Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation
Approximately half of Greenland’s current annual mass loss is attributed to runoff from surface melt1. At higher elevations, however, melt does not necessarily equal runoff, because meltwater can refreeze in the porous near-surface snow and firn2. Two recent studies suggest that all3 or most3, 4 of...
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ftunivzuerich:oai:www.zora.uzh.ch:126154 2024-06-23T07:53:22+00:00 Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation Machguth, Horst MacFerrin, Mike van As, Dirk Box, Jason E Charalampidis, Charalampos Colgan, William Fausto, Robert S Meijer, Harro A J Mosley-Thompson, Ellen van de Wal, Roderik S W 2016 application/pdf https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/126154/ https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/126154/1/126154.pdf https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-126154 https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2899 eng eng Nature Publishing Group https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/126154/1/126154.pdf doi:10.5167/uzh-126154 doi:10.1038/nclimate2899 urn:issn:1758-678X info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess Machguth, Horst; MacFerrin, Mike; van As, Dirk; Box, Jason E; Charalampidis, Charalampos; Colgan, William; Fausto, Robert S; Meijer, Harro A J; Mosley-Thompson, Ellen; van de Wal, Roderik S W (2016). Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation. Nature Climate Change, 6(4):390-393. Institute of Geography 910 Geography & travel Journal Article PeerReviewed info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 2016 ftunivzuerich https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-12615410.1038/nclimate2899 2024-05-29T00:33:02Z Approximately half of Greenland’s current annual mass loss is attributed to runoff from surface melt1. At higher elevations, however, melt does not necessarily equal runoff, because meltwater can refreeze in the porous near-surface snow and firn2. Two recent studies suggest that all3 or most3, 4 of Greenland’s firn pore space is available for meltwater storage, making the firn an important buffer against contribution to sea level rise for decades to come3. Here, we employ in situ observations and historical legacy data to demonstrate that surface runoff begins to dominate over meltwater storage well before firn pore space has been completely filled. Our observations frame the recent exceptional melt summers in 2010 and 2012 (refs 5,6), revealing significant changes in firn structure at different elevations caused by successive intensive melt events. In the upper regions (more than ~1,900 m above sea level), firn has undergone substantial densification, while at lower elevations, where melt is most abundant, porous firn has lost most of its capability to retain meltwater. Here, the formation of near-surface ice layers renders deep pore space difficult to access, forcing meltwater to enter an efficient7 surface discharge system and intensifying ice sheet mass loss earlier than previously suggested3. Article in Journal/Newspaper Greenland Ice Sheet University of Zurich (UZH): ZORA (Zurich Open Repository and Archive Greenland |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Zurich (UZH): ZORA (Zurich Open Repository and Archive |
op_collection_id |
ftunivzuerich |
language |
English |
topic |
Institute of Geography 910 Geography & travel |
spellingShingle |
Institute of Geography 910 Geography & travel Machguth, Horst MacFerrin, Mike van As, Dirk Box, Jason E Charalampidis, Charalampos Colgan, William Fausto, Robert S Meijer, Harro A J Mosley-Thompson, Ellen van de Wal, Roderik S W Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation |
topic_facet |
Institute of Geography 910 Geography & travel |
description |
Approximately half of Greenland’s current annual mass loss is attributed to runoff from surface melt1. At higher elevations, however, melt does not necessarily equal runoff, because meltwater can refreeze in the porous near-surface snow and firn2. Two recent studies suggest that all3 or most3, 4 of Greenland’s firn pore space is available for meltwater storage, making the firn an important buffer against contribution to sea level rise for decades to come3. Here, we employ in situ observations and historical legacy data to demonstrate that surface runoff begins to dominate over meltwater storage well before firn pore space has been completely filled. Our observations frame the recent exceptional melt summers in 2010 and 2012 (refs 5,6), revealing significant changes in firn structure at different elevations caused by successive intensive melt events. In the upper regions (more than ~1,900 m above sea level), firn has undergone substantial densification, while at lower elevations, where melt is most abundant, porous firn has lost most of its capability to retain meltwater. Here, the formation of near-surface ice layers renders deep pore space difficult to access, forcing meltwater to enter an efficient7 surface discharge system and intensifying ice sheet mass loss earlier than previously suggested3. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Machguth, Horst MacFerrin, Mike van As, Dirk Box, Jason E Charalampidis, Charalampos Colgan, William Fausto, Robert S Meijer, Harro A J Mosley-Thompson, Ellen van de Wal, Roderik S W |
author_facet |
Machguth, Horst MacFerrin, Mike van As, Dirk Box, Jason E Charalampidis, Charalampos Colgan, William Fausto, Robert S Meijer, Harro A J Mosley-Thompson, Ellen van de Wal, Roderik S W |
author_sort |
Machguth, Horst |
title |
Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation |
title_short |
Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation |
title_full |
Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation |
title_fullStr |
Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation |
title_full_unstemmed |
Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation |
title_sort |
greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation |
publisher |
Nature Publishing Group |
publishDate |
2016 |
url |
https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/126154/ https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/126154/1/126154.pdf https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-126154 https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2899 |
geographic |
Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Greenland |
genre |
Greenland Ice Sheet |
genre_facet |
Greenland Ice Sheet |
op_source |
Machguth, Horst; MacFerrin, Mike; van As, Dirk; Box, Jason E; Charalampidis, Charalampos; Colgan, William; Fausto, Robert S; Meijer, Harro A J; Mosley-Thompson, Ellen; van de Wal, Roderik S W (2016). Greenland meltwater storage in firn limited by near-surface ice formation. Nature Climate Change, 6(4):390-393. |
op_relation |
https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/126154/1/126154.pdf doi:10.5167/uzh-126154 doi:10.1038/nclimate2899 urn:issn:1758-678X |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-12615410.1038/nclimate2899 |
_version_ |
1802644967902937088 |