The effect of refreezing on the isotopic composition of melting snowpack

Zhou, Shaomin; Nakawo, Masayoshi; Hashimoto, Senichiro; Sakai, Akiko

doi:10.1002/hyp.6662

Cited by 65 publications

(77 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…The stable isotope ratios δ 18 O and δD in the Pío XI core show significant correlation (δD = 8.0 × δ 18 O + 9.2, r = 0.98, n = 1078) and the slope and intercept are in good agreement with the Global Meteoric Water Line (δD = 8 × δ 18 O + 10), pointing to a direct marine origin of precipitation and no continental influence. This good agreement is another indicator for a well-preserved stable isotope record, since melting and refreezing cycles cause a decrease of the slope (Zhou et al, 2008). From the Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation (GNIP) it is known that in the southern temperate zone of South America (south of 40 • S), like in the northern, the isotopic composition of precipitation is controlled mainly by changes in temperature, with a maximum of δ 18 O and δD during austral summer and a minimum during winter (Rozanski and Araguas Araguas, 1995).…”

Section: Stable Isotope Ratios and Net Accumulation Ratesmentioning

confidence: 61%

Net accumulation rates derived from ice core stable isotope records of Pío XI glacier, Southern Patagonia Icefield

et al. 2013

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Abstract. Pío XI, the largest glacier of the Southern Patagonia Icefield, reached its neoglacial maximum extent in 1994 and is one of the few glaciers in that area which is not retreating. In view of the recent warming it is important to understand glacier responses to climate changes. Due to its remoteness and the harsh conditions in Patagonia, no systematic mass balance studies have been performed. In this study we derived net accumulation rates for the period 2000-2006 from a 50 m (33.2 4 m weq) ice core collected in the accumulation area of Pío XI (2600 m a.s.l., 49 • 16 40 S, 73 • 21 14 W). Borehole temperatures indicate near temperate ice, but the average melt percent is only 16 ± 14%. Records of stable isotopes are well preserved and were used for identification of annual layers. Net accumulation rates range from 3.4-7.1 water equivalent (m weq) with an average of 5.8 m weq, comparable to precipitation amounts at the Chilean coast, but not as high as expected for the Icefield. Ice core stable isotope data correlate well with upper air temperatures and may be used as temperature proxy.

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Section: Stable Isotope Ratios and Net Accumulation Ratesmentioning

confidence: 61%

Net accumulation rates derived from ice core stable isotope records of Pío XI glacier, Southern Patagonia Icefield

et al. 2013

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“…Thus, summer precipitation should not have significantly contributed to the recharge water and evaporation in the soil zone is unlikely to have had a significant influence at Grotta di Ernesto. The second process was observed for melting and refreezing of a thick snow cover in Japan (Zhou et al, 2008). Even if most of the winter precipitation falling at Grotta di Ernesto is snow, a substantial part of the snowfall does not reach the ground due to the shielding effect of the canopy.…”

Section: δ 18 O Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Holocene climate variability in north-eastern Italy: potential influence of the NAO and solar activity recorded by speleothem data

et al. 2012

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Abstract.Here we present high-resolution stable isotope and lamina thickness profiles as well as radiocarbon data for the Holocene stalagmite ER 76 from Grotta di Ernesto (northeastern Italy), which was dated by combined U-series dating and lamina counting. ER 76 grew between 8 ka (thousands of years before 2000 AD) and today, with a hiatus from 2.6 to 0.4 ka.Data from nine meteorological stations in Trentino show a significant influence of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) on winter temperature and precipitation in the cave region. Spectral analysis of the stable isotope signals of ER 76 reveals significant peaks at periods of 110, 60-70, 40-50, 32-37 and around 25 a. Except for the cycle between 32 and 37 a all periodicities have corresponding peaks in power spectra of solar variability, and the 25-a cycle may correspond to NAO variability. This suggests that climate variability in northern Italy was influenced by both solar activity and the NAO during the Holocene.Six periods of warm winter climate in the cave region were identified. These are centred at 7.9, 7.4, 6.5, 5.5, 4.9 and 3.7 ka, and their duration ranges from 100 to 400 a. The two oldest warm phases coincide with the deposition of sapropel S1 in the Mediterranean Sea indicating that the climate in the cave region was influenced by this prominent pluvial phase in the Mediterranean area. For the younger warm phases it is difficult to establish a supra-regional climate pattern, and some of them may, thus, reflect regional climate variability. This highlights the complexity of regional and supra-regional scale Holocene climate patterns.

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“…This is a widely used technique especially in watershed hydrology (Buttle et al, 1995;Dinçer et al, 1970;Unnikrishna et al, 2002). Snowpack usually features a heterogeneous vertical isotope composition (Lee et al, 2010;Zhou et al, 2008) which is partially homogenized over the course of the winter season by a combination of moisture exchange, meltwater presence and rain infiltration (Krouse et al, 1977;Unnikrishna et al, 2002). Isotopically lighter meltwater is produced at the beginning of snowmelt and becomes heavier as melt progresses.…”

Section: R Juras Et Al: Rainwater Propagation Through Snowpackmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rainwater propagation through snowpack during rain-on-snow sprinkling experiments under different snow conditions

Juras

Würzer²,

Pavlásek

et al. 2017

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. The mechanisms of rainwater propagation and runoff generation during rain-on-snow (ROS) events are still insufficiently known. Understanding storage and transport of liquid water in natural snowpacks is crucial, especially for forecasting of natural hazards such as floods and wet snow avalanches. In this study, propagation of rainwater through snow was investigated by sprinkling experiments with deuterium-enriched water and applying an alternative hydrograph separation technique on samples collected from the snowpack runoff. This allowed us to quantify the contribution of rainwater, snowmelt and initial liquid water released from the snowpack. Four field experiments were carried out during winter 2015 in the vicinity of Davos, Switzerland. Blocks of natural snow were isolated from the surrounding snowpack to inhibit lateral exchange of water and were exposed to artificial rainfall using deuterium-enriched water. The experiments were composed of four 30 min periods of sprinkling, separated by three 30 min breaks. The snowpack runoff was continuously gauged and sampled periodically for the deuterium signature. At the onset of each experiment antecedent liquid water was first pushed out by the sprinkling water. Hydrographs showed four pronounced peaks corresponding to the four sprinkling bursts. The contribution of rainwater to snowpack runoff consistently increased over the course of the experiment but never exceeded 86 %. An experiment conducted on a non-ripe snowpack suggested the development of preferential flow paths that allowed rainwater to efficiently propagate through the snowpack limiting the time for mass exchange processes to take effect. In contrast, experiments conducted on ripe isothermal snowpack showed a slower response behaviour and resulted in a total runoff volume which consisted of less than 50 % of the rain input.

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The effect of refreezing on the isotopic composition of melting snowpack

Cited by 65 publications

References 41 publications

Net accumulation rates derived from ice core stable isotope records of Pío XI glacier, Southern Patagonia Icefield

Net accumulation rates derived from ice core stable isotope records of Pío XI glacier, Southern Patagonia Icefield

Holocene climate variability in north-eastern Italy: potential influence of the NAO and solar activity recorded by speleothem data

Rainwater propagation through snowpack during rain-on-snow sprinkling experiments under different snow conditions

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