Cryosphere
(Frozen water)
The shape of ice crystals cause ice to be less dense than liquid
water This causes Ice to float with about 9% of the ice volume
above water (91% below). A.k.a. the Tip of the iceberg.
Time scales relevant to the cryosphere
87% of ice is in Antarctica
10% Greenland
2.5% ice shelves (mostly Antarctic)
If all Ice melted sea levels would go up by about 65 meters (213 ft)
Over half Earths land mass is part of the cryosphere at some
Time during the year
IPCC 2014 Chapter 4 table 1
Snow cover
Essential for water resources in the western US
Roughly 75% of the Western US fresh water
supply comes from snow pack.
Dendrite: Common six sided ice crystal / snow flake.
January or February have most NH snow cover.
Aside from Antarctica the SH has very little snow cover.
IPCC 2014 Figure 4.19
River and lakes Spring thaw
Most rivers are
thawing earlier and
freezing later.
Alpine Glaciers
Milk Lake 2009
Milk Lake glacier 1988
Most Glaciers around the world are in retreat
Permafrost
Active layer- thaws and refreezes
Permafrost stays frozen
Talik- unfrozen ground
On short time scales warming the tundra could pull more CO2
From the atmosphere. On longer time scales much more CO2
Could be released from the thawed permafrost.
Methane (swamp gas)
Atmospheric Methane increased from 1800 to 1995, was fairly constant
from 1995 to 2005 and has been increasing again since 2005.
Methane possibly released from permafrost?
Methane possibly released from permafrost?
Methane change Since 2005
Methane change Since 2005
Methane change Since 2005
Land Ice
From Grace
See http://www.aber.ac.uk/greenland/Massbalance.html and
Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment
Right: Mass change distribution (2002-2009) across the ice sheet as
determined by GRACE observations. Seems to be accelerating.
Land Ice
http://www.skepticalscience.com/east-antarctica-is-now-losing-ice.html
Ablation: Melt, sublimation, loss from wind, loss from flow
Equilibrium line: Accumulation = Ablation
2010 was an exceptional year for
Greenlands ice cap. Melting
started early and stretched later
in the year than usual. Little
snow fell to replenish the losses.
By the end of the season, much
of southern Greenland had set a
new record, with melting that
lasted 50 days longer than
average.
350 Gt 1 mm sea level rise
Both Antarctica and Greenland have been losing
ice over the past 8 years.
Side view
Ice flow speed increase with distance above ground
Top view:
Ice flow increases
with distance from
valley walls.
Basal melt can provide a lubricant to increase total ice flow.
Ice flow increases with increasing tilt of the mountain
Air bubbles trapped in ice can reveal atmospheric
composition in the past (up to about 600,000 yrs).
Sublimation or calving
When accumulation is greater than ablation in a certain zone
the ice sheet :
a)Grows
b)Shrinks
c)Stays the same size
Sublimation or calving
When accumulation is greater than ablation in a certain
zone the ice sheet :
a)Grows
b)Shrinks
c)Stays the same size
Sea Ice
What happens to the
water level when the
ice melts?
a. Overflows
b. Goes down
c. Stays the same
Sea Ice
What happens to the
water level when the
ice melts?
a. Overflows
b. Goes down
c. Stays the same
From: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/WorldOfChange/sea_ice.php
The yellow outline on each image shows the median sea ice extent observed by satellite sensors in
September and March from 1979 through 2000.
From: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/WorldOfChange/sea_ice_south.php
Average September Arctic Sea ice decreased by about 40 %
From 1980 to 2010.
Sept 2012 had the lowest Arctic sea ice coverage since 1979.
Average January Arctic Sea ice decreased by about 6% From 1980
to 2010.
http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/2011/020211.html
This positive feedback suggests that as the artic warms the
warming will be amplified by the loss of insulation that was
once provided by the ice cover.
Average September (winter) Antarctic Sea ice increased by about 3 %
From 1980 to 2010.
