Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica
During the austral summer 2019/2020, three vertically pointing K-band Doppler profilers (Micro Rain Radar PRO, MRR-PRO) were deployed along a transect across the Sør Rondane Mountains, directly south of the scientific base Princess Elisabeth Antarctica. The MRR-PRO devices were placed at locations c...
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ftcopernicus:oai:publications.copernicus.org:tc110224 2023-12-24T10:09:26+01:00 Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica Ferrone, Alfonso Vignon, Étienne Zonato, Andrea Berne, Alexis 2023-11-24 application/pdf https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4937-2023 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/4937/2023/ eng eng doi:10.5194/tc-17-4937-2023 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/4937/2023/ eISSN: 1994-0424 Text 2023 ftcopernicus https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4937-2023 2023-11-27T17:24:17Z During the austral summer 2019/2020, three vertically pointing K-band Doppler profilers (Micro Rain Radar PRO, MRR-PRO) were deployed along a transect across the Sør Rondane Mountains, directly south of the scientific base Princess Elisabeth Antarctica. The MRR-PRO devices were placed at locations corresponding to different stages of the interaction between the complex terrain and the typical flow associated with precipitating systems. The radar measurements, alongside information from the ERA5 reanalysis and a set of high-resolution Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) simulations, have been used to study the spatial variability in snowfall across the transect. Radar observations reveal differences in the frequency of occurrence of virga and surface precipitation above the transect. An analysis of the WRF outputs reveals the presence of a relatively dry layer above the radar locations, reaching a constant altitude of 3.5 km above mean sea level. Due to the complex terrain, the depth of the layer varies across the transect, affecting sublimation and the occurrence of virgae. Combined information from the ERA5 reanalysis, the WRF simulations, and ground-level measurements suggests that orographic lifting enhances precipitation above the highest mountain peaks. Finally, the analysis of the succession of virga and surface precipitation above the sites shows that, in most cases, they represent different stages of the same large-scale events. This study reveals the significant spatial variability in the occurrence of precipitation in a region of complex terrain, emphasizing the importance of collecting snowfall measurements in the mountainous regions of the Antarctic continent. Text Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Copernicus Publications: E-Journals Antarctic The Antarctic Austral Sør-Rondane ENVELOPE(25.000,25.000,-72.000,-72.000) Sør Rondane Mountains ENVELOPE(25.000,25.000,-72.000,-72.000) The Cryosphere 17 11 4937 4956 |
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Open Polar |
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Copernicus Publications: E-Journals |
op_collection_id |
ftcopernicus |
language |
English |
description |
During the austral summer 2019/2020, three vertically pointing K-band Doppler profilers (Micro Rain Radar PRO, MRR-PRO) were deployed along a transect across the Sør Rondane Mountains, directly south of the scientific base Princess Elisabeth Antarctica. The MRR-PRO devices were placed at locations corresponding to different stages of the interaction between the complex terrain and the typical flow associated with precipitating systems. The radar measurements, alongside information from the ERA5 reanalysis and a set of high-resolution Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) simulations, have been used to study the spatial variability in snowfall across the transect. Radar observations reveal differences in the frequency of occurrence of virga and surface precipitation above the transect. An analysis of the WRF outputs reveals the presence of a relatively dry layer above the radar locations, reaching a constant altitude of 3.5 km above mean sea level. Due to the complex terrain, the depth of the layer varies across the transect, affecting sublimation and the occurrence of virgae. Combined information from the ERA5 reanalysis, the WRF simulations, and ground-level measurements suggests that orographic lifting enhances precipitation above the highest mountain peaks. Finally, the analysis of the succession of virga and surface precipitation above the sites shows that, in most cases, they represent different stages of the same large-scale events. This study reveals the significant spatial variability in the occurrence of precipitation in a region of complex terrain, emphasizing the importance of collecting snowfall measurements in the mountainous regions of the Antarctic continent. |
format |
Text |
author |
Ferrone, Alfonso Vignon, Étienne Zonato, Andrea Berne, Alexis |
spellingShingle |
Ferrone, Alfonso Vignon, Étienne Zonato, Andrea Berne, Alexis Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica |
author_facet |
Ferrone, Alfonso Vignon, Étienne Zonato, Andrea Berne, Alexis |
author_sort |
Ferrone, Alfonso |
title |
Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica |
title_short |
Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica |
title_full |
Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica |
title_fullStr |
Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica |
title_full_unstemmed |
Local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica |
title_sort |
local spatial variability in the occurrence of summer precipitation in the sør rondane mountains, antarctica |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4937-2023 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/4937/2023/ |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(25.000,25.000,-72.000,-72.000) ENVELOPE(25.000,25.000,-72.000,-72.000) |
geographic |
Antarctic The Antarctic Austral Sør-Rondane Sør Rondane Mountains |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic The Antarctic Austral Sør-Rondane Sør Rondane Mountains |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica |
op_source |
eISSN: 1994-0424 |
op_relation |
doi:10.5194/tc-17-4937-2023 https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/4937/2023/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4937-2023 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
17 |
container_issue |
11 |
container_start_page |
4937 |
op_container_end_page |
4956 |
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1786208201342976000 |