Bio-optical characteristics of the snow, ice, and water column of a perennially ice-covered lake in the High Arctic

Lake A is a meromictic, perennially ice-covered lake located at the northern limit of North America (latitude 83°N, Ellesmere Island, Canada). In early June 1999, only 0.45% of incident photosynthetically available radiation (PAR) was transmitted through its 2-m ice and 0.5-m snow cover. Removal of snow from 12 m2 increased PAR under the ice by a factor of 13 and biologically effective ultraviolet radiation (UVR) by a factor of 16 (from 0.4% to 6.3% of incident). The diffuse attenuation coefficient (Kd) for UVR was substantially lower in the ice than in the underlying freshwater (e.g., 50% lower at 320 nm), indicating the exclusion of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) during freeze-up or the subsequent degradation of CDOM retained in the ice. Peak phytoplankton concentrations occurred immediately under the ice, and a broad maximum of photosynthetic sulfur bacteria and associated sulfur particles was observed over the depth interval 20–45 m at <0.005% of incident PAR. Climate-induced changes in the overlying snow and ice have the potential to cause major habitat disruption (UV exposure, PAR, temperature, mixing regime) for these stratified, extreme-shade communities.