Observation and modelling of snow and sea ice mass balance and its sensitivity to atmospheric forcing during spring and summer 2007 in the Central Arctic

Snow depth and sea ice thickness were observed applying an ice mass balance buoy(IMB)in the drifting ice station Tara during the International Polar Year in 2007.Detailed in situ observations on meteorological variables and surface fluxes were taken during May to August.For this study,the operational analyses and short-term forecasts from two numerical weather prediction(NWP)models(ECMWF and HIRLAM)were extracted for the Tara drift trajectory.We compared the IMB,meteorological and surface flux observations against the NWP products,also applying a one-dimensional thermodynamic sea ice model(HIGHTSI)to calculate the snow and ice mass balance and its sensitivity to atmospheric forcing.The modelled snow depth time series,controlled by NWP-based precipitation,was in line with the observed one.HIGHTSI reproduced well the snowmelt onset,the progress of the melt,and the first date of snow-free conditions.HIGHTSI performed well also in the late August freezing season.Challenges remain to model the“false bottom”observed during the melting season.The evolution of the vertical temperature profiles in snow and ice was better simulated when the model was forced by in situ observations instead of NWP results.During the melting period,the nonlinear ice temperature profile was successfully modelled with both forcing options.During spring and the melting season,total sea ice mass balance was most sensitive to uncertainties in NWP results for the downward longwave radiation,followed by the downward shortwave radiation,air temperature,and wind speed.

GRACE RL05-based ice mass changes in the typical regions of antarctica from 2004 to 2012

The Antarctic ice sheet is the largest block of ice on Earth, a tiny change of its ice sheet will have a significant impact on sea level change, so it plays an important role in global climate change. The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment （GRACE） mission, launched in 2002, provides an alternative method to monitor the Antarctic ice mass variation. The latest Release Level 05 （ RL05 ） version of GRACE time-variable gravity （TVG） data, derived from GRACE observations with improved quality and time-span over 10 years, were released by three GRACE data centers （CSR, JPL and GFZ） in April 2012, which gives us a chance to re-estimate the ice mass change over Antarctic more accurately. In this paper, we examine ice mass changes in regional scale, including Antarctic Peninsula （AP, West Antarctica）, Amundsen Sea Embayment （ASE, West Antarctica）, Lambert-Amery System （LAS, East Antarctica） and 27 drainage basins based on three data sets. The AP mass change rates are -12.03±0.74 Gt/a （CSR, 2004-2012）, -13.92±2.33 Gt/a （JPL, 2004 -2012） , -12.28±0.76 Gt/a （GFZ, 2005-2012） , with an acceleration of -1.50±0.25 Gt/a^2, -1.54±0.26 Gt/a^2, -0. 46±0.28 Gt/a^2 respectively, the ASE mass change rates are -89.22±1.93 Gt/a, -86.28± 2.20 Gt/a, -83.67±1.76 Gt/a with an acceleration of -10. 03±0. 65 Gt/a^2, -8.74±0. 74 Gt/a^2 and -5.69 ±0.68 Gt/a^2, and the LAS mass ehange rates are -4.31±1.95 Gt/a, -7.29±2. 84 Gt/a, 1.20±1.35 Gt/a with an acceleration of -0. 18±0.62 Gt/a^2, 3.55±0.95 Gt/a^2 and 0.97±0.49 Gt/a^2. The mass change rates derived from the three RL05 data are very close to each other both in AP and ASE with the uncertainties much smaller than the change rates, and mass losses are significantly accelerated since 2007 in AP and 2006 in ASE, respectively. However, the mass change rates are significantly different in LAS, negative rate from CSR and JPL data, but positive rate from GFZ data, the uncertainties are even larger than the correspondent change rates. With regard to the 27 drainage basins, seven basins （basin 3-9） located in the east Antarctica show positive mass change rates, and the rest twenty basins are characterized by negative mass change rates during the time span of the three RL05 data.

Snow depth and ice thickness derived from SIMBA ice mass balance buoy data using an automated algorithm

An ice mass balance buoy(IMB)monitors the evolution of snow and ice cover on seas,ice caps and lakes through the measurement of various variables.The crucial measurement of snow and ice thickness has been achieved using acoustic sounders in early devices but a more recently developed IMB called the Snow and Ice Mass Balance Array(SIMBA)measures vertical temperature profiles through the air-snow-ice-water column using a thermistor string.The determination of snow depth and ice thickness from SIMBA temperature profiles is presently a manual process.We present an automated algorithm to perform this task.The algorithm is based on heat flux continuation,limit ratio between thermal heat conductivity of snow and ice,and minimum resolution(±0.0625°C)of the temperature sensors.The algorithm results are compared with manual analyses,in situ borehole measurements and numerical model simulation.The bias and root mean square error between algorithm and other methods ranged from 1 to 9 cm for ice thickness counting 2%–7%of the mean observed values.The algorithm works well in cold condition but becomes less reliable in warmer conditions where the vertical temperature gradient is reduced.

Research progress in geophysical exploration of the Antarctic ice sheet

The Antarctic ice sheet is an important target of Antarctic research.Thickness and structure,including intraice and subice,are closely related to the mass balance of the ice sheet,and play an important role in the study of global sea level and climate change.Subglacial topography is an important basis for studying ice sheet dynamics and ice sheet evolution.This paper briefly reviews the geophysical detection methods and research status of the Antarctic ice sheet:(1)Conventional methods such as ice radar are the main methods for studying the ice sheet today,and passive source seismic methods such as the receiver function method,H/V method and P-wave coda autocorrelation method have good development prospects;(2)the high-resolution(1 km)ice thickness and subglacial topographic database BEDMAP2 established based on various data has greatly improved the ability to detect internal isochronous layers,anisotropic layers,and temperature changes within ice and has advanced research on ice sheet evolution;and(3)ice radar,numerical simulation and core drilling are the main methods to study subglacial lakes and sediments.More than 400 subglacial lakes have been confirmed,and more than 12000 simulation results have been obtained.Research on the Antarctic ice sheet faces enormous challenges and is of great urgency.Aiming at hot issues,such as Antarctic geological evolution,glacial retreat,ice sheet melting and their relationships with global climate change,it is the frontier and trend of future Antarctic ice sheet research to carry out multidisciplinary and multicountry comprehensive geophysical exploration based on the traditional ice radar method combined with passive seismic methods,especially new technologies such as short-period dense array technology,unmanned aerial vehicles and artificial intelligence.This is expected to further promote Antarctic research.

Observed and modelled snow and ice thickness in the Arctic Ocean with CHINARE buoy data

Sea ice and the snow pack on top of it were investigated using Chinese National Arctic Research Expedition （CHINARE） buoy data. Two polar hydrometeorological drifters, known as Zeno ice stations, were deployed during CHINARE 2003. A new type of high-resolution Snow and Ice Mass Balance Arrays, known as SIMBA buoys, were deployed during CHINARE 2014. Data from those buoys were applied to investigate the thickness of sea ice and snow in the CHINARE domain. A simple approach was applied to estimate the average snow thickness on the basis of Zeno temperature data. Snow and ice thicknesses were also derived from vertical temperature profile data based on the SIMBA buoys. A one-dimensional snow and ice thermodynamic model （HIGHTSI） was applied to calculate the snow and ice thickness along the buoy drift trajectories. The model forcing was based on forecasts and analyses of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts （ECMWF）. The Zeno buoys drifted in a confined area during 2003-2004. The snow thickness modelled applying HIGHTSI was consistent with results based on Zeno buoy data. The SIMBA buoys drifted from 81. 1°N, 157.4°W to 73.5°N, 134.9°W in 15 months during 2014-2015. The total ice thickness increased from an initial August 2014 value of 1.97 m to a maximum value of 2.45 in before the onset of snow melt in May 2015; the last observation was approximately 1 m in late November 2015. The ice thickness based on HIGHTSI agreed with SIMBA measurements, in particular when the seasonal variation of oceanic heat flux was taken into account, but the modelled snow thickness differed from the observed one. Sea ice thickness derived from SIMBA data was reasonably good in cold conditions, but challenges remain in both snow and ice thickness in summer.

A Preliminary Investigation of Arctic Sea Ice Negative Freeboard from in-situ Observations and Radar Altimetry

The negative freeboard of sea ice(i.e., the height of ice surface below sea level) with subsequent flooding is widespread in the Southern Ocean, as opposed to the Arctic, due to the relatively thicker ice and thinner snow. In this study, we used the observations of snow and ice thickness from 103 ice mass balance buoys(IMBs) and NASA Operation IceBridge Aircraft Missions to investigate the spatial distribution of negative freeboard of Arctic sea ice. The Result showed that seven IMBs recorded negative freeboards, which were sporadically located in the seas around Northeast Greenland, the Central Arctic Ocean, and the marginal areas of the Chukchi–Beaufort Sea. The observed maximum values of negative freeboard could reach-0.12 m in the seas around Northeast Greenland. The observations from IceBridge campaigns also revealed negative freeboard comparable to those of IMBs in the seas around North Greenland and the Beaufort Sea. We further investigated the large-scale distribution of negative freeboard using NASA CryoSat-2 radar altimeter data, and the result indicates that except for the negative freeboard areas observed by IMBs and IceBridge, there are negative freeboards in other marginal seas of the Arctic Ocean. However, the comparison of the satellite data with the IMB data and IceBridge data shows that the Cryosat-2 data generally overestimate the extent and magnitude of the negative freeboard in the Arctic.

Determination of trace level of perchlorate in Antarctic snow and ice by ion chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry using an automated sample on-line preconcentration method

A new ion chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry （IC-ESI-MS/MS） method, with automated sampling and on-line preconcentration, has been developed for the determination of perchlorate in Antarctic snow and ice at low part-per-trillion （ng]L） levels. To the best of our lmowledge, this is the first time that an analytical method is used for the determination of perchlorate in Antarctic snow and ice. The IC-ESI-MS/MS instrumentation consisted of an ICS2000 ion chromatography （IC） system coupled to an API3200 electrospray tandem mass spectrometer （ESI-MS/MS）. On-line preconcentration was realized through a six-port injector valve, a TAC-ULP1 concentrator column and an AS auto-sampler. Multiple reaction monitoring （MRM） mode was used to quantify the perch/orate anion. The transition of 35Cl]604- （m/z 98.9） into 3SC11603 （m[z 82.9） was monitored for quantifying the main analyte, and the transition of 37C11604 （m/z 100.9） into 37C1~603- （m]z 84.9） was monitored for examining a proper isotopic abundance ratio of 3sCl to 37C1, which was used as a confirmation tool. The limit of detection （LOD） and limit of quantitation （LOQ） for the method was 0.2 ng/ L and 0.5 ng/L, respectively. And this new method exhibited acceptable accuracy and precision for samples at ng/L levels. All the tested snow and ice samples were found to contain measurable amount of oerchlorate, ran^in~ from 10 nell to 340 nell..

Mass balance and near-surface ice temperature structure of Baishui Glacier No.1 in Mt. Yulong

The accumulation and ablation of a glacier directly reflect its mass income and wastage, and ice temperature indicates glacier＇s climatic and dynamic conditions. Glaciological studies at Baishui Glacier No.1 in Mt. Yulong are important for estimating recent changes of the cryosphere in Hengduan Mountains. Increased glacier ablation and higher ice temperatures can cause the incidents of icefall. Therefore, it is important to conduct the study of glacier mass balance and ice temperature, but there are few studies in relation to glacier＇s mass balance and active-layer temperature in China＇s monsoonal temperate glacier region. Based on the field observations of mass balance and glacier temperature at Baishui Glacier No.1, its accumulation, ablation, net balance and near-surface ice temperature structure were analyzed and studied in this paper. Results showed that the accumulation period was ranged from October to the following mid-May, and the ablation period occurred from mid-May to October, suggesting that the ablation period of temperate glacier began about 15 days earlier than that of continental glaciers, while the accumulation period began about 15 days later. The glacier ablation rate was 6.47 cm d 1 at an elevation of 4600 m between June 23 and August 30, and it was 7.4 cm d 1 at 4800 m between June 26 and July 11 in 1982, moreover, they respectively increased to 9.2 cm d 1 and 10.8 cm d 1 in the corresponding period and altitude in 2009, indicating that glacier ablation has greatly intensified in the past years. The temperature of the main glacier body was close to melting point in summer, and it dropped from the glacier surface and reached a minimum value at a depth of 4-6 m in the ablation zone. The temperature then rose to around melting point with the depth increment. In winter, the ice temperature rose gradually with the increasing depth, and close to melting point at the depth of 10 m. Compared with the data from 1982, the glacier temperature has risen in the ablation zone in recent decades.