The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard
Glacier surfaces support unique microbial food webs dominated by organic and inorganic debris called 'cryoconite'. Observations from Longyearbreen, Spitsbergen, show how these aggregate particles can develop an internal structure following the cementation of mineral grains (mostly quartz a...
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ftnerc:oai:nora.nerc.ac.uk:10517 2023-05-15T13:11:49+02:00 The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard Hodson, Andy Cameron, Karen Boggild, Carl Irvine-Fynn, Tristram Langford, Harry Pearce, Dave Banwart, Steven 2010 http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/10517/ http://www.igsoc.org/journal/56/196/j09j135.pdf unknown International Glaciological Society Hodson, Andy; Cameron, Karen; Boggild, Carl; Irvine-Fynn, Tristram; Langford, Harry; Pearce, Dave orcid:0000-0001-5292-4596 Banwart, Steven. 2010 The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard. Journal of Glaciology, 56 (196). 349-362. https://doi.org/10.3189/002214310791968403 <https://doi.org/10.3189/002214310791968403> Glaciology Biology and Microbiology Publication - Article PeerReviewed 2010 ftnerc https://doi.org/10.3189/002214310791968403 2023-02-04T19:26:45Z Glacier surfaces support unique microbial food webs dominated by organic and inorganic debris called 'cryoconite'. Observations from Longyearbreen, Spitsbergen, show how these aggregate particles can develop an internal structure following the cementation of mineral grains (mostly quartz and dolomite) by filamentous microorganisms. Measurements of carbon and dissolved O2 show that these microorganisms, mostly cyanobacteria, promote significant rates of photosynthesis (average 17 μgC g−1 d−1) which assist aggregate growth by increasing the biomass and producing glue-like extracellular polymeric substances. The primary production takes place not only upon the surface of the aggregates but also just beneath, due to the translucence of the quartz particles. However, since total photosynthesis is matched by respiration (average 19 μgC g−1 d−1), primary production does not contribute directly to cryoconite accumulation upon the glacier surface. The microorganisms therefore influence the surface albedo most by cementing dark particles and organic debris together, rather than simply growing over it. Time-lapse photographs show that cryoconite is likely to reside upon the glacier for years as a result of this aggregation. These observations therefore show that a better understanding of the relationship between supraglacial debris and ablation upon glaciers requires an appreciation of the biological processes that take place during summer. Article in Journal/Newspaper albedo Arctic Arctic glacier Journal of Glaciology Longyearbreen Svalbard Spitsbergen Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive Arctic Longyearbreen ENVELOPE(15.517,15.517,78.183,78.183) Svalbard Journal of Glaciology 56 196 349 362 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive |
op_collection_id |
ftnerc |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Glaciology Biology and Microbiology |
spellingShingle |
Glaciology Biology and Microbiology Hodson, Andy Cameron, Karen Boggild, Carl Irvine-Fynn, Tristram Langford, Harry Pearce, Dave Banwart, Steven The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard |
topic_facet |
Glaciology Biology and Microbiology |
description |
Glacier surfaces support unique microbial food webs dominated by organic and inorganic debris called 'cryoconite'. Observations from Longyearbreen, Spitsbergen, show how these aggregate particles can develop an internal structure following the cementation of mineral grains (mostly quartz and dolomite) by filamentous microorganisms. Measurements of carbon and dissolved O2 show that these microorganisms, mostly cyanobacteria, promote significant rates of photosynthesis (average 17 μgC g−1 d−1) which assist aggregate growth by increasing the biomass and producing glue-like extracellular polymeric substances. The primary production takes place not only upon the surface of the aggregates but also just beneath, due to the translucence of the quartz particles. However, since total photosynthesis is matched by respiration (average 19 μgC g−1 d−1), primary production does not contribute directly to cryoconite accumulation upon the glacier surface. The microorganisms therefore influence the surface albedo most by cementing dark particles and organic debris together, rather than simply growing over it. Time-lapse photographs show that cryoconite is likely to reside upon the glacier for years as a result of this aggregation. These observations therefore show that a better understanding of the relationship between supraglacial debris and ablation upon glaciers requires an appreciation of the biological processes that take place during summer. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hodson, Andy Cameron, Karen Boggild, Carl Irvine-Fynn, Tristram Langford, Harry Pearce, Dave Banwart, Steven |
author_facet |
Hodson, Andy Cameron, Karen Boggild, Carl Irvine-Fynn, Tristram Langford, Harry Pearce, Dave Banwart, Steven |
author_sort |
Hodson, Andy |
title |
The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard |
title_short |
The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard |
title_full |
The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard |
title_fullStr |
The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard |
title_full_unstemmed |
The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard |
title_sort |
structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an arctic valley glacier: longyearbreen, svalbard |
publisher |
International Glaciological Society |
publishDate |
2010 |
url |
http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/10517/ http://www.igsoc.org/journal/56/196/j09j135.pdf |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(15.517,15.517,78.183,78.183) |
geographic |
Arctic Longyearbreen Svalbard |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Longyearbreen Svalbard |
genre |
albedo Arctic Arctic glacier Journal of Glaciology Longyearbreen Svalbard Spitsbergen |
genre_facet |
albedo Arctic Arctic glacier Journal of Glaciology Longyearbreen Svalbard Spitsbergen |
op_relation |
Hodson, Andy; Cameron, Karen; Boggild, Carl; Irvine-Fynn, Tristram; Langford, Harry; Pearce, Dave orcid:0000-0001-5292-4596 Banwart, Steven. 2010 The structure, biological activity and biogeochemistry of cryoconite aggregates upon an Arctic valley glacier: Longyearbreen, Svalbard. Journal of Glaciology, 56 (196). 349-362. https://doi.org/10.3189/002214310791968403 <https://doi.org/10.3189/002214310791968403> |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3189/002214310791968403 |
container_title |
Journal of Glaciology |
container_volume |
56 |
container_issue |
196 |
container_start_page |
349 |
op_container_end_page |
362 |
_version_ |
1766249128921137152 |