Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A
Firn simulations are essential for understanding Antarctic ice sheet mass change, as they enable us to convert satellite altimetry observed volume changes to mass changes and column thickness to ice thickness and to quantify the meltwater buffering capacity of firn. Here, we present and evaluate a s...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:5abd58083fe4468ca4db672bc7970415 2023-06-11T04:06:09+02:00 Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A S. B. M. Veldhuijsen W. J. van de Berg M. Brils P. Kuipers Munneke M. R. van den Broeke 2023-04-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1675-2023 https://doaj.org/article/5abd58083fe4468ca4db672bc7970415 EN eng Copernicus Publications https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/1675/2023/tc-17-1675-2023.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-17-1675-2023 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/5abd58083fe4468ca4db672bc7970415 The Cryosphere, Vol 17, Pp 1675-1696 (2023) Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 article 2023 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1675-2023 2023-04-23T00:35:43Z Firn simulations are essential for understanding Antarctic ice sheet mass change, as they enable us to convert satellite altimetry observed volume changes to mass changes and column thickness to ice thickness and to quantify the meltwater buffering capacity of firn. Here, we present and evaluate a simulation of the contemporary Antarctic firn layer using the updated semi-empirical IMAU Firn Densification Model (IMAU-FDM) for the period 1979–2020. We have improved previous fresh-snow density and firn compaction parameterizations and used updated atmospheric forcing. In addition, the model has been calibrated and evaluated using 112 firn core density observations across the ice sheet. We found that 62 % of the seasonal and 67 % of the decadal surface height variability are due to variations in firn air content rather than firn mass. Comparison of simulated surface elevation change with a previously published multi-mission altimetry product for the period 2003–2015 shows that performance of the updated model has improved, notably in Dronning Maud Land and Wilkes Land. However, a substantial trend difference ( >10 cm yr −1 ) remains in the Antarctic Peninsula and Ellsworth Land, mainly caused by uncertainties in the spin-up forcing. By estimating previous climatic conditions from ice core data, these trend differences can be reduced by 38 %. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Dronning Maud Land ice core Ice Sheet The Cryosphere Wilkes Land Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Dronning Maud Land Ellsworth Land ENVELOPE(-85.000,-85.000,-75.000,-75.000) The Antarctic Wilkes Land ENVELOPE(120.000,120.000,-69.000,-69.000) The Cryosphere 17 4 1675 1696 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
spellingShingle |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 S. B. M. Veldhuijsen W. J. van de Berg M. Brils P. Kuipers Munneke M. R. van den Broeke Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A |
topic_facet |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
Firn simulations are essential for understanding Antarctic ice sheet mass change, as they enable us to convert satellite altimetry observed volume changes to mass changes and column thickness to ice thickness and to quantify the meltwater buffering capacity of firn. Here, we present and evaluate a simulation of the contemporary Antarctic firn layer using the updated semi-empirical IMAU Firn Densification Model (IMAU-FDM) for the period 1979–2020. We have improved previous fresh-snow density and firn compaction parameterizations and used updated atmospheric forcing. In addition, the model has been calibrated and evaluated using 112 firn core density observations across the ice sheet. We found that 62 % of the seasonal and 67 % of the decadal surface height variability are due to variations in firn air content rather than firn mass. Comparison of simulated surface elevation change with a previously published multi-mission altimetry product for the period 2003–2015 shows that performance of the updated model has improved, notably in Dronning Maud Land and Wilkes Land. However, a substantial trend difference ( >10 cm yr −1 ) remains in the Antarctic Peninsula and Ellsworth Land, mainly caused by uncertainties in the spin-up forcing. By estimating previous climatic conditions from ice core data, these trend differences can be reduced by 38 %. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
S. B. M. Veldhuijsen W. J. van de Berg M. Brils P. Kuipers Munneke M. R. van den Broeke |
author_facet |
S. B. M. Veldhuijsen W. J. van de Berg M. Brils P. Kuipers Munneke M. R. van den Broeke |
author_sort |
S. B. M. Veldhuijsen |
title |
Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A |
title_short |
Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A |
title_full |
Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A |
title_fullStr |
Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A |
title_full_unstemmed |
Characteristics of the 1979–2020 Antarctic firn layer simulated with IMAU-FDM v1.2A |
title_sort |
characteristics of the 1979–2020 antarctic firn layer simulated with imau-fdm v1.2a |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1675-2023 https://doaj.org/article/5abd58083fe4468ca4db672bc7970415 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-85.000,-85.000,-75.000,-75.000) ENVELOPE(120.000,120.000,-69.000,-69.000) |
geographic |
Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Dronning Maud Land Ellsworth Land The Antarctic Wilkes Land |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Dronning Maud Land Ellsworth Land The Antarctic Wilkes Land |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Dronning Maud Land ice core Ice Sheet The Cryosphere Wilkes Land |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Dronning Maud Land ice core Ice Sheet The Cryosphere Wilkes Land |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 17, Pp 1675-1696 (2023) |
op_relation |
https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/1675/2023/tc-17-1675-2023.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-17-1675-2023 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/5abd58083fe4468ca4db672bc7970415 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1675-2023 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
17 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
1675 |
op_container_end_page |
1696 |
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1768377952174604288 |