Modelling spatial patterns of near-surface air temperature over a decade of melt seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska
Troxler P, Ayala Á, Shaw TE, Nolan M, Brock BW, Pellicciotti F. 2020. Modelling spatial patterns of near-surface air temperature over a decade of melt seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska. Journal of Glaciology. 66(257), 386–400.
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https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.12
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Journal Article
| Published
| English
Scopus indexed
Author
Troxler, Patrick;
Ayala, Álvaro;
Shaw, Thomas E.;
Nolan, Matt;
Brock, Ben W.;
Pellicciotti, FrancescaISTA
Abstract
We examine the spatial patterns of near-surface air temperature (Ta) over a melting glacier using a multi-annual dataset from McCall Glacier, Alaska. The dataset consists of a 10-year (2005–2014) meteorological record along the glacier centreline up to an upper glacier cirque, spanning an elevation difference of 900 m. We test the validity of on-glacier linear lapse rates, and a model that calculates Ta based on the influence of katabatic winds and other heat sources along the glacier flow line. During the coldest hours of each summer (10% of time), average lapse rates across the entire glacier range from −4.7 to −6.7°C km−1, with a strong relationship between Ta and elevation (R2 > 0.7). During warm conditions, Ta shows more complex, non-linear patterns that are better explained by the flow line-dependent model, reducing errors by up to 0.5°C compared with linear lapse rates, although more uncertainty might be associated with these observations due to occasionally poor sensor ventilation. We conclude that Ta spatial distribution can vary significantly from year to year, and from one glacier section to another. Importantly, extrapolations using linear lapse rates from the ablation zone might lead to large underestimations of Ta on the upper glacier areas.
Keywords
Publishing Year
Date Published
2020-06-01
Journal Title
Journal of Glaciology
Publisher
Cambridge University Press
Volume
66
Issue
257
Page
386-400
ISSN
eISSN
IST-REx-ID
Cite this
Troxler P, Ayala Á, Shaw TE, Nolan M, Brock BW, Pellicciotti F. Modelling spatial patterns of near-surface air temperature over a decade of melt seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska. Journal of Glaciology. 2020;66(257):386-400. doi:10.1017/jog.2020.12
Troxler, P., Ayala, Á., Shaw, T. E., Nolan, M., Brock, B. W., & Pellicciotti, F. (2020). Modelling spatial patterns of near-surface air temperature over a decade of melt seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska. Journal of Glaciology. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.12
Troxler, Patrick, Álvaro Ayala, Thomas E. Shaw, Matt Nolan, Ben W. Brock, and Francesca Pellicciotti. “Modelling Spatial Patterns of Near-Surface Air Temperature over a Decade of Melt Seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska.” Journal of Glaciology. Cambridge University Press, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.12.
P. Troxler, Á. Ayala, T. E. Shaw, M. Nolan, B. W. Brock, and F. Pellicciotti, “Modelling spatial patterns of near-surface air temperature over a decade of melt seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska,” Journal of Glaciology, vol. 66, no. 257. Cambridge University Press, pp. 386–400, 2020.
Troxler P, Ayala Á, Shaw TE, Nolan M, Brock BW, Pellicciotti F. 2020. Modelling spatial patterns of near-surface air temperature over a decade of melt seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska. Journal of Glaciology. 66(257), 386–400.
Troxler, Patrick, et al. “Modelling Spatial Patterns of Near-Surface Air Temperature over a Decade of Melt Seasons on McCall Glacier, Alaska.” Journal of Glaciology, vol. 66, no. 257, Cambridge University Press, 2020, pp. 386–400, doi:10.1017/jog.2020.12.
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