The Cryosphere (Dec 2020)
Snow cover duration trends observed at sites and predicted by multiple models
- R. Essery,
- H. Kim,
- L. Wang,
- P. Bartlett,
- A. Boone,
- C. Brutel-Vuilmet,
- E. Burke,
- M. Cuntz,
- B. Decharme,
- E. Dutra,
- X. Fang,
- Y. Gusev,
- S. Hagemann,
- V. Haverd,
- A. Kontu,
- G. Krinner,
- M. Lafaysse,
- Y. Lejeune,
- T. Marke,
- D. Marks,
- C. Marty,
- C. B. Menard,
- O. Nasonova,
- T. Nitta,
- J. Pomeroy,
- G. Schädler,
- V. Semenov,
- T. Smirnova,
- S. Swenson,
- D. Turkov,
- N. Wever,
- N. Wever,
- H. Yuan
Affiliations
- R. Essery
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- H. Kim
- Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- L. Wang
- Climate Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Canada
- P. Bartlett
- Climate Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Toronto, Canada
- A. Boone
- Université de Toulouse, Météo-France, CNRS, Toulouse, France
- C. Brutel-Vuilmet
- CNRS, Université Grenoble Alpes, Institut de Géosciences de l'Environnement, Grenoble, France
- E. Burke
- Met Office, Exeter, UK
- M. Cuntz
- Université de Lorraine, AgroParisTech, INRAE, UMR Silva, Nancy, France
- B. Decharme
- Université de Toulouse, Météo-France, CNRS, Toulouse, France
- E. Dutra
- Instituto Dom Luiz, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
- X. Fang
- Centre for Hydrology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
- Y. Gusev
- Institute of Water Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
- S. Hagemann
- Institute of Coastal Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, Geesthacht, Germany
- V. Haverd
- CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Canberra, ACT, Australia
- A. Kontu
- Space and Earth Observation Centre, Finnish Meteorological Institute, Sodankylä, Finland
- G. Krinner
- CNRS, Université Grenoble Alpes, Institut de Géosciences de l'Environnement, Grenoble, France
- M. Lafaysse
- Météo-France, CNRS, CNRM, Centre d'Etudes de la Neige, Grenoble, France
- Y. Lejeune
- Météo-France, CNRS, CNRM, Centre d'Etudes de la Neige, Grenoble, France
- T. Marke
- Department of Geography, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
- D. Marks
- USDA Agricultural Research Service, Boise, ID, USA
- C. Marty
- WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF, Davos, Switzerland
- C. B. Menard
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- O. Nasonova
- Institute of Water Problems, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
- T. Nitta
- Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- J. Pomeroy
- Centre for Hydrology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
- G. Schädler
- Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany
- V. Semenov
- A.M. Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
- T. Smirnova
- Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science/Earth System Research Laboratory, NOAA, Boulder, CO, USA
- S. Swenson
- Climate and Global Dynamics Division, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, USA
- D. Turkov
- Institute of Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
- N. Wever
- WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF, Davos, Switzerland
- N. Wever
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
- H. Yuan
- School of Atmospheric Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4687-2020
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 14
pp. 4687 – 4698
Abstract
The 30-year simulations of seasonal snow cover in 22 physically based models driven with bias-corrected meteorological reanalyses are examined at four sites with long records of snow observations. Annual snow cover durations differ widely between models, but interannual variations are strongly correlated because of the common driving data. No significant trends are observed in starting dates for seasonal snow cover, but there are significant trends towards snow cover ending earlier at two of the sites in observations and most of the models. A simplified model with just two parameters controlling solar radiation and sensible heat contributions to snowmelt spans the ranges of snow cover durations and trends. This model predicts that sites where snow persists beyond annual peaks in solar radiation and air temperature will experience rapid decreases in snow cover duration with warming as snow begins to melt earlier and at times of year with more energy available for melting.
