Geophysical Research Letters · 2018 · 65 citations · 40 references
Natural ResourcesEarth SciencesHydrologyClimate ScienceClimatologySnow HydrologySnow AccumulationSnow ScienceSnowmelt HydrologySnowmelt ModelingSnowmelt ProcessesSnowpack DynamicsClimate Change ScenariosClimate Controls On SnowmeltClimate Impacts On Snow Water EquivalentHydrologic Response To SnowmeltRepresentative Concentration PathwaysSnow Melt ProcessesSnowpack ClimatologySnowpack Hydrology
Abstract Climate warming is altering historical patterns of snow accumulation and ablation, hence threatening natural water resources. We evaluated the impact of climate warming on snowmelt rates using the GlobSnow v2.0 and the second Modern‐Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications data sets over the Northern Hemisphere (NH) during the past 38 years (1980–2017). Higher ablation rates were found in the locations with deeper snow water equivalent (SWE) because high snow melt rates occurred in late spring and early summer in deep snowpack regions. In addition, due to the reduction of SWE in deep snowpack regions, moderate and high snow ablation rates showed a decreasing trend. Therefore, slower snowmelt rates were found over the entire NH in a warmer climate in general. Based on projections of SWE in Representative Concentration Pathways 2.6, 4.5, and 8.5 climate scenarios, slower snowmelt rates in the NH may continue to happen in the future.
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Matias Takala, Kari Luojus, Jouni Pulliainen et al. · Remote Sensing of Environment · 2011 · 750 citations