On the Temperature Distribution Near a Cold Surface

Temperature profiles were taken during the 1991-92 season at an experimental site on CRREL's grounds; however, they were rather limited because of the unusual lack of snowfall and the location of the site, which was small and had elevated sides (especially in the direction of the prevailing win...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Yen, Yin-Chao
Other Authors: COLD REGIONS RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING LAB HANOVER NH
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: 1993
Subjects:
Snow
Ice and Permafrost
Thermodynamics
*HEAT TRANSFER
*SNOW
*ICE
*TEMPERATURE MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
*TEMPERATURE GRADIENTS
MEASUREMENT
TEMPERATURE
THICKNESS
TRANSPORT
MELTING POINT
SEASONS
HEIGHT
SITE SELECTION
LAYERS
SNOW COVER
WIND
SURFACES
BOUNDARIES
PROFILES
PE61102A
WUE09
Ice
permafrost
Online Access:http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA275162
http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA275162
Description
Summary:Temperature profiles were taken during the 1991-92 season at an experimental site on CRREL's grounds; however, they were rather limited because of the unusual lack of snowfall and the location of the site, which was small and had elevated sides (especially in the direction of the prevailing wind). Nevertheless, some unusual features have been observed for the first time. The profiles show the existence of a double-reversal in temperature structure close to the snow surface when the snow temperature is much lower than its melting point, in contrast to a persistent raised maximum temperature over a melting snowpack. This indicates that the micro-heat transport process is complicated by the presence of a non-isothermal lower boundary. Over frozen or partially frozen ground without snow, and with air temperature either above or below the melting point of ice, a thin, nearly isothermal air layer on the order of 2 to 3 cm in thickness at varying heights was observed for the first time. With very few exceptions, in general, the temperature decreases as height increases, but the extent is less pronounced over a snow cover (where conditions are nearly isothermal) than over cold ground. On the basis of limited measurements, the overall temperature gradient over the bare ground is about twice that over snow- covered ground. Cold surfaces, Ice, Snow, Frozen ground, Micrometerology, Temperature profiles.

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