akers et al. 10.5194/acp-22-15637-2022
- Monitoring of thermal conditions and snow dynamics at periglacial block accumulations in a low mountain range in central Germany T. Wiegand & C. Kneisel 10.1002/esp.5998
- Observations and simulations of new snow density in the drifting snow-dominated environment of Antarctica N. Wever et al. 10.1017/jog.2022.102
- Antarctic Atmospheric River Climatology and Precipitation Impacts J. Wille et al. 10.1029/2020JD033788
- GABLS4 intercomparison of snow models at Dome C in Antarctica P. Le Moigne et al. 10.5194/tc-16-2183-2022
- Radar measurements of blowing snow off a mountain ridge B. Walter et al. 10.5194/tc-14-1779-2020
- Fifty years of instrumental surface mass balance observations at Vostok Station, central Antarctica A. Ekaykin et al. 10.1017/jog.2023.53
- Snow process monitoring using time-lapse structure-from-motion photogrammetry with a single camera J. Liu et al. 10.1016/j.coldregions.2021.103355
- 200-year ice core bromine reconstruction at Dome C (Antarctica): observational and modelling results F. Burgay et al. 10.5194/tc-17-391-2023
- Exploring the role of snow metamorphism on the isotopic composition of the surface snow at EastGRIP R. Harris Stuart et al. 10.5194/tc-17-1185-2023
Latest update: 19 Jul 2025
Short summary
To study how snow accumulates in Antarctica, we analyze daily surface elevation recorded by an automatic laser scanner. We show that new snow often accumulates in thick patches covering a small fraction of the surface. Most patches are removed by erosion within weeks, implying that only a few contribute to the snowpack. This explains the heterogeneity on the surface and in the snowpack. These findings are important for surface mass and energy balance, photochemistry, and ice core interpretation.
To study how snow accumulates in Antarctica, we analyze daily surface elevation recorded by an...
