Snow accumulation, albedo and melt patterns following road construction on permafrost, Inuvik–Tuktoyaktuk Highway, Canada

Hammar, Jennika; Grünberg, Inge; Kokelj, Steven V.; van der Sluijs, Jurjen; Boike, Julia

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5357-2023

Articles | Volume 17, issue 12

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5357-2023

© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-5357-2023

© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 17, issue 12

Research article

|

18 Dec 2023

Research article |

| 18 Dec 2023

Snow accumulation, albedo and melt patterns following road construction on permafrost, Inuvik–Tuktoyaktuk Highway, Canada

Jennika Hammar, Inge Grünberg, Steven V. Kokelj, Jurjen van der Sluijs, and Julia Boike

Data sets

Snow covered digital elevation model and snow depth product (2019), Trail Valley Creek, NWT, Canada Jennika Hammar, Inge Grünberg, Stefan Hendricks, Arttu Jutila, Veit Helm, and Julia Boike https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.962552

Short summary

Roads on permafrost have significant environmental effects. This study assessed the Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk Highway (ITH) in Canada and its impact on snow accumulation, albedo and snowmelt timing. Our findings revealed that snow accumulation increased by up to 36 m from the road, 12-day earlier snowmelt within 100 m due to reduced albedo, and altered snowmelt patterns in seemingly undisturbed areas. Remote sensing aids in understanding road impacts on permafrost.