Preliminary spectral characterization of snow in a high altitude tropical glacier and potential effects of impurities in snow on albedo of tropical glaciers

This paper presents some preliminary measurements of snow spectral reflectance on the tropical Bolivian Zongo glacier. Measurements show a correct agreement with theoretical spectral albedo of pure snow in the near infrared region, but lower values in the visible region (by 10–20%) probably due to aerosols contained in snow. Impurity contents ranged from 10 to 100 ppmw in one‐week‐old snow collected from the Zongo glacier, but measurements are scarce. Large amounts of snowfall partly compensate the proximity of dust sources in mid‐latitude glaciers, whereas on outer‐tropical glaciers precipitations are not abundant and are very seasonal, and sources of aerosols are proximate. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Moraine development at a small High‐Arctic valley glacier: Rieperbreen,Svalbard

Ice‐cored lateral and frontal moraine complexes, formed at the margin of the small, land‐based Rieperbreen glacier, central Svalbard, have been investigated through field observations and interpretations of aerial photographs (1936, 1961 and 1990). The main focus has been on the stratigraphical and dynamic development of these moraines as well as the disintegration processes. The glacier has been wasting down since the ‘Little Ice Age’ (LIA) maximum, and between 1936 and 1990 the glacier surface was lowered by 50–60 m and the front retreated by approximately 900 m. As the glacier wasted, three moraine ridges developed at the front, mainly as melting out of sediments from debris‐rich foliation and debris‐bands formed when the glacier was polythermal, probably during the LIA maximum. The disintegration of the moraines is dominated by wastage of buried ice, sediment gravity‐flows, meltwater activity and some frost weathering. A transverse glacier profile with a northward sloping surface has developed owing to the higher insolation along the south‐facing ice margin. This asymmetric geometry also strongly affects the supraglacial drainage pattern. Lateral moraines have formed along both sides of the glacier, although the insolation aspect of the glacier has resulted in the development of a moraine 60 m high along its northern margin. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modelling the advance–retreat cycle of a tidewater glacier with simple sediment dynamics

We present a simple coupled glacier-sediment model to simulate the evolution of a tidewater glacier. The model is based on a consideration of the total mass budget of a glacier, whereas ice mechanics are fully parameterized. The calving rate at the glacier terminus is assumed to be proportional to the water depth. We show that the formation of a morainic shoal has a profound influence on the response of a tidewater glacier to climatic forcing. For a slow periodic forcing of the equilibrium-line altitude, the model glacier advances steadily into the estuary, builds up a submarine terminal moraine, and then retreats rapidly when a critical point is hit. For a slowly increasing equilibrium-line altitude, at a rate as low as 1 m per 5 years, we find terminus retreat rates of up to 10 km in 50 years. Our model suggests that, although the response of tidewater glaciers to external forcing is strongly nonlinear, the onset of retreat is controlled by climate change.     

Estimation of snow ablation under a dust layer covering a wide range of albedo

Ablation processes of snow under a thin dust cover are complicated compared with those under a thick cover, mainly owing to the effects of aggregation (redistribution) of dust particles on the conditions of surface melting. Aggregation of dust particles causes the snow surface to brighten after the initial dust configuration, thus affecting the relationship between initial dust concentration and surface albedo. In order to estimate snow ablation rate under a thin dust cover, we used a composite energy balance model in which the surface albedo is taken as a measured input variable. The estimated results of snow ablation agreed reasonably well with the observation, considering the measurement errors inherited in the snow depressions. Comparison of the two cases, that is, one considering the aggregation of dust particles (observation: albedo variable) and the other without aggregation (assumption: albedo constant), showed that the ablation rates were noticeably lower on the former case. This suggests that the aggregation of dust particles induces a reduction of snow ablation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimation of net accumulation rate at a Patagonian glacier by ice core analyses using snow algae

Snow algae in a 45.97-m-long ice core from the Tyndall Glacier (50°59′05″S, 73°31′12″W, 1756 m a.s.l.) in the Southern Patagonian Icefield were examined for potential use in ice core dating and estimation of the net accumulation rate. The core was subjected to visual stratigraphic observation and bulk density measurements in the field, and later to analyses of snow algal biomass, water isotopes (¹⁸O, D), and major dissolved ions. The ice core contained many algal cells that belonged to two species of snow algae growing in the snow near the surface: Chloromonas sp. and an unknown green algal species. Algal biomass and major dissolved ions (Na⁺, K⁺, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, Cl⁻, SO₄²⁻) exhibited rapid decreases in the upper 3 m, probably owing to melt water elution and/or decomposition of algal cells. However, seasonal cycles were still found for the snow algal biomass, ¹⁸O, D-excess, and major ions, although the amplitudes of the cycles decreased with depth. Supposing that the layers with almost no snow algae were the winter layers without the melt water essential to algal growth, we estimated that the net accumulation rate at this location was 12.9 m a^− 1 from winter 1998 to winter 1999, and 5.1 m from the beginning of winter to December 1999. These estimates are similar to the values estimated from the peaks of ¹⁸O (17.8 m a^− 1 from summer 1998 to summer 1999 and 11.0 m from summer to December 1999) and those of D-excess (14.7 m a^− 1 from fall 1998 to fall 1999 and 8.6 m a^− 1 from fall to December 1999). These values are much higher than those obtained by past ice core studies in Patagonia, but are of the same order of magnitude as those predicted from various observations at ablation areas of Patagonian glaciers.     

基于纹理特征的SAR影像各拉丹冬冰川信息提取

冰川面积是监测冰川变化信息的重要参数。本文以各拉丹东地区为例,根据冰川区域特有的纹理特征,选取时间间隔为35天的ENVISAT ASAR干涉对,利用灰度共生矩阵提取纹理特征,通过波段组合进行监督分类,进而提取研究区冰川面积。同时以Landsat TM光学影像为依据,评价利用纹理特征提取结果的精度。研究表明:基于纹理特征并利用SAR影像提取冰川面积的方法是可行的,为提取冰川信息提供了又一可靠手段。     

石羊河流域冰冻圈融水对出山径流的贡献及影响

气候变暖背景下,随着冰冻圈的持续萎缩,冰冻圈融水已成为寒区径流的重要组成部分和寒区水文过程的关键影响因子。以石羊河流域为研究区,2013年7月~2014年6月在系统采集大气降水、河水、泉水、井水、水库水、渠系水、冻土活动层地下水和冰雪融水样品基础上,应用稳定同位素示踪技术,定量评估了石羊河流域冰雪融水和冻土活动层地下水对出山径流的贡献量,结果表明：流域内大气降水、冻土活动层地下水和冰雪融水充分混合后以地下水的形式补给径流,大气降水、冻土活动层地下水和冰雪融水对出山径流的补给率分别为77%、20%和3%。依据多年冻土下界将山区分为冰雪冻土带和植被带,分析证实冰雪冻土带输出水量贡献了出山径流的82%,而植被带贡献了18%。流域出山口径流的补给带为海拔3300m以上,中游浅层地下水的补给带为海拔3700m以上。冰雪融水和冻土活动层地下水对7条支流出山径流的贡献率因自然地理状况而明显差异,东大河、西营河和金塔河降水对出山径流的贡献率分别为72%、78%和87%,相应的冻土活动层地下水贡献率为21%、17%和12%,冰雪融水为7%、5%和1%。降水对西大河、黄羊河、古浪河和大靖河出山径流贡献率分别为84%、91%、76%和73%,冻土活动层地下水对出山径流的贡献率依次为16%、9%、24%和27%。研究确认冻土活动层地下水已成为内陆河流域径流的重要组成部分,未来亟须进一步加强冻土活动层地下水水文机制的研究。

     

Aerosol-Cloud-Precipitation Interactions in a Closed-cell and Non-homogenous MBL Stratocumulus Cloud

A closed-cell marine stratocumulus case during the Aerosol and Cloud Experiments in the Eastern North Atlantic (ACE-ENA) aircraft field campaign is selected to examine the heterogeneities of cloud and drizzle microphysical properties and the aerosol-cloud-precipitation interactions. The spatial and vertical variabilities of cloud and drizzle microphysics are found in two different sets of flight legs: Leg-1 and Leg-2, which are parallel and perpendicular to the cloud propagation, respectively. The cloud along Leg-2 was close to adiabatic, where cloud-droplet effective radius and liquid water content linearly increase from cloud base to cloud top with less drizzle. The cloud along Leg-1 was sub-adiabatic with lower cloud-droplet number concentration and larger cloud-droplet effective, but higher drizzle droplet number concentration, larger drizzle droplet median diameter and drizzle liquid water content. The heavier drizzle frequency and intensity on Leg-1 were enhanced by the collision-coalescence processes within cloud due to strong turbulence. The sub-cloud precipitation rate on Leg-1 was significantly higher than that along Leg-2. As a result, the sub-cloud accumulation mode aerosols and CCN on Leg-1 were depleted, but the coarse model aerosols increased. This further leads to a counter-intuitive phenomenon that the CCN is less than cloud-droplet number concentration for Leg-1. The average CCN loss rates are ?3.89 \begin{document}$\mathrm{c}{\mathrm{m}}^{-3}\;{\mathrm{h}}^{-1}$\end{document} and ?0.77 \begin{document}$\mathrm{c}{\mathrm{m}}^{-3}\;{\mathrm{h}}^{-1}$\end{document} on Leg-1 and Leg-2, respectively. The cloud and drizzle heterogeneities inside the same stratocumulus can significantly alter the sub-cloud aerosols and CCN budget. Hence it should be treated with caution in the aircraft assessment of aerosol-cloud-precipitation interactions.     

论证南海海疆国界线

追溯探查历史图件,根据1946年内政部方域司编制的一组"南海诸岛位置图"(南海诸岛位置图,南沙群岛,中沙群岛,西沙群岛,西沙群岛永兴岛及石岛,南沙群岛太平岛)和1948年出版的"中华民国行政区域图"分析,南海诸岛外围的断续线段是我国在南海的海疆国界线;当时划定,是与陆域国界相连的,海上国界是陆域国界的延伸,以断续线段表示是国际地图上对海疆国界线通用的表示方法,当时即获国际认可。上述结果为南海划界提供了科学依据。