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- H13O-1277: Interannual Variations in Spring Snowmelt Timing of Alaskan Black Spruce Forests Using a Bulk-Surface Energy Balance Approach
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Board 1277‚ Hall EFG (Poster Hall)NOLA CC
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Hiroki Ikawa, Hokkaido Agricultural Research Center (First Author, Presenting Author)
Taro Nakai, Institute for Space-Earth Environmental Research
Yoshinobu Harazono, International Arctic Research Center
Hiroki Iwata, Shinshu University
Hirohiko Nagano, Niigata University
Kazuyuki Saito, JAMSTEC
Masahito Ueyama, Osaka Prefecture University
Hideki Kobayashi, JAMSTEC Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology
Robert Busey, University of Alaska Fairbanks
It is essential to understand why and how spring snowmelt occurs in boreal forests because of its impact on both the biological and hydrological processes in the ecosystem. However, meteorological drivers related to snowmelt often change simultaneously, which makes it challenging to determine which single driver is vital for snowmelt. To address this challenge, we constructed a simple snowmelt model that treats the ecosystem surface as a single bulk layer. The simple model bypasses the needs for detailed canopy information and is easily constrained by observed data. Applying the model to decadal observation data from Alaskan boreal forests, we found that snowfall, air temperature, and atmospheric radiation were important meteorological drivers for explaining interannual variations in snowmelt timing. Each of them explained about 1–2 weeks of snowmelt disappearance dates. We also demonstrated that the model helped explain why the snowmelt was late in 2013 and early in 2016 and 2019 and why snow disappearance dates differed between study sites. While a simple model has its limitations, it can be beneficial for understanding snowmelt characteristics within a simple theoretical framework.
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