scholarly journals Antarctic 20th Century Accumulation Changes Based on Regional Climate Model Simulations

2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaus Dethloff ◽  
Ksenia Glushak ◽  
Annette Rinke ◽  
Dörthe Handorf
Keyword(s):  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Reanalysis Data ◽  
Horizontal Resolution ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Transient Pressure ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
The Antarctic

The regional climate model HIRHAM has been applied to Antarctica driven at the lateral and lower boundaries by European Reanalysis data ERA-40 for the period 1958–1998. Simulations over 4 decades, carried out with a horizontal resolution of 50 km, deliver a realistic simulation of the Antarctic atmospheric circulation, synoptic-scale pressure systems, and the spatial distribution of precipitation minus sublimation (P-E) structures. The simulated P-E pattern is in qualitative agreement with glaciological estimates. The estimated (P-E) trends demonstrate surfacemass accumulation increase at the West Antarctic coasts and reductions in parts of East Antarctica. The influence of the Antarctic Oscillation (AAO) on the near-surface climate and the surface mass accumulation over Antarctica have been investigated on the basis of ERA-40 data and HIRHAM simulations. It is shown that the regional accumulation changes are largely driven by changes in the transient activity around the Antarctic coasts due to the varying AAO phases. During positive AAO, more transient pressure systems travelling towards the continent, and Western Antarctica and parts of South-Eastern Antarctica gain more precipitation and mass. Over central Antarctica the prevailing anticyclone causes a strengthening of polar desertification connected with a reduced surface mass balance in the northern part of East Antarctica.

scholarly journals Evidence and analysis of 2012 Greenland records from spaceborne observations, a regional climate model and reanalysis data

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 4939-4976 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Tedesco ◽  
X. Fettweis ◽  
T. Mote ◽  
J. Wahr ◽  
P. Alexander ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Reanalysis Data ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
The Mean

Abstract. A combined analysis of remote sensing observations, regional climate model (RCM) outputs and reanalysis data over the Greenland ice sheet provides evidence that multiple records were set during summer 2012. Melt extent was the largest in the satellite era (extending up to ~ 97% of the ice sheet) and melting lasted up to ~ two months longer than the 1979–2011 mean. Model results indicate that near surface temperature was ~ 3 standard deviations (σ) above the 1958–2011 mean, while surface mass balance was ~ 3σ below the mean and runoff was 3.9σ above the mean over the same period. Albedo, exposure of bare ice and surface mass balance also set new records, as did the total mass balance with summer and annual mass changes of, respectively, −627 Gt and −574 Gt, 2σ below the 2003–2012 mean. We identify persistent anticyclonic conditions over Greenland associated with anomalies in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), changes in surface conditions (e.g. albedo) and pre-conditioning of surface properties from recent extreme melting as major driving mechanisms for the 2012 records. Because of self-amplifying positive feedbacks, less positive if not increasingly negative SMB will likely occur should large-scale atmospheric circulation and induced surface characteristics observed over the past decade persist. Since the general circulation models of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) do not simulate the abnormal anticyclonic circulation resulting from extremely negative NAO conditions as observed over recent years, contribution to sea level rise projected under different warming scenarios will be underestimated should the trend in NAO summer values continue.

Regional Climate Model Inter-Comparison for Antarctica within a Data Science Framework

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremy Carter ◽  
Amber Leeson ◽  
Andrew Orr ◽  
Christoph Kittel ◽  
Melchior van Wessem
Keyword(s):  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Climate Models ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Regional Climate Models ◽  
Future Climate Change ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Virtual Lab ◽  
Model Variability ◽  
The Antarctic

<p>Understanding the surface climatology of the Antarctic ice sheet is essential if we are to adequately predict its response to future climate change. This includes both primary impacts such as increased ice melting and secondary impacts such as ice shelf collapse events. Given its size, and inhospitable environment, weather stations on Antarctica are sparse. Thus, we rely on regional climate models to 1) develop our understanding of how the climate of Antarctica varies in both time and space and 2) provide data to use as context for remote sensing studies and forcing for dynamical process models. Given that there are a number of different regional climate models available that explicitly simulate Antarctic climate, understanding inter- and intra model variability is important.</p><p>Here, inter- and intra-model variability in Antarctic-wide regional climate model output is assessed for: snowfall; rainfall; snowmelt and near-surface air temperature within a cloud-based virtual lab framework. State-of-the-art regional climate model runs from the Antarctic-CORDEX project using the RACMO, MAR and MetUM models are used, together with the ERA5 and ERA-Interim reanalyses products. Multiple simulations using the same model and domain boundary but run at either different spatial resolutions or with different driving data are used. Traditional analysis techniques are exploited and the question of potential added value from more modern and involved methods such as the use of Gaussian Processes is investigated. The advantages of using a virtual lab in a cloud based environment for increasing transparency and reproducibility, are demonstrated, with a view to ultimately make the code and methods used widely available for other research groups.</p>

scholarly journals Simulation of the net snow accumulation along the Wilkes Land transect, Antarctica, with a regional climate model

2005 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
pp. 17-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hubert Gallée ◽  
Vincent Peyaud ◽  
Ian Goodwin
Keyword(s):  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Climate Modelling ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
Spatial Coverage ◽  
Wilkes Land

AbstractRegional climate modelling in conjunction with accumulation measurements collected on Antarctic traverses of the International Trans-Antarctic Scientific Expedition (ITASE) is presented as a tool for extending the spatial coverage of field measurements. The modelling of part of East Antarctica spanned the 7 year epoch 1980–86 where data covering the same period are available. The agreement between simulation and observation is improved when a parameterization of the snow surface redistribution processes, such as wind erosion, is included in the regional climate model. The modelled spatial distribution of the net snow mass transported in the boundary layer over coastal East Antarctica indicates that this mass is a significant component of the surface mass balance.

scholarly journals Performance of MAR (v3.11) in simulating the drifting-snow climate and surface mass balance of Adélie Land, East Antarctica

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 3487-3510
Author(s):  
Charles Amory ◽  
Christoph Kittel ◽  
Louis Le Toumelin ◽  
Cécile Agosta ◽  
Alison Delhasse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Climate Models ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Comprehensive Evaluation ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
Drifting Snow

Abstract. Drifting snow, or the wind-driven transport of snow particles originating from clouds and the surface below and above 2 m above ground and their concurrent sublimation, is a poorly documented process on the Antarctic ice sheet, which is inherently lacking in most climate models. Since drifting snow mostly results from erosion of surface particles, a comprehensive evaluation of this process in climate models requires a concurrent assessment of simulated drifting-snow transport and the surface mass balance (SMB). In this paper a new version of the drifting-snow scheme currently embedded in the regional climate model MAR (v3.11) is extensively described. Several important modifications relative to previous version have been implemented and include notably a parameterization for drifting-snow compaction of the uppermost snowpack layer, differentiated snow density at deposition between precipitation and drifting snow, and a rewrite of the threshold friction velocity above which snow erosion initiates. Model results at high resolution (10 km) over Adélie Land, East Antarctica, for the period 2004–2018 are presented and evaluated against available near-surface meteorological observations at half-hourly resolution and annual SMB estimates. The evaluation demonstrates that MAR resolves the local drifting-snow frequency and transport up to the scale of the drifting-snow event and captures the resulting observed climate and SMB variability, suggesting that this model version can be used for continent-wide applications.

scholarly journals Future projections of the climate and surface mass balance of Svalbard with the regional climate model MAR

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Lang ◽  
X. Fettweis ◽  
M. Erpicum
Keyword(s):  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Future Projections ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
Ice Caps ◽  
The North

Abstract. We have performed future projections of the climate and surface mass balance (SMB) of Svalbard with the MAR regional climate model forced by the MIROC5 global model, following the RCP8.5 scenario at a spatial resolution of 10 km. MAR predicts a similar evolution of increasing surface melt everywhere in Svalbard followed by a sudden acceleration of the melt around 2050, with a larger melt increase in the south compared to the north of the archipelago and the ice caps. This melt acceleration around 2050 is mainly driven by the albedo-melt feedback associated with the expansion of the ablation/bare ice zone. This effect is dampened in part as the solar radiation itself is projected to decrease due to cloudiness increase. The near-surface temperature is projected to increase more in winter than in summer as the temperature is already close to 0 °C in summer. The model also projects a strong winter west-to-east temperature gradient, related to the large decrease of sea ice cover around Svalbard. At the end of the century (2070–2099 mean), SMB is projected to be negative over the entire Svalbard and, by 2085, all glaciated regions of Svalbard are predicted to undergo net ablation, meaning that, under the RCP8.5 scenario, all the glaciers and ice caps are predicted to start their irreversible retreat before the end of the 21st century.

scholarly journals Performance of MAR (v3.11) in simulating the drifting-snow climate and surface mass balance of Adelie Land, East Antarctica

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Amory ◽  
Christoph Kittel ◽  
Louis Le Toumelin ◽  
Cécile Agosta ◽  
Alison Delhasse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Balance ◽  
Climate Models ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Comprehensive Evaluation ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
Drifting Snow

Abstract. Drifting snow, or the wind-driven transport of snow particles and their concurrent sublimation, is a poorly documented process on the Antarctic ice sheet, inherently lacking in most climate models. Since drifting snow mostly results from erosion of surface particles, a comprehensive evaluation of this process in climate models requires a concurrent assessment of simulated transport and the surface mass balance (SMB). In this paper a new version of the drifting-snow scheme currently embedded in the regional climate model MAR (v3.11) is extensively described. Several important modifications relative to previous version have been implemented and include notably a parameterisation for drifting-snow compaction, differentiated snow density at deposition between precipitation and drifting snow, and a rewriting of the threshold friction velocity for snow erosion. Model results at high resolution (10 km) over Adelie Land, East Antarctica, for the period 2004–2018 are presented and evaluated against available near-surface meteorological observations at half-hourly resolution and annual SMB estimates. MAR resolves the local drifting-snow frequency and transport up the scale of the drifting-snow event and captures the resulting observed climate and SMB variability. This suggests that this model version can be used for continent-wide applications, and that the approach of drifting-snow physics as proposed in MAR can serve as a basis for implementation in earth system models.

scholarly journals Evidence and analysis of 2012 Greenland records from spaceborne observations, a regional climate model and reanalysis data

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 615-630 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Tedesco ◽  
X. Fettweis ◽  
T. Mote ◽  
J. Wahr ◽  
P. Alexander ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Reanalysis Data ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
The Mean

Abstract. A combined analysis of remote sensing observations, regional climate model (RCM) outputs and reanalysis data over the Greenland ice sheet provides evidence that multiple records were set during summer 2012. Melt extent was the largest in the satellite era (extending up to ∼97% of the ice sheet) and melting lasted up to ∼2 months longer than the 1979–2011 mean. Model results indicate that near surface temperature was ∼3 standard deviations (σ) above the 1958–2011 mean, while surface mass balance (SMB) was ∼3σ below the mean and runoff was 3.9σ above the mean over the same period. Albedo, exposure of bare ice and surface mass balance also set new records, as did the total mass balance with summer and annual mass changes of, respectively, −627 Gt and −574 Gt, 2σ below the 2003–2012 mean. We identify persistent anticyclonic conditions over Greenland associated with anomalies in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), changes in surface conditions (e.g., albedo, surface temperature) and preconditioning of surface properties from recent extreme melting as major driving mechanisms for the 2012 records. Less positive if not increasingly negative SMB will likely occur should these characteristics persist.

scholarly journals Recent Near-surface Temperature Trends in the Antarctic Peninsula from Observed, Reanalysis and Regional Climate Model Data

2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 477-493
Author(s):  
Deniz Bozkurt ◽  
David H. Bromwich ◽  
Jorge Carrasco ◽  
Keith M. Hines ◽  
Juan Carlos Maureira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Antarctic Peninsula ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Model Data ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Temperature Trends ◽  
The Antarctic

scholarly journals Future climate and surface mass balance of Svalbard glaciers in an RCP8.5 climate scenario: a study with the regional climate model MAR forced by MIROC5

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 945-956 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Lang ◽  
X. Fettweis ◽  
M. Erpicum
Keyword(s):  
Regional Climate Model ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Climate Scenario ◽  
Surface Mass Balance ◽  
Future Projection ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Mass ◽  
The North

Abstract. We have performed a future projection of the climate and surface mass balance (SMB) of Svalbard with the MAR (Modèle Atmosphérique Régional) regional climate model forced by MIROC5 (Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate), following the RCP8.5 scenario at a spatial resolution of 10 km. MAR predicts a similar evolution of increasing surface melt everywhere in Svalbard followed by a sudden acceleration of melt around 2050, with a larger melt increase in the south compared to the north of the archipelago. This melt acceleration around 2050 is mainly driven by the albedo–melt feedback associated with the expansion of the ablation/bare ice zone. This effect is dampened in part as the solar radiation itself is projected to decrease due to a cloudiness increase. The near-surface temperature is projected to increase more in winter than in summer as the temperature is already close to 0 °C in summer. The model also projects a stronger winter west-to-east temperature gradient, related to the large decrease of sea ice cover around Svalbard. By 2085, SMB is projected to become negative over all of Svalbard's glaciated regions, leading to the rapid degradation of the firn layer.

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