Recent secular variations in the extent of Northern Hemisphere snow cover

Robinson, David A.; Dewey, Kenneth F.

doi:10.1029/gl017i010p01557

Cited by 99 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 19 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…During the most recent 27 years of the CDR, mean annual SCE has continued to exhibit lower snow extents relative to the data period ending in mid-1987. This step change in NH SCE was first identified by Robinson and Dewey (1990).…”

Section: Annual Sce Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 96%

A long-term Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent data record for climate studies and monitoring

Estilow

Young

Robinson

2015

Earth Syst. Sci. Data

223

118

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. This paper describes the long-term, satellite-based visible snow cover extent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) climate data record (CDR) currently available for climate studies, monitoring, and model validation. This environmental data product is developed from weekly Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent data that have been digitized from snow cover maps onto a Cartesian grid draped over a polar stereographic projection. The data have a spatial resolution of 190.6 km at 60 • latitude, are updated monthly, and span the period from 4 October 1966 to the present. The data comprise the longest satellite-based CDR of any environmental variable. Access to the data is provided in Network Common Data Form (netCDF) and archived by NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) under the satellite Climate Data Record Program (doi:10.7289/V5N014G9). The basic characteristics, history, and evolution of the data set are presented herein. In general, the CDR provides similar spatial and temporal variability to its widely used predecessor product. Key refinements included in the CDR improve the product's grid accuracy and documentation and bring metadata into compliance with current standards for climate data records.

show abstract

Section: Annual Sce Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 96%

A long-term Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent data record for climate studies and monitoring

Estilow

Young

Robinson

2015

Earth Syst. Sci. Data

223

118

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The extent of snow cover in the Northern Hemisphere has decreased significantly over the past decades because of global warming (Robinson and Dewey, 1990;Brown and Robinson, 2011). Snow cover showed the largest decrease in the spring, and the decrease rate increased for higher latitudes in response to larger albedo feedback (Déry and Brown, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variability in snow cover phenology in China from 1952 to 2010

Cao

Xie

et al. 2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. Daily snow observation data from 672 stations in China, particularly the 296 stations with over 10 mean snow cover days (SCDs) in a year during the period of 1952-2010, are used in this study. We first examine spatiotemporal variations and trends of SCDs, snow cover onset date (SCOD), and snow cover end date (SCED). We then investigate the relationships of SCDs with number of days with temperature below 0 • C (TBZD), mean air temperature (MAT), and Arctic Oscillation (AO) index. The results indicate that years with a positive anomaly of SCDs for the entire country include 1955, 1957, 1964, and 2010, and years with a negative anomaly of SCDs include 1953SCDs include , 1965SCDs include , 1999SCDs include , 2002SCDs include , and 2009. The reduced TBZD and increased MAT are the main reasons for the overall late SCOD and early SCED since 1952. This explains why only 12 % of the stations show significant shortening of SCDs, while 75 % of the stations show no significant change in the SCDs trends. Our analyses indicate that the distribution pattern and trends of SCDs in China are very complex and are not controlled by any single climate variable examined (i.e. TBZD, MAT, or AO), but a combination of multiple variables. It is found that the AO has the maximum impact on the shortening trends of SCDs in the Shandong peninsula, Changbai Mountains, Xiaoxingganling, and north Xinjiang, while the combined TBZD and MAT have the maximum impact on the shortening trends of SCDs in the Loess Plateau, Tibetan Plateau, and Northeast Plain.

show abstract

“…An orderly succession of hydrologic changes associated with climate warming are through changes in ground temperatures, precipitation, evaporation and runoffs in cold and arid regions Lai and Ye 1991;Hinzman et al 1991;Lai 1996;Cheng et al 1997;Wang and Cheng 1999;Jin et al 2000;Morison et al 2000;Zhao et al 2004), which includes drying up of wetlands (Ji 1996;Wang and Cheng 2000;Feng et al 2006), increasing annual snow cover (Zwally et al 1989;Robinson and Dewey 1990;Morgan et al 1991;Ke et al 1997;Li 1996Li , 1999Ke and Li 1998;Gao et al 2003), thawing of permafrost (Haeberli et al 1993;Wang 1998;Li and Cheng 1999;Jin et al 2000;Zhang et al 2004a, b;Li et al 2005), earlier spring river and lake ice break-up (Zhao et al 2004;IPCC 2007), lowering of the regional groundwater table (Feng et al 2006;Peng et al 2006), disconnecting river (Tian 1990;Liu 1996;Xi 1997;Yang 1997) and shrinking lakes (Shi 1990;Wang et al 1995;Qin 1999;Wu et al 2001Wu et al , 2008Guo et al 2003;Yoshikawa and Hinzman 2003;…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing inland lakes responding to climate warming in Northeastern Tibetan Plateau

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The main portion of Tibetan Plateau has experienced statistically significant warming over the past 50 years, especially in cold seasons. This paper aims to identify and characterize the dynamics of inland lakes that located in the hinterland of Tibetan Plateau responding to climate change. We compared satellite imageries in late 1970s and early 1990s with recent to inventory and track changes in lakes after three decades of rising temperatures in the region. It showed warm and dry trend in climate with significant accelerated increasing annual mean temperature over the last 30 years, however, decreasing periodically annual precipitation and no obvious trend in potential evapotranspiration during the same period. Our analysis indicated widespread declines in inland lake's abundance and area in the whole origin of the Yellow River and southeastern origin of the Yangtze River. In contrast, the western and northern origin of the Yangtze River revealed completely reverse change. The regional lake surface area decreased by 11,499 ha or 1.72% from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, and increased by 6,866 ha or 1.04% from the early 1990s to 2004. Shrinking inland lakes may become a common feature in the discontinuous permafrost regions as a consequence of warming climate and thawing permafrost. Furthermore, obvious expanding were found in continuous permafrost regions due to climate warming and glacier retreating. The results may provide information for the scientific recognition of the responding events to the climate change recorded by the inland lakes.

show abstract

Recent secular variations in the extent of Northern Hemisphere snow cover

Cited by 99 publications

References 19 publications

A long-term Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent data record for climate studies and monitoring

A long-term Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent data record for climate studies and monitoring

Variability in snow cover phenology in China from 1952 to 2010

Changing inland lakes responding to climate warming in Northeastern Tibetan Plateau

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About