TC - recent papers

Evaluation of turbulent flux parameterizations over a continental glacier on the Tibetan Plateau

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Evaluation of turbulent flux parameterizations over a continental glacier on the Tibetan Plateau
Yichan Xu, Meilin Zhu, Jing Gao, Daijiao Lin, Lei Hui, Fei Zhu, Huabiao Zhao, and Fengying Zhang
The Cryosphere, 20, 6021–6044, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-6021-2026, 2026
Glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau are losing mass, yet their turbulent heat exchange with the atmosphere remains uncertain. Using direct observations from the Dunde Glacier (May–October 2023), we analyzed turbulent flux variations at the glacier surface and evaluated five turbulent flux methods. We also showed that during a humid heatwave, turbulent heat input rose sharply and accelerated melt, highlighting the need to improve models under extreme conditions.

On the theoretical limitations of joint inversion for basal slipperiness and effective viscosity in ice-flow models

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

On the theoretical limitations of joint inversion for basal slipperiness and effective viscosity in ice-flow models
Camilla A. O. Schelpe and G. Hilmar Gudmundsson
The Cryosphere, 20, 6003–6020, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-6003-2026, 2026
In this study, we investigate the ability to extract information about ice viscosity at the same as basal slipperiness in the inversion procedure of large-scale ice-sheet models. This is an essential part of the initialisation of many large-scale computational ice-sheet models. However, there is a lack of consensus on whether a joint inversion is possible to determine these fields. We present a theoretical framework to better understand the factors influencing the retrieval.

Improving snow simulations through improved representations of vegetation conditions: insights from high resolution simulations over California

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Improving snow simulations through improved representations of vegetation conditions: insights from high resolution simulations over California
Aniket Gupta, Ali Behrangi, Mohammad Farmani, Patrick Broxton, and Guo-Yue Niu
The Cryosphere, 20, 5973–5992, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5973-2026, 2026
Most hydrological models tend to underestimate snow over the mountainous southwestern US. This may result from uncertainties in precipitation forcing and/or inadequate representation of snow–vegetation interactions, particularly canopy interception and shading. Through model experiments, we demonstrate how downscaled meteorological forcing and improved vegetation representation can improve snow simulations over the southwestern US.

Brief communication: Mass balance of glaciers in the Eastern Hindu Kush from 1979 to 2002 using KH-9 panoramic and SPOT-5 stereo imagery

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Brief communication: Mass balance of glaciers in the Eastern Hindu Kush from 1979 to 2002 using KH-9 panoramic and SPOT-5 stereo imagery
Azka Ramzan and Sajid Ghuffar
The Cryosphere, 20, 5993–6002, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5993-2026, 2026
In the Hindu Kush region, there is a scarcity of observations on the mass balance of glaciers during the pre-2000 period. Here, using stereo imagery from satellites, we estimate that glaciers in the Eastern Hindu Kush have undergone mass loss at a moderate rate during 1979–2002. This study analyzes the behavior of debris-covered and debris-free glaciers as well as surging and non-surging glaciers. We further discuss individual glaciers and identify the major retreating glaciers in the region.

Propagating meteorological uncertainty in physically based mountain snow modeling

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Propagating meteorological uncertainty in physically based mountain snow modeling
David R. Casson, Guoqiang Tang, Nicolás Vásquez, Andrew W. Wood, and Martyn P. Clark
The Cryosphere, 20, 5895–5940, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5895-2026, 2026
Improving mountain snow prediction requires better representation of meteorological uncertainty. This study generates meteorological ensembles accounting for topography, gauge undercatch, and large-scale atmospheric patterns. Driving a physics-based snow model calibrated using a Large Sample Emulator with these ensembles propagates forcing uncertainty into snow accumulation and melt, producing probablistic estimates for data assimilation and hydrological forecasting.

Seasonal surface melt onset and firn freeze-up across the central Wrangell and St. Elias Mountains

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Seasonal surface melt onset and firn freeze-up across the central Wrangell and St. Elias Mountains
Ingalise Kindstedt, Andrew Johnson, Kristin M. Schild, Luke Copland, Christine Dow, Alison Criscitiello, Dominic Winski, Karl Kreutz, and Seth Campbell
The Cryosphere, 20, 5941–5971, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5941-2026, 2026
Mountain snow at high elevations is changing as warming causes more melting and water to linger within it. We use satellite radar images from 2015 to 2024 to track when melting starts and when snow refreezes across the Wrangell and St. Elias Mountains on the border of Alaska and Yukon. We find that melting now reaches nearly all elevations, and water often remains trapped well into fall. Only the highest areas stay fully dry, showing widespread impacts of warming on mountain snowpacks.

Introducing a new normalized cryospheric index (NCI) to categorize sub-watersheds on arid environments

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Introducing a new normalized cryospheric index (NCI) to categorize sub-watersheds on arid environments
Christopher Ulloa, Ayon García, and Anouk Beniest
The Cryosphere, 20, 5829–5866, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5829-2026, 2026
In arid zones, water comes mainly from snow, glaciers and ice-rich permafrost landforms. We introduce the Normalized Cryospheric Index (NCI), which combines ice storage and snow permanence to rank sub-watersheds where no regulatory framework exists. Applied to the Copiapó basin (Atacama, Chile), the NCI identifies the Montosa, Del Potro, Manflas and Estero Come Caballos sub-watersheds as priority targets for sustaining runoff in Chile's national water resources strategy.

Subseasonal forecast improvements from sea ice concentration data assimilation in the Antarctic

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Subseasonal forecast improvements from sea ice concentration data assimilation in the Antarctic
Yong-Fei Zhang, Mitchell Bushuk, Michael Winton, William Gregory, Bill Hurlin, Liwei Jia, and Feiyu Lu
The Cryosphere, 20, 5867–5882, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5867-2026, 2026
Antarctic sea ice has shifted from its overall increasing trend in the past decades to the recent decline, which attracted attention from the research community. Providing more accurate subseasonal predictions of Antarctic sea ice is critical to managing the accelerating human activities. We demonstrate that by incorporating satellite observations of sea ice concentration with modeling, the subseasonal predictions of Antarctic sea ice can be improved significantly.

Glacier response to the transition from lake- to land-terminating following a glacial lake outburst flood at Jinwu Glacier, southeastern Tibet

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Glacier response to the transition from lake- to land-terminating following a glacial lake outburst flood at Jinwu Glacier, southeastern Tibet
Yunyi Luo, Qiao Liu, Yin Fu, Xueyuan Lu, Yongsheng Yin, Jiawei Yang, Guoxiong Zheng, and Xuyang Lu
The Cryosphere, 20, 5883–5894, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5883-2026, 2026
After a glacial lake outburst flood in 2020, Jinwu Glacier in southeastern Tibet lost contact with its lake. Using satellite images, we found that the glacier front slowed by about 44% and showed ice-cliff collapse and a short-lived advance. The study shows that sudden lake drainage can rapidly change glacier behaviour, with implications for how lake-terminating glaciers evolve after outburst floods.

Interannual and seasonal evolution of supraglacial drainage systems on Nivlisen Ice Shelf, East Antarctica

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Interannual and seasonal evolution of supraglacial drainage systems on Nivlisen Ice Shelf, East Antarctica
Jiao Chen, Rebecca A. Hodge, Stewart S. R. Jamieson, and Chris R. Stokes
The Cryosphere, 20, 5785–5811, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5785-2026, 2026
Supraglacial drainage systems mediate meltwater transport over ice shelves and may influence their stability. Our mapping of Nivlisen Ice Shelf from satellite imagery shows significant variation in interannual and seasonal drainage extent. During warm summers, channels become increasingly connected, redistributing meltwater from high to low elevations across the ice shelf. Channel location is controlled by ice shelf structure, and annual extent is correlated with regional air temperature.

Temperature sensitivity of snow viscoplasticity: Evidence from controlled creep experiments

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Temperature sensitivity of snow viscoplasticity: Evidence from controlled creep experiments
Louis Védrine, Marius Brun, Mathis Bozon, Benoit Laurent, and Pascal Hagenmuller
The Cryosphere, 20, 5813–5828, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5813-2026, 2026
Snow slowly compacts under its own weight, and this process depends strongly on temperature, but past estimates vary widely. We developed a device to precisely control temperature and tested the same snow sample under different conditions. We found two distinct temperature regimes and a stronger sensitivity than assumed in existing snowpack models, improving how snow compaction is represented.

Antarctic sea ice response to meltwater due to Antarctic ice sheet mass loss in a multi-model ensemble

Fri, 09 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Antarctic sea ice response to meltwater due to Antarctic ice sheet mass loss in a multi-model ensemble
Andrew G. Pauling, Inga J. Smith, Torge Martin, Jeff K. Ridley, David P. Stevens, Max Thomas, Rebecca L. Beadling, Christopher Danek, Tore Hattermann, Qian Li, John Marshall, Morven Muilwijk, Ariaan Purich, and Neil C. Swart
The Cryosphere, 20, 5761–5783, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5761-2026, 2026
Climate models typically do not include meltwater entering the Southern Ocean due to Antarctic ice sheet mass loss. Previous work shows this meltwater drives sea ice growth, but the varying responses have been difficult to compare across models. We ran 11 climate models using the same meltwater input and found a wide range of sea ice responses depending on the background state in each model. Understanding this uncertainty in response is important for future projections of Antarctic sea ice.

Temperature dependence of grain size in Tibetan ice core

Wed, 07 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Temperature dependence of grain size in Tibetan ice core
Zhengqiang He and Baiqing Xu
The Cryosphere, 20, 5745–5759, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5745-2026, 2026
We continuously measured ice crystal sizes along two ice cores from the Tibetan Plateau. We found that the pattern of crystal size variation with depth is similar to that in polar ice cores. Crystal sizes increase abruptly in refrozen ice layers, while they decrease in impurity-rich bands. Notably, in specific layers, crystal size is linked to δ18O, which means the crystal sizes in mountain glacier ice cores can retain temperature signals, helping us understand past climate change.

A 2020 permafrost distribution map of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

A 2020 permafrost distribution map of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau
Yuhong Chen, Zhuotong Nan, Wenbiao Tian, Yi Zhao, Shuping Zhao, Dongkai Yang, Guifei Jing, and Fujun Niu
The Cryosphere, 20, 5697–5723, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5697-2026, 2026
This study presents a 1-km permafrost map of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau for 2020, generated via a frost number model and space-for-time substitution. Permafrost covers 1.038×10⁶ km² (39.35 %), a 1.82 % decline since 2010, while seasonally frozen ground covers 1.466×10⁶ km² (55.57 %). Validated against boreholes, the map achieves 0.84 accuracy (Kappa= 0.58). This map offers a critical, up-to-date baseline for cryospheric research.

Mechanisms and patterns of snow depth and land surface temperature interactions in arid mountains: coupling coordination and lagged responses across Xinjiang, China

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Mechanisms and patterns of snow depth and land surface temperature interactions in arid mountains: coupling coordination and lagged responses across Xinjiang, China
Haixing Li, Xiaolong Bao, Shiqi Lu, Yi Chu, Jun Lu, Mengge Xiao, and Xuelei Lei
The Cryosphere, 20, 5725–5743, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5725-2026, 2026
Mountain snow is a critical water source, but its warming response is complex. This study developed a new method to examine this in arid Xinjiang mountains using long-term satellite data, revealing a three-level control system and that a strong snow-temperature link does not guarantee a healthy system; it also provides a framework for water availability prediction and climate adaptation.

Simulating jökulhlaups from an ice-marginal lake within a 2D model of subglacial drainage and basal sliding

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Simulating jökulhlaups from an ice-marginal lake within a 2D model of subglacial drainage and basal sliding
Adam J. Hepburn, Sammie Buzzard, Andrew J. Sole, Stephen J. Livingstone, Felix Ng, Mathieu Morlighem, Elizabeth A. Bagshaw, Caroline Clason, Lisa Craw, Christine F. Dow, Samuel Doyle, Jonathan Hawkins, Matthew Peacey, and Robert Storrar
The Cryosphere, 20, 5675–5696, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5675-2026, 2026
Lakes at glacier margins can drain beneath the ice in devastating, floods called jökulhlaups. We present the first 2D model of jökulhlaup propagation, first applying it to a synthetic glacier, before then assessing its ability to reproduce an observed record of lake fill-drain cycles in Greenland. Our results match a 17-year record of flood timing but underpredicts peak discharge likely because we are missing certain physical processes. Our results hold promise for simulating jökulhlaups.

Seasonal evolution of suncup roughness describes broadband albedo decay on alpine snow

Mon, 05 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Seasonal evolution of suncup roughness describes broadband albedo decay on alpine snow
Francesca Carletti, Nora Helbig, Nander Wever, Loïc Brouet, Mathias Bavay, Benjamin Walter, and Michael Lehning
The Cryosphere, 20, 5653–5673, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5653-2026, 2026
Melting alpine snowfields develop cup-shaped hollows that reduce how much sunlight the snow reflects, accelerating melt. Over three seasons in the Swiss Alps, we monitored how these hollows form and grow with a laser scanner. Two processes reduce reflectivity at the same time: hollows trap light through internal reflections, and meltwater washes dark particles into them. Because they are difficult to separate, surface roughness alone emerges as a proxy for overall reflectivity loss.

Gravity topography modeling of the Denman Glacier region using a geostatistical approach

Fri, 02 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Gravity topography modeling of the Denman Glacier region using a geostatistical approach
Mareen Lösing, Alan Aitken, Michael Field, Emma MacKie, and Lu Li
The Cryosphere, 20, 5629–5652, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5629-2026, 2026
Subglacial topography controls how Antarctic ice flows towards the ocean and responds to climate change. In the Denman–Shackleton region, deep valleys connect the ice-sheet interior to the coast. Denman Glacier occupies one of the deepest and could contribute significantly to sea-level rise. Combining new ground-based gravity measurements with airborne data and statistical modelling reveals a more complex landscape than existing maps and a potential vulnerability to unstable retreat.

Reduced surface hoar in a warming world

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Reduced surface hoar in a warming world
William Rudisill, Dan Feldman, Adrienne Marshall, and Arielle Koshkin
The Cryosphere, 20, 5585–5607, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5585-2026, 2026
Surface hoar crystals occasionally grow on the top of snowpacks overnight. Little work has focused on climatic conditions leading to surface hoar. We use data from three field campaigns in the Colorado Rockies to investigate. We show that surface hoar events decline as the climate warms, and that there may be 14 % fewer events per year in the future. There is still work needed to reconcile measured amounts of surface hoar crystals, models, and the relationship with turbulent air.

Impact of blowing snow on the surface radiation balance near the western margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 21:39:50 +0200

Impact of blowing snow on the surface radiation balance near the western margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet
Samuel M. Tax, Maurice van Tiggelen, Thirza N. Feenstra, Paul C. J. P. Smeets, Srinidhi N. Gadde, Christiaan T. van Dalum, Willem Jan van de Berg, and Michiel R. van den Broeke
The Cryosphere, 20, 5609–5627, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-5609-2026, 2026
Strong winds can lift snow into the air, which influences the energy exchange between the surface and the atmosphere. We studied this phenomenon over the Greenland Ice Sheet using observations and a climate model. We found that blowing snow traps heat near the surface like a blanket and reflects incoming sunlight like a mirror. Simulating these processes increases the net energy at the surface and improves model accuracy. Therefore, we recommend including these effects in climate models.