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More rain, less snow leads to faster Arctic ice melt

Date:
July 5, 2011
Source:
University of Melbourne
Summary:
Rising air temperatures in the Arctic region have led to an increase in rainfall and a decrease in snowfall, making the sea ice more susceptible to melting, a new study has revealed.
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Rising air temperatures in the Arctic region have led to an increase in rainfall and a decrease in snowfall, making the sea ice more susceptible to melting, a new study has revealed.

The research was presented July 5 by Dr James Screen from the University of Melbourne at the XXV International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics General Assembly in Melbourne.

The Arctic region is warming more rapidly than anywhere else on Earth.

Dr Screen of the University's School of Earth Sciences, who led the research, said due to warming temperatures, on more days of the year and in more parts of the polar region, temperatures are becoming too warm for protective snow to form.

"As a result of this temperature shift, we estimate that there has been a 40 percent decrease in summer snowfall over the last 20 years."

"The reductions in snowfall in the summer months (when there is still typically significant snow in Arctic regions) have knock-on effects for the sea ice -- the ice floating on top of the Arctic Ocean," he said.

"Snow is highly reflective and bounces up to 85 percent of the incoming sunlight back into space. Snow on top of ice effectively acts as a sunscreen protecting the ice from the power of the sun rays."

"As the snow cover has decreased, more sea ice has become exposed to the sunlight, increasing the melting of the ice. Measurements show that the sea ice has been getting thinner and less extensive," he said

The study was conducted with Professor Ian Simmonds of the University's School of Earth Sciences was published in the international journal Climate Dynamics.


Story Source:

Materials provided by University of Melbourne. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Journal Reference:

  1. James A. Screen, Ian Simmonds. Declining summer snowfall in the Arctic: causes, impacts and feedbacks. Climate Dynamics, 2011; DOI: 10.1007/s00382-011-1105-2

Cite This Page:

University of Melbourne. "More rain, less snow leads to faster Arctic ice melt." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 5 July 2011. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110705091624.htm>.
University of Melbourne. (2011, July 5). More rain, less snow leads to faster Arctic ice melt. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 28, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110705091624.htm
University of Melbourne. "More rain, less snow leads to faster Arctic ice melt." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110705091624.htm (accessed March 28, 2024).

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