The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover
The Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic North Atlantic is experiencing rapid changes in the surface climate and sea ice distribution, with impacts for the coupled climate system and the local society. This study utilizes observational data of surface air temperature (SAT) from 1980–2016 across the wh...
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ftdatacite:10.23689/fidgeo-4825 2023-05-15T15:00:37+02:00 The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover Dahlke, Sandro Hughes, Nicholas E. Wagner, Penelope M. Gerland, Sebastian Wawrzyniak, Tomasz Ivanov, Boris Maturilli, Marion 2020 https://dx.doi.org/10.23689/fidgeo-4825 https://e-docs.geo-leo.de/handle/11858/9171 en eng FID GEO Text Article article-journal ScholarlyArticle 2020 ftdatacite https://doi.org/10.23689/fidgeo-4825 2021-11-05T12:55:41Z The Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic North Atlantic is experiencing rapid changes in the surface climate and sea ice distribution, with impacts for the coupled climate system and the local society. This study utilizes observational data of surface air temperature (SAT) from 1980–2016 across the whole Svalbard archipelago, and sea ice extent (SIE) from operational sea ice charts to conduct a systematic assessment of climatologies, long-term changes and regional differences. The proximity to the warm water mass of the West Spitsbergen Current drives a markedly warmer climate in the western coastal regions compared to northern and eastern Svalbard. This imprints on the SIE climatology in southern and western Svalbard, where the annual maxima of 50–60% area ice coverage are substantially less than 80–90% in the northern and eastern fjords. Owing to winter-amplified warming, the local climate is shifting towards more maritime conditions, and SIE reductions of between 5 and 20% per decade in particular regions are found, such that a number of fjords in the west have been virtually ice-free in recent winters. The strongest decline comes along with SAT forcing and occurs over the most recent 1–2 decades in all regions; while in the 1980s and 1990s, enhanced northerly winds and sea ice drift can explain 30–50% of SIE variability around northern Svalbard, where they had correspondingly lead to a SIE increase. With an ongoing warming it is suggested that both the meteorological and cryospheric conditions in eastern Svalbard will become increasingly similar to what is already observed in the western fjords, namely suppressed typical Arctic climate conditions. Text Arctic North Atlantic Sea ice Svalbard Spitsbergen DataCite Metadata Store (German National Library of Science and Technology) Arctic Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago |
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DataCite Metadata Store (German National Library of Science and Technology) |
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English |
description |
The Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic North Atlantic is experiencing rapid changes in the surface climate and sea ice distribution, with impacts for the coupled climate system and the local society. This study utilizes observational data of surface air temperature (SAT) from 1980–2016 across the whole Svalbard archipelago, and sea ice extent (SIE) from operational sea ice charts to conduct a systematic assessment of climatologies, long-term changes and regional differences. The proximity to the warm water mass of the West Spitsbergen Current drives a markedly warmer climate in the western coastal regions compared to northern and eastern Svalbard. This imprints on the SIE climatology in southern and western Svalbard, where the annual maxima of 50–60% area ice coverage are substantially less than 80–90% in the northern and eastern fjords. Owing to winter-amplified warming, the local climate is shifting towards more maritime conditions, and SIE reductions of between 5 and 20% per decade in particular regions are found, such that a number of fjords in the west have been virtually ice-free in recent winters. The strongest decline comes along with SAT forcing and occurs over the most recent 1–2 decades in all regions; while in the 1980s and 1990s, enhanced northerly winds and sea ice drift can explain 30–50% of SIE variability around northern Svalbard, where they had correspondingly lead to a SIE increase. With an ongoing warming it is suggested that both the meteorological and cryospheric conditions in eastern Svalbard will become increasingly similar to what is already observed in the western fjords, namely suppressed typical Arctic climate conditions. |
format |
Text |
author |
Dahlke, Sandro Hughes, Nicholas E. Wagner, Penelope M. Gerland, Sebastian Wawrzyniak, Tomasz Ivanov, Boris Maturilli, Marion |
spellingShingle |
Dahlke, Sandro Hughes, Nicholas E. Wagner, Penelope M. Gerland, Sebastian Wawrzyniak, Tomasz Ivanov, Boris Maturilli, Marion The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover |
author_facet |
Dahlke, Sandro Hughes, Nicholas E. Wagner, Penelope M. Gerland, Sebastian Wawrzyniak, Tomasz Ivanov, Boris Maturilli, Marion |
author_sort |
Dahlke, Sandro |
title |
The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover |
title_short |
The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover |
title_full |
The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover |
title_fullStr |
The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover |
title_full_unstemmed |
The observed recent surface air temperature development across Svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover |
title_sort |
observed recent surface air temperature development across svalbard and concurring footprints in local sea ice cover |
publisher |
FID GEO |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://dx.doi.org/10.23689/fidgeo-4825 https://e-docs.geo-leo.de/handle/11858/9171 |
geographic |
Arctic Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago |
genre |
Arctic North Atlantic Sea ice Svalbard Spitsbergen |
genre_facet |
Arctic North Atlantic Sea ice Svalbard Spitsbergen |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.23689/fidgeo-4825 |
_version_ |
1766332695877517312 |