A simple model for predicting soil temperature in snow-covered and seasonally frozen soil: model description and testing

Abstract

Microbial processes in soil are moisture, nutrient and temperature dependent and, consequently, accurate calculation of soil temperature is important for modelling nitrogen processes. Microbial activity in soil occurs even at sub-zero temperatures so that, in northern latitudes, a method to calculate soil temperature under snow cover and in frozen soils is required. This paper describes a new and simple model to calculate daily values for soil temperature at various depths in both frozen and unfrozen soils. The model requires four parameters: average soil thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity of soil, specific heat capacity due to freezing and thawing and an empirical snow parameter. Precipitation, air temperature and snow depth (measured or calculated) are needed as input variables. 2 -values of the testing period were between 0.87 and 0.94 at a depth of 20cm, and between 0.80 and 0.98 at 50cm. Thus, despite the simplifications made, the model was able to simulate soil temperature at these study sites. This simple model simulates soil temperature well in the uppermost soil layers where most of the nitrogen processes occur. The small number of parameters required means that the model is suitable for addition to catchment scale models.

Predicting daily soil temperature profiles in arable soils in cold temperate regions from air temperature and leaf area index

“…McCann et al, 1991) and only a few consider the effect of snow cover on heat transfer (e.g. Rankinen et al, 2004). A sinusoidal function of time oscillating around an average value with an increasing phase shift and attenuation with depth is often used to describe large-scale soil temperature dynamics (Campbell, 1985), and seems to work well also at the field scale in warm temperate climates, if surface temperature is known (Wu & Nofziger, 1999).…”

“…4 A number of empirical or semi-empirical soil temperature models have been proposed (e.g. Gupta et al, 1982;McCann et al, 1991;Paul et al, 2004;Rankinen et al, 2004;Bond-Lamberty et al, 2005 and papers cited therein). Many of these models are not sensitive to surface cover (e.g.…”

Simulating Dissolved Organic Carbon Dynamics at the Swedish Integrated Monitoring Sites with the Integrated Catchments Model for Carbon, INCA-C

“…The Rankinen et al (2004) soil temperature model incorporated in INCA-C was adequate for all seasons except winter. Given the importance of winter soil temperature for soil and streamwater [DOC] in the following spring Å gren et al 2010), this is a potentially serious shortcoming.…”

“…All process rates are dependent on modeled soil temperature and moisture (Futter et al 2007). Soil temperature is modeled from air temperature using a relationship developed by Rankinen et al (2004) in which soil temperature is controlled by air temperature, insulating effects of snow cover, a soil thermal conductivity coefficient, heat capacity due to freeze/thaw and modeled soil temperature on the preceding day.…”

Soil temperature responses to climate change along a gradient of upland–riparian transect in boreal forest

“…Bond-Lamberty et al (2005) showed the relative importance of incorporating changes in forest canopy and leaf area index in improving soil temperature simulations. Recent work by Jungqvist et al (2014) assessed possible future change in upland forest soil temperature dynamics by extending the model of Rankinen et al (2004). However, simple models are evolving into models of varying complexities as the need to assess the impact of climate change on soil temperature becomes important in soil biogeochemistry (Kurylyk et al 2013).…”