Southeast Test Case - Year 1 Update Understanding the contribution of glacier runoff to freshwater flux in the Gulf of Alaska
Southeast Test Case: Physical System Snowpack
Estuary Ocean
Lake River
Graphic: Kristin Timm
Southeast Test Case: Physical System
Graphic: Kristin Timm
Elevation Changes from Altimetry
Visible Band Satellite Imagery
Elevation Changes from Altimetry
Airborne Altimetery
Elevation Changes from Altimetry
Satellite Gravimetry
Melt Modeling
Assessment of glacier mass changes in Alaska
Alaska Glaciers contribute 7% to global sea level rise
(Luthcke, Arendt and others, 2013)
Assessment of glacier mass changes in Alaska Mass Amplitude
cm water equivalent
(Luthcke et al, 2008)
Southeast Test Case: Study Area
Changes in Glacier Extent
Elevation Changes from Altimetry
(meters)
Installing ablation wires on Gilkey Glacier
W. Pat Dryer Jason Amundson
Point Mass Balance Data: 2013
Jeff Kavanaugh Jamie Bradshaw
Mass balance stake measurements
Point mass balance data: Comparison to Mendenhall 10
mass balance (m/yr)
5 0 0
500
1000
1500
-5 -10 Mendenhall -15 -20
Gilkey Elevation (m)
2000
Planned Instrumentation on Gilkey Glacier
Joanna Young, UAF Geophysical Institute
Ground-based and airborne snow radar surveys
Data Management and Dissemination
PostgreSQL / PostGIS Database
Database
Boundaries
PRISM
LiDAR (10m)
Temperature
Precipitation
Glacier Inventory
Modern
Mass Balance
Map Date
Hypsometry
Stream Gages
Weather Stations
Stream Data
Hypsometry
Weather Data
Data Management and Dissemination
http://www2.gi.alaska.edu/~jrich
Acknowledgements Funding
Collaborators J. Freymueller, A. Gusmeroli, A. Gardner, D. Hill, E. Hood, R. Hock, C. Larsen, A. Liljedahl , M. Loso, S. Luthcke, S. O’Neel, S. Pyare, G. Wolken Students/Technicians C. Beedlow, J. Davis, S. Herreid, A. Johnson, C. Kienholz, N. Murphy, J. Rich, J. Young
Temperature Index Melt Model
M = (σ + α K)T+ σ = melt factor (tuning parameter) α = radiation factor for snow or ice surface (tuning parameter) K = direct potential solar radiation calculated from topography and solar geometry T+ = positive degree-days (input)
Temperature Index Melt Model
• Air temperature • Solid precipitation
M = (σ + α K)T+ • Simulated mass balance CALIBRATION • Mass balance observations