AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31

DOI 10.1007/s13280-011-0212-y

The Changing Face of Arctic Snow Cover: A Synthesis

of Observed and Projected Changes
Terry V. Callaghan, Margareta Johansson, Ross D. Brown, Pavel Ya. Groisman,
Niklas Labba, Vladimir Radionov, Roger G. Barry, Olga N. Bulygina,
Richard L. H. Essery, D. M. Frolov, Vladimir N. Golubev, Thomas C. Grenfell,
Marina N. Petrushina, Vyacheslav N. Razuvaev, David A. Robinson,
Peter Romanov, Drew Shindell, Andrey B. Shmakin, Sergey A. Sokratov,
Stephen Warren, Daquing Yang

Abstract Analysis of in situ and satellite data shows Keywords Snow depth
Snow water equivalent

evidence of different regional snow cover responses to the Snow cover duration
Snow cover extent
widespread warming and increasing winter precipitation
that has characterized the Arctic climate for the past
40–50 years. The largest and most rapid decreases in snow INTRODUCTION
water equivalent (SWE) and snow cover duration (SCD)
are observed over maritime regions of the Arctic with the Frozen precipitation accumulating on a surface creates a
highest precipitation amounts. There is also evidence of snow cover. Snow is an important and dominant feature
marked differences in the response of snow cover between of Arctic terrestrial landscapes with cover present for
the North American and Eurasian sectors of the Arctic, 8–10 months of the year. Its extent, dynamics, and prop-
with the North American sector exhibiting decreases in erties (e.g., depth, density, water equivalent, grain size, and
snow cover and snow depth over the entire period of changes in structure throughout its vertical profile) affect
available in situ observations from around 1950, while climate (e.g., ground thermal regime), human activities
widespread decreases in snow cover are not apparent over (e.g., transportation, resource extraction, water supply, use
Eurasia until after around 1980. However, snow depths are of land, and ecosystem services), as well as infrastructure,
increasing in many regions of Eurasia. Warming and more hydrological processes, permafrost, extreme events
frequent winter thaws are contributing to changes in snow (including hazards such as avalanches and floods), biodi-
pack structure with important implications for land use and versity, and ecosystem processes. Snow is therefore a
provision of ecosystem services. Projected changes in snow significant component in the socio-economics of Arctic
cover from Global Climate Models for the 2050 period societies. The important physical properties that exert an
indicate increases in maximum SWE of up to 15% over influence on climate or moderate its effects (Cohen and
much of the Arctic, with the largest increases (15–30%) Rind 1991) include high short-wave albedo, high thermal
over the Siberian sector. In contrast, SCD is projected to emissivity, low heat conductivity, large latent heat of
decrease by about 10–20% over much of the Arctic, with fusion, and low surface roughness while it stores and rap-
the smallest decreases over Siberia (\10%) and the largest idly releases water in the melt season. The combination of
decreases over Alaska and northern Scandinavia (30–40%) high albedo and low thermal conductivity promotes low
by 2050. These projected changes will have far-reaching surface temperatures and low-level temperature inversions.
consequences for the climate system, human activities, The low thermal conductivity of snow allows it to insulate
hydrology, and ecology. the surface from large energy losses in winter, and this
has major implications for the development of seasonally
frozen ground and permafrost.
The characteristics of Arctic snow cover are the result of
a complex interplay of atmospheric and surface processes
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this
article (doi:10.1007/s13280-011-0212-y) contains supplementary that determine not only the quantity of water stored as
material, which is available to authorized users. snow, but also snowpack condition (e.g., grain size,

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18 AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31

density, and ice layers). The amount of snow accumulating Because the Arctic’s snow cover is strongly related to
on a surface is influenced by precipitation amount, type, temperature and moisture as described above, past (Walsh
and timing; blowing snow transport and sublimation; and et al. 2011a, b [this issue]) and projected changes in the
vegetation interception. However, the character and evo- Arctic’s temperature and precipitation are likely to result in
lution of high-latitude snowpack has the additional com- changes in the characteristics of the Arctic’s snow cover
plexity of being particularly strongly dependent on blowing with far-reaching impacts on the climate system (Callaghan
snow processes with the distribution and physical proper- et al. 2011a, b [this issue]), human activities, as well as
ties of snow on the ground closely linked to local-scale infrastructure, hydrological processes, permafrost, extreme
variability in terrain and vegetation (King et al. 2008). The events (including hazards such as avalanches and floods),
key large-scale physiographic and climatic factors influ- biodiversity, and ecosystem processes (AMAP 2011; Cal-
encing the regional distribution of Arctic snow cover (see laghan et al. 2011b [this issue]). This article assesses cur-
On-line supplementary material Fig. A) are elevation, rent and projected changes in the Arctic’s snow cover. It is
amount of vegetation cover, spatial distribution of freezing part of a larger assessment of the Arctic’s entire cryosphere
temperatures, and location of the main cyclone tracks (AMAP 2011; Callaghan et al. 2011b [this issue]).
bringing moisture into the Arctic. Air temperature and
elevation exert the strongest influences on the distribution
of snow cover duration (SCD) across the Arctic (Fig. Ae) CURRENT CHANGES IN SOLID PRECIPITATION
with both continents exhibiting marked east-west increases
in snow cover in response to the modification of winter air There is a wide range of regularly observed snow cover
masses over the cold, dry continental interiors. Land areas information in the Arctic from in situ and satellite obser-
in the zone of -20°C mean winter temperatures (see darker vations. The SCD on the ground is one of the best-observed
blue area in Fig. Ac) experience snow cover for most of the variables in terms of resolution and longevity. Snow depth
year. The spatial distribution of snow water equivalent and SWE are more difficult to monitor due to their high
(SWE; the depth of liquid water that would result from spatial variability, large gaps in the in situ observing net-
melting the snow) is more complex than SCD but is basi- works, and difficulties in monitoring from satellites. The
cally driven by moisture availability over the snow season, indigenous peoples of the Arctic have a profound knowl-
reflected in the cyclone frequency map (Fig. Ad). The edge of changing snow conditions of practical importance
highest snow accumulations in the Arctic are located in the for survival, which has been passed from generation to
coastal mountain regions and considerably more moisture generation, and the Sáme observe snow stratigraphy that is
penetrates into the western sector of the Eurasian Arctic important for reindeer access to vegetation (Riseth et al.
than North America, where the coastal mountains block 2010).
moisture entering from the Pacific Ocean. Regions with In the Atlantic, North European, and West Siberian
winter temperatures closer to freezing, such as Scandinavia sectors, the climatic conditions are formed largely under
and the Pacific coasts of Russia and Alaska, are also more the influence of heat and moisture advection from the
likely to experience thaw and rain-on-snow events that North Atlantic area. Climate in the East Siberian and
create ice layers in the snowpack. Chukchi sectors is significantly influenced by circumpolar
The high winds, low temperatures and low snowfall conditions over the northern Pacific Ocean, as well as by
amounts over the exposed tundra regions of the Arctic the center of action above Siberia (see Fig. 1 for definition
produce a snow cover that is typically quite shallow, about of the sectors). The Alaskan sector is also influenced by
30–40 cm (except in drifts and gullies), with a wind-hard- circumpolar processes over the northern Pacific Ocean. In
ened surface layer (‘‘wind slab’’) overlying a less dense the Canadian sector, the climatic conditions in winter are
depth hoar (‘‘sugar snow’’) layer (Derksen et al. 2010). The governed both by anticyclonic circulation above north-
average snow density remains close to 300 kg m-3 over western Canada and the Arctic Basin and by the frequent
much of the snow season, but snow depth and properties can passage of Alberta lows and Atlantic east coast systems.
exhibit strong local variation with many exposed areas, Analysis of trends in seasonal totals of precipitation
drifts, dunes, and zastrugi (sharp irregular ridges on the from October to May (which correspond to the snowfall
snow surface formed by wind erosion and deposition). In season with mean monthly temperatures below -2°C) at
forested regions of the Arctic (taiga and boreal forest), snow climate stations located north of 60°N revealed an increase
cover is more uniform and less dense (*200 kg m-3) as the in cold season precipitation between 1936 and 2009 in
trees act as windbreaks and shade the snow from incoming almost all sectors of the Arctic (Table 1; see also Figs. B
solar radiation in the spring (McKay and Gray 1981). In and C in the On-line supplementary material).
contrast, north of the tree line, where wind action compacts The analysis is based on monthly total precipitation data
the snow, snow density is higher. collected at the stations from the start of their operation up

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AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31 19

Fig. 1 Long term

meteorological stations in the
Arctic (red dots) and mean
monthly location of North Pole
drifting stations (blue dots) in
different sectors of the Arctic.
1—Atlantic; 2—North-
European; 3—West-Siberian;
4—East-Siberian; 5—Chukchi;
6—Alaskan; 7—Canadian

to 2009. Regionally averaged series were calculated over (Atkinson et al. 2006). This contrast is surprising as both
the latitudinal zones from 60° to 70°N, 70° to 85°N, and continents have experienced long-term increases in cold
60° to 85°N using a method of optimal averaging for the season precipitation (Table 1; Figs. B and C in the Online
seven sectors shown in Table 1 (Frolov 2009). Canadian supplementary material; Trenberth et al. 2007; Min et al.
results were computed from a 2008 update of the adjusted 2008). Over most of Russia, the number of days with snow
and homogenized precipitation dataset of Mekis and Hogg depth greater than 20 cm has increased (Fig. E in the On-
(1999), but there were insufficient station data in the line supplementary material). In the northern and southern
Canadian Arctic sector north of 70°N to compute trends regions of Western Siberia, in Yakutia, and on the coast of
in the 70°–85°N and 60°–85°N sectors before 1939 the Sea of Okhotsk, the trend is 8–10 days per decade. In
(Fig. 1). contrast, the Chukchi Peninsula and Transbaikalia has
experienced a decrease of days with snow depth greater
Snow Depth, Snow Water Equivalent, Snow Cover than 20 cm by 6–10 days per decade (Bulygina et al.
Duration and Extent 2009). Trends in SCD also contrast between the two Arctic
regions (Figs. 2, 3) until after 1980 when the trends over
There have been long-term increases in winter snow depth Eurasia also began to decline. Maximum decreases in SCD
over northern Scandinavia and Eurasia (Kohler et al. 2006; of the order of 4–6 days per decade were found in the
Bulygina et al. 2009; Fig. 2, also Fig. D in the Online western and southern regions of European Russia from
supplementary material) but significant decreases over the 1951 to 2006 (Kitaev et al. 2006; Razuvaev and Bulygina
North American Arctic between 1950 and 2006 (Fig. 3; 2006; Bulygina and Razuvaev 2008; Shmakin 2010). In
updated from Atkinson et al. 2006). Similarly, SWE contrast, there is an increase in the duration of snow cover
increased over Eurasia and most of northern Russia for the recorded in Yakutia (central northern Siberia) and in some
1966–2009 period (Bulygina et al. 2010a), but decreased regions of the Russian Far East, owing to their proximity to
over northern Canada over the 1966–1996 period the Pacific Ocean.

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20 AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31

Table 1 Linear trend analysis (least-squares method) for cold season (October–May) total precipitation over the long term (1936–2009) and
short term (1980–2009)
Areas 60–70°N 70–85°N 60–85°N
1936–2009 1980–2009 1936–2009 1980–2009 1936–2009 1980–2009
2 2 2 2 2
Bx D r Bx D r Bx D r Bx D r Bx D r Bx D r2
(%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)

Atlantic 9.2 8.2 22.2 -13.7 -4.8 13.0 9.1 28.6 46.7 10.1 12.9 27.1 9.1 10.3 30.8 -5.5 -2.6 7.4
(50°W–30°E)
North European 16.2 40.0 70.8 7.9 7.8 19.0 6.2 20.3 50.9 9.9 13.1 29.8 12.1 33.0 73.8 9.0 9.9 30.9
(30°E–60°E)
West Siberian 10.3 28.5 65.4 1.2 1.3 4.5 -0.2 0 -1.1 1.9 17.1 38.6 65.2 5.9 20.6 59.0 7.9 11.2 37.3
(60°E–100°E)
East Siberian 3.1 15.0 41.3 4.5 8.8 26.4 -3.5 -21.2 38.8 1.0 2.5 5.2 0.6 2.7 9.7 3.1 6.7 22.3
(100°E–150°E)
Chukchi -0.2 -0.7 1.3 -6.9 -9.5 24.8 -8.4 -42.3 56.4 -3.3 -6.7 17.3 -3.4 -12.8 24.3 -5.5 -8.7 29.3
(150°E–170°W)
Alaskan 2.5 10.9 15.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 -0.4 -6.6 3.6 10.1 67.8 44.1 2.0 9.4 14.7 1.7 3.4 5.4
(170° W–140° W)
Canadiana 6.3 23.1 26.9 8.1 11.7 8.1 8.5 54.2 28.7 2.9 7.6 0.8 7.8 30.7 40.3 10.0 16.5 17.0
(140°W–60°W)
Whole latitudinal 5.7 14.5 27.2 0.1 0.1 0.0 1.8 10.5 7.4 5.8 13.7 12.1 3.6 10.9 20.6 3.7 4.7 5.2
zoneb
Bx, trend in mm per decade; D, linear change over the period as a percentage of the 1961–1990 mean; r2, percentage of variance explained by
linear regression
See Fig. 1 for definitions of the sectors. Values in bold are significant at the confidence level p B 0.10
a
For Canada the adjusted and homogenized precipitation dataset of Mekis and Hogg (1999, updated to 2008) was used. Data are available from
1936 to 2008 for 60–70°N, but there are no data prior to 1939 for 70–85°N (and 60–85°N)
b
for non-overlapping sectors weighted by land area for 1936–2008 for 60–70°N and 1939–2008 for 70–85°N and 60–85°N

A general increase in duration of the period with snow The NOAA satellite record shows that variability in
on the ground over Russia and the Russian polar region SCD in the North American and Eurasian Arctic has been
north of the Arctic Circle by 5 days (3%) and 12 days more or less in phase since observations began in 1966,
(5%), respectively, over the period 1936–2004 was repor- with contrasting seasonal patterns of little change in
ted by Groisman et al. (2006). Linear trend analyses autumn SCD (i.e., the snow cover onset date) while spring
applied to the entire period of observations available for SCD (i.e., the snow-off date) underwent a rapid decrease
their study lead to the paradoxical conclusion that the during the 1980s (Fig. 4). Foster et al. (2008) attributed this
increase in snow duration could not be associated with step change to a regime change in the Arctic Oscillation
‘‘Arctic warming,’’ which was not apparent over this par- (AO) to more positive values. However, a new multi-
ticular time period. dataset study of spring snow cover changes over the Arctic
In the coastal zone of the Eurasian Arctic, the interan- (Brown et al. 2010) suggested that the reduction in spring
nual variability of dates of formation and decay of con- snow cover is more linear over time and has a closer link to
tinuous snow cover is large, varying by 1.5 months. The Arctic temperature trends than to the AO. The asymmetric
duration of the period with continuous snow cover varies seasonal response of SCD is consistent with observed
from 200 to 300 days at different stations in this zone warming trends that are likely being enhanced by positive
(Radionov et al. 2004). In the Fennoscandian and Alaskan- snow-albedo feedbacks (Groisman et al. 1994a; Déry and
Canadian sector there has been a statistically significant Brown 2007).
decrease of about 3 days per decade in SCD (Table 2). In The trend (days per decade) in the dates of the onset and
contrast, an increase by 1.5 days per decade was detected disappearance of continuous snow cover over the coastal
in the Kara Sea sector. During the past three decades region of northern Russia for the 1973–2003 period shows
(1978–2007), there has been a statistically significant great variability but a slight tendency for later formation of
decrease in SCD in coastal and island areas in all sectors of snow cover in autumn and for an earlier reduction of snow
the Arctic (ranging from 4 to 9 days per decade) except for cover in spring (Fig. F in the On-line supplementary
the Kara Sea and the Chukchi Sea sectors (Table 2). material). Negative values indicate a later date of formation

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AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31 21

A 40 Arctic indigenous peoples have also observed long-

term changes in snow conditions as these have direct
Snow depth (cm)

impacts on their livelihoods (Forbes and Stammler 2009;

35
Bartsch et al. 2010). However, their observations are at
the local scale, and few are published. Also, most of
30 their observations relate to changes in snow structure and
their impacts on the mobility of reindeer and reindeer
25
herders as well as access to vegetation. Observations on
snow cover by the Sámi from northern Sweden highlight
B 195 recent increases in ice crusts and in some areas snow
Snow duration (days)

190 accumulation, with statements such as ‘‘all valleys were

snow free during (reindeer) calving in the 1930s’’,
185
‘‘terrain elements that determined animal movements in
180
the summer are now snow covered: reindeer now find
175 new passes and roam over a wider area’’, ‘‘snow-covered
170 areas and snow patches persist longer into the summer in
165
high mountain areas’’, and ‘‘rapid thaws created prob-
lems when moving to summer grazing areas in
C -8 1938–1940’’ (Riseth et al. 2010). Many of these obser-
-9 vations match or add to nearby climate station moni-
Temperature (°C)

-10 toring, particularly for the period up to the 1990s

-11
(Callaghan et al. 2010).
Arctic snow cover exhibits large interannual variabil-
-12
ity, linked to large-scale variation in atmospheric circu-
-13
lation, around the previously documented trends. For
-14
example, the increase in snow depth over most of
-15 northern Eurasia in recent decades can be explained in
1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Year two ways. First, there was a dramatic retreat in Arctic sea
ice at the end of the warm season (Serreze et al. 2007)
Fig. 2 Long-term variability in northern Eurasia (1936–2004) of that left large ice-free or thin-ice areas at the beginning of
a mean February snow depth, b the number of days where 50% or
more of the land surface is snow covered, and c winter temperature
the cold season in the Eurasian sector of the Arctic
(November–May). Solid lines indicate linear trends (Kitaev et al. Ocean. These allowed additional water vapor influx into
2005); the red line is an ad hoc indication of recent decreases in the the dry Arctic atmosphere that ended up as snowfall
number of days with snow cover in contrast to the long-term trend further south. Second, more intensive cyclonic circulation
(modified from Kitaev et al. 2005) and copyright AMAP, 2011
and more frequent cyclones (Popova 2004) related to
changes in atmospheric circulation also caused increased
or decay of snow cover in comparison with the long-term snow depth over most of northern Eurasia in recent
average date (Radionov et al. 2004). decades. This circulation change is linked to significant
Data from satellite imagery show that Arctic snow cover increases in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index
extent in May–June decreased by an average of 18% over the since the 1970s (Popova 2007). Snow accumulation in
1966–2008 period of the NOAA (National Oceanic and Eurasia is also strongly modulated by the Scandinavian
Atmospheric Administration, the United States Department pattern (SCAND) that reflects the intensity of blocking
of Commerce) record. Spatial analysis of snow cover trends anticyclones in Eastern Europe. Snow accumulation is
in the NOAA dataset (Fig. 5) confirms a number of the negatively correlated with the SCAND index, and in the
previously mentioned characteristics. Specifically, that 1951–1975 period, was the most important circulation
decreases are more marked in the snow cover melt period pattern influencing variation in snow depth across Eurasia
than the snow cover onset period, that the date of snow cover (Popova 2007). The Pacific North America (PNA) and
onset has become earlier over northern Russia, and that Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) have been shown to
spring decreases over Eurasia tend to be stronger in northern influence climate and snow cover over the western
coastal regions. The average change in SCD over the pan- Canadian Arctic (Derksen et al. 2008b) with positive
Arctic region (excluding Greenland) was -0.49 days per (negative) modes of the PNA and PDO associated with
decade in the snow cover onset period, and -3.43 days per reduced (increased) snow accumulation and a shorter
decade in the spring snow cover melt period (Fig. 5). (longer) snow cover season.

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22 AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31

Fig. 3 Variability and change A 25

in North American Arctic snow

SCD anomaly wrt 1971-2000 (days)

cover from the 1950/1951– 20
2006/2007 snow season.
a Annual SCD. b Annual 15
maximum snow depth. Values
10
are regionally averaged
anomalies from 23 stations 5
(14 from Canada, 9 from
Alaska) with anomalies 0
calculated with respect to a
-5
1971–2000 reference period.
The least squares linear trend -10
lines shown are both statistically
significant (0.05 level) with -15
slopes of -2.8 days/decade and
-20
-1.9 cm/decade. Source:
updated from Atkinson 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006
et al. (2006)
B
25
Max snow depth anomaly wrt 1971-2000 (cm)

20

15

10

-5

-10

-15

-20
1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006
Years

Table 2 Results of linear trend analysis (using least-squares method) of continuous SCD from regionally averaged in situ observations in coastal
and island areas of the Arctic from 1951 to 2007
Parameter Fennoscandia Barents Sea Kara Sea Laptev Sea East-Siberian Sea Chukchi Sea Alaska and Canada
sector sector sector sector sector sector sectora

1951–2007
Bx -3.5 -0.6 1.5 -0.3 1.8 0.3 -3.0
D (%) -10.3 -1.7 3.2 -0.6 3.8 0.6 -6.7
r2 (%) 48.0 9.2 29.5 6.5 22.3 4.9 33.2
1978–2007
Bx -7.3 -6.3 1.0 -5.4 -8.7 -3.0 -4.1
D (%) -11.5 -9.4 1.1 -6.0 -10.0 -3.7 -4.8
r2 (%) 54.1 50.1 11.3 68.3 60.6 30.2 29.0
Values in bold are significant at the 0.05 significance level
Bx, coefficient of linear trend, number of days per decade; D, linear change over period as a percentage of the 1961–1990 mean; r2, percentage of
variance explained by linear trend). Source: updated from Radionov et al. (2004a)
Defined by Radionov et al. (1996) as the duration of the period with continuous snow cover (50% or more of the visible area is reported as ‘snow
covered’)
a
Computed from Canadian and Alaskan daily snow depth data with SCD defined as the number of days in the snow season with daily snow
depths C2 cm following Brown and Goodison (1996)

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AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31 23

Changes in Snow Properties

Snow Structure and Snow Cover Stratigraphy

Data on trends in snow cover stratigraphy are rare (but see

Bulygina et al. 2010b, for data relating to Russia; Riseth
et al. 2010 and Johansson et al. 2011, for data relating to
Sweden; and Gerland et al. 1999, for data related to
Svalbard). Nevertheless, they are important for example in
determining animal access to food beneath snow, while the
presence of weak layers (depth hoar) or slip planes (crusts
or ice layers) in the snowpack increases the potential for
avalanche release. Sámi traditional knowledge from the
Abisko area of sub-Arctic Sweden reports several local
changes in the physical properties of the snow cover, par-
ticularly the development since the 1980s of more snow
and ice layers in the snowpack that are hard for the reindeer
to penetrate (Riseth et al. 2010). Furthermore, these hard
layers are more frequently found at the base of the snow
pack in recent decades (Johansson et al. 2011). These
findings relate to observations of more frequent winter
thaws and rain-on-snow events (Shmakin 2010; Fig. G in
the On-line supplementary material) that can have cata-
Fig. 4 Time series of SCD anomalies for the North American and strophic consequences for animal populations. The obser-
Eurasian Arctic (relative to the mean for 1966–2007) from the NOAA vations also relate to heavy snowfall under relatively
record for the a first half (autumn) and b second half (spring) of the
snow season. Solid lines denote the 5-year moving average. Source:
high temperatures and compression by later snowfall.
updated from Derksen et al. (2009) In Canada, traditional knowledge records evidence of
harder snow that impacts the construction of snow shelters

Fig. 5 Trend in SCD (days per decade) for a autumn (snow cover computed using the least squares method. Source: updated from
onset period) and b spring (snow cover melt period) over the UNEP (2007) by R. Brown, Climate Research Division, Environment
1972/1973–2008/2009 snow seasons from the NOAA weekly dataset Canada, 21 September 2009
maintained at Rutgers University by Dr. D. Robinson. Trends were

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24 AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31

(Walser 2009). In contrast, observations of recent changes feedback on climate warming (Hansen and Nazarenko
in snow stratigraphy for northern Eurasia in general 2004; Grenfell et al. 2009).
showed that interannual variability outweighed any possi- Some black carbon emissions result from marine trans-
ble trends (Golubev et al. 2008). portation and offshore fossil fuel extraction within the
An ice layer at the bottom of the snowpack (‘‘basal ice’’) Arctic (Macdonald et al. 2005), activities which are likely
is an important problem for Arctic grazing animals such as to increase as sea ice retreats (see Meier et al. 2011 and
reindeer, caribou, musk ox, and small rodents such as Hovelsrud et al. 2011). However, sources of black carbon
lemmings, particularly if the ice layer forms early in the are primarily located outside the Arctic. The main source is
season and restricts access to forage for an extended period biomass burning (Hegg et al. 2009; 2010); forest and
(Forchhammer and Boertmann 1993; Aanes et al. 2000; agricultural fires as well as the burning of fossil fuels.
Solberg et al. 2001; Griffith et al. 2002). Basal ice layers Nevertheless, black carbon particles can travel long dis-
can form at any time during the snow season from thaw tances and are able to reach the Arctic in substantial
events followed by subsequent refreezing. However, the quantities. Observations show a large seasonal cycle in
data archive of Bulygina et al. (2010b) suggests that they atmospheric levels, with maximum concentrations in sur-
tend to be more frequently encountered in spring. In Rus- face air during late winter and early spring and minimum
sia, the thickness of the basal ice layer has been routinely values in late summer and early autumn (Sharma et al.
measured at 958 long-term stations since 1966 as part of 2006; Gong et al. 2010). Black carbon particles are typi-
the meteorological observing program (Bulygina et al. cally hydrophobic when emitted, but age fairly rapidly to a
2010b). Dangerous events for reindeer husbandry (DER) hydrophilic state by mixing with other particles in the
are reported by the Russian Meteorological Service when atmosphere. They are then deposited at the surface pri-
the basal ice layer is thicker than 5 mm over 10 consecu- marily by wet deposition, although dry deposition also
tive days. A recent analysis of DER events in Russia since plays a small but important role. Atmospheric residence
1966 (Bulygina et al. 2010b) found a downward trend of times are generally about 3–8 days (Shindell et al. 2008). A
about 5% per decade in the number of sites reporting DER typical mid-latitude snow crystal contains thousands of
events, mainly in response to a shorter and more intense particles, including absorbing black carbon and mineral
snow melt season. Further analysis of DER frequency in dust (Chylek et al. 1987).
the early winter period is required to determine if there are Clarke and Noone (1985) measured black carbon in
changes with potential impacts for grazing animals. snow throughout the western Arctic. The cleanest snow is
in Greenland, with about 2 ppb (Doherty et al. 2010). In
Observed Changes in Albedo and Snowpack Chemistry: regions sampled both by Clarke and Noone (1985) and by
Black Carbon Effects Doherty et al. (2010), the snow contained less black carbon
in 2005–2010 than in 1983–1984. This result is consistent
Snow is the most reflective natural surface on Earth, with with the decline in atmospheric black carbon levels mea-
albedo typically 70–80% for the freshly fallen snow. sured continuously at Alert since 1989 (Gong et al. 2010).
However, albedo gradually decreases with snow aging and Snow in the Russian Arctic sampled in the winters of 2007
contamination by external materials that accumulate in the and 2008 (Grenfell et al. 2009) showed higher values than
snowpack. Nevertheless, the decreased albedo of the older elsewhere in the Arctic, typically in the range 20–30 ppb.
snow cover remains much higher than that of all underlying The median background values were 15–25 ppb on or near
surfaces except ice. Because the albedo is so high, it can be the coasts of the Barents and Kara Seas and near a polynya
reduced by even small amounts of dark impurities. Just a located within the Laptev Sea. Values were 15–20 ppb on
few parts-per-billion (ppb) of black carbon (soot) can the Chukchi Peninsula, but only 5 ppb in a fresh snowfall
reduce the albedo of snow by 1–4%, as the black carbon event at the end of April. Farther south and west, back-
strongly absorbs solar radiation (Warren and Wiscombe ground levels were higher at 20–80 ppb in the Sakha
1980, 1985; Flanner et al. 2007). The absorbed radiation is Republic and 40 ppb on the Taymir Peninsula (Grenfell
converted to internal energy that is re-emitted as heat to the et al. 2009).
surrounding snow or ice and air. Hence, deposition of black The change in albedo due to the presence of black
carbon and other aerosols, such as deposition from volca- carbon can have substantial effects on snow melt and
noes, onto snow and ice surfaces can increase melt rates atmospheric temperatures when large amounts of sunlight
(although the study by Jones et al. (2005) on the climate reach the snow surface—the 20-year global warming
effects of a ‘‘super volcanic eruption’’ suggested increasing potential of black carbon is 2000 carbon dioxide equiva-
snow cover in response to the cooling). Snow with black lents (Hansen et al. 2007). The effects of black carbon are
carbon, therefore, melts sooner in the spring and uncovers greatest in large, open areas and in late spring, summer,
the darker underlying surface, causing an amplifying and early autumn. The albedo reduction also varies with

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AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31 25

the age of the snow, with older, larger-grained snow contributing to this, as previously noted by Qu and Hall
showing roughly three times the reduction of new, smaller- (2006).
grained snow (Warren and Wiscombe 1985). More In light of these limitations, it is unrealistic to expect
broadly, by reducing the reflection of solar radiation to GCMs (General Circulation Models) to provide high-
space, deposition of black carbon onto snow and ice leads quality projections of future changes in snow cover over
to warming of the planet as a whole, resulting in increased the Arctic region. However, they can provide an indication
melt rates of snow and ice. Model studies suggest that of large-scale changes in precipitation- and temperature-
black carbon plays a very large role in spring snow melt, dependent snow cover variables, such as snow cover start
with about 20–30% greater melting than in simulations that and end dates and maximum winter accumulation, which
do not include the effects of black carbon deposits (Flanner are important for many applications. Changes in snow
et al. 2007). Experiments suggest that emissions of black properties such as snow density, ice layers, and changes in
carbon and organic matter from fossil fuel combustion spatial accumulation patterns require the use of more-
induce 95% as much loss of springtime snow cover over sophisticated models and downscaling approaches.
Eurasia as anthropogenic carbon dioxide (Flanner et al.
2009). Climate Model Projections of Changes in Snow
Cover and Snow Water equivalent

PROJECTED CHANGES IN SNOW COVER The response of Northern Hemisphere snow cover to cli-
AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS mate change simulated by the CMIP3 models did not
receive much attention in the IPCC Fourth Assessment
Methodology to Predict Changes in Snow Cover (Solomon et al. 2007). Subsequently, Räisänen (2008)
and Characteristics examined projected twenty-first century changes in the
SWE for 20 of the CMIP3 global climate models and found
The present (2009) ability of the scientific community to that, while the simulated warming shortens the snow sea-
provide guidance on how Arctic snow cover will respond son in both autumn and spring in all of Eurasia and North
to climate change is limited by a number of issues. First, America, SWE at the height of winter generally increased
there is no systematic collection of pan-Arctic snow data in the coldest areas and decreased elsewhere. Regions with
for monitoring changing snow cover conditions and for increasing levels of SWE coincided with the position of the
developing and evaluating climate models. Second, for -20°C isotherm in late twentieth century November–
computational reasons, the CMIP3 suite of coupled climate March mean temperature (Räisänen 2008) that covers the
models used relatively simple snow schemes that did not northernmost portions of both continents. Already, there is
include many processes important for high-latitude snow- evidence of increasing snow depth over northern Eurasia
pack evolution (Brun et al. 2008; Holko et al. 2008). In (e.g., Kitaev et al. 2005; Bulygina et al. 2009) but less
addition, Kattsov et al. (2007) showed that the CMIP3 evidence of increased snow accumulation over the Cana-
models tended to overestimate precipitation over major dian Arctic (Brown and Mote 2009).
river basins in the Arctic due to inadequate treatment of Analysis of the model consensus pattern for change in
orography and biases in atmospheric and sea-ice circula- maximum SWE (Brown and Mote 2009) (see On-line
tion. Räisänen (2008) and Brown and Mote (2009) found supplementary material—Fig. H) showed that the response
that the CMIP3 model mean SWE climatology over the consisted of three broad zones: with significant decreases at
Northern Hemisphere agreed reasonably well with avail- lower latitudes; a broad zone over mid-to-high latitudes,
able observations. However, there is also recent evidence where changes were not statistically significant; and the
that the atmospheric circulation patterns and snow feed- northern zone of increasing levels identified by Räisänen
backs in the CMIP3 models are unrealistic over high lati- (2008). The temporal evolution of the climate change
tudes. For example, Hardiman et al. (2008) showed that response of SCD (On-line supplementary material—Fig. I)
none of the CMIP3 models were able to reproduce the is different in that decreases dominate (no regions were
observed strong correlations of Eurasian autumn snow identified where climate models show significant increases
extent to atmospheric wave activity and Northern Annular in SCD), with the earliest and largest decreases in SCD
Mode (NAM) anomalies in the following winter. Also, occurring in coastal regions of the continents. Taken
Fernandes et al. (2009) noted that the CMIP3 models do together, these figures suggest different regional snow
not properly capture the spatial and temporal characteris- cover responses over the Arctic, with the largest and most
tics of Northern Hemisphere snow temperature sensitive rapid decreases both in SWE and SCD over Alaska,
regions documented by Groisman et al. (1994a). Inade- northern Scandinavia, and the Pacific coast region of
quate representation of snow-albedo feedbacks may be Russia.

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26 AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31

Fig. 6 Projected changes in maximum monthly SWE and annual annual SCD with d the standard deviation of the six projections.
SCD between 1970–1999 and 2049–2060 for six global climate Seasonal snow cover information over the Greenland Ice Sheet is not
models using the A2 emissions scenario. a Projected percentage available from the climate models. Source: computed from climate
change in maximum monthly SWE with b the standard deviation of model projections presented by Brown and Mote (2009)
the six projections shown. c Projected percentage change in mean

Projected changes in maximum monthly SWE (SWEmax) 10–20% over much of the Arctic, with the smallest
and annual SCD for the 2049–2060 period versus decreases over Siberia (\10%) and the largest decreases
1970–1999 are provided in Fig. 6 from a composite of six over Alaska and northern Scandinavia (30–40%). The cli-
of the highest resolution GCMs that meet the Arctic per- mate models project similar decreases in snow cover at the
formance criteria applied in Overland et al. (2011). The start and end of the snow season. The climate model
choice of six models was based on the findings of Overland standard deviations (right-hand panels in Fig. 6) show
et al. (2011) that composites formed from the best-per- relatively high values of model consistency (standard
forming 5–7 models agreed more closely with observations deviations \10%) over the Arctic region for both SWEmax
than composites formed from fewer or more models. The and annual SCD with areas of lower model consistency
six models used are CCSM3, CNRM, ECHAM5, GFDL, over Alaska and western Europe. The process of interpo-
HADGem1, and MIROC32, and results are computed for lating climate model output with different resolutions to a
the A2 emissions scenario. The projections suggest slight standard grid contributes to higher model standard devia-
increases in SWEmax (0–15%) over much of the Arctic, tions in coastal mountain areas.
with the largest increases (15–30%) over the Siberian Some aspects of these climate model snow cover change
sector. Annual SCD is projected to decrease by about projections may not be realistic. Brown and Mote (2009)

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AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31 27

found no evidence in the climate models of the accelerating differed between North America and Eurasia over the past
reduction in high-latitude spring snow cover documented 50 years. Many regions of Eurasia exhibit increasing maxi-
by Déry and Brown (2007) consistent with polar amplifi- mum in situ snow depth trends, while North American sites
cation of warming and an enhanced albedo feedback in show decreasing trends. Furthermore, there is new evidence of
spring. The muted spring response in the models could be changes in snowpack structure in some regions of the Arctic
due to a number of reasons, including lack of black carbon such as more frequent ice crust formation resulting from more
darkening (Flanner et al. 2009), inadequate snow-albedo frequent winter thaws and rain-on-snow events.
treatments (Qu and Hall 2006), and wet-cold biases in Climate model projections indicate decreases in the
models over high latitudes (Randall et al. 2007). The duration of snow cover of 10–20% over most of the Arctic by
slower decrease in SCD over eastern Eurasia shown by the 2050, with the smallest decreases over Siberia (\10%) and
climate models is also inconsistent with observed trends the greatest losses over Alaska and northern Scandinavia
and may be linked to difficulties in simulating the climate (30–40%). The earliest and largest decreases in SCD and
interactions of the Tibetan Plateau (Cui et al. 2007). accumulation are projected to occur over coastal regions of
Snow cover changes are also likely to be much more the continents in agreement with observed trends. Slight
complex in mountainous terrain than represented in the increases in maximum snow accumulation of 0–15% are
coarse-resolution GCM results. A sensitivity analysis of projected over much of the Arctic with the largest increases
snow cover changes to increasing temperature and pre- (15–30%) over the Siberian sector. The frequency and areal
cipitation suggested a potentially complex elevation extent of rain-on-snow events are projected to increase over
response of snow cover in mountain regions due to non- all regions of the Arctic over the next 50 years.
linear interactions between the duration of the snow season At present, there is no pan-Arctic dataset of in situ snow
and snow accumulation rates (Brown and Mote 2009). This (e.g., SWE) and climate data for understanding large snow
non-linear response can be expected to contribute to cover changes and their impacts. The current assessment
regional-scale variability in the elevation response of snow has, by necessity, drawn on various types of information
cover to climate change, which will be modified by local from numerous archives that are often not linked or com-
factors such as lapse rate (rate of change with increasing patible. As snow cover characteristics in the Arctic are
altitude), aspect, topography, and vegetation. among the most rapidly changing variables associated with
ongoing climatic change, it is critical to invest time and
resources in intercomparison and blending of the various
CONCLUSIONS types of information from existing and projected snow
datasets within a context of social relevance.
Snow is a dominant feature of the Arctic landscape per-
sisting for 8–10 months of the year. Its depth, extent, Acknowledgments We wish to thank the various national funding
agencies that made this review possible, specifically the Swedish
duration, timing, water equivalent, and stratigraphy have Environmental Protection Agency (grant number 08/210) and the
many consequences for the climate system, hydrology, Swedish Research Council FORMAS (grant number 204-2009-45)
permafrost, ecology, biogeochemical cycling, and socio- who helped to directly support this publication. We also gratefully
economics. As snow characteristics are determined largely acknowledge the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program Secre-
tariat and the SWIPA Integration Team in helping to produce the
by temperature and moistures regimes that are changing in original SWIPA report and the various contributing SWIPA chapter
the Arctic, snow characteristics are also changing with far- authors including all contributing authors for the SWIPA snow
reaching consequences. chapter. Finally, we thank reviewers of the SWIPA snow chapter,
The amount and timing of snow cover are closely linked to particularly Barry Goodison.
temperature and moisture regimes that are changing in the
Arctic. This is driving significant changes in the snow regime
particularly during the spring season when snow cover dis-
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Radionov, V.F., E.I. Aleksandrov, V.R. Bayborodova, N.N. Bryazgin, Walsh, J.E., J.E. Overland, P.Y. Groisman, and B. Rudolf. 2011a.
and A.A. Dement’ev. 2004. Long-term changes of snow cover Chapter 2: Arctic climate: Recent variations. In Snow, Water, Ice
period in the Arctic. Data of Glaciological Studies 97: 136–142 and Permafrost in the Arctic (SWIPA). Oslo: Arctic Monitoring
(in Russian with English summary). and Assessment Programme (AMAP).

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30 AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31

Walsh, J.E., J.E. Overland, P.Y. Groisman, and B. Rudolf. 2011b. Roger G. Barry was Director of the National Snow and Ice Data
Ongoing climate change in the Arctic. In Arctic cryosphere— Center, University of Colorado, Boulder from 1976 to 2008. He is
Changes and impacts, ed. T.V. Callaghan, M. Johansson, and Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Geography and Fellow Emeritus
T.D. Prowse. Ambio 40(S1). doi:10.1007/s13280-011-0211-z. of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences
Warren, S.G., and W.J. Wiscombe. 1980. A model for the spectral at the University of Colorado. He specializes in polar and mountain
albedo of snow. II: Snow containing atmospheric aerosols. climatology, climate change, and cryospheric sciences. He is author
Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences 37: 2734–2745. with T.Y. Gan of ‘‘The Global Cryosphere: Past, present and future’’
Warren, S.G., and W.J. Wiscombe. 1985. Dirty snow after nuclear (2011).
war. Nature 313: 467–470. Address: NSIDC/CIRES, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO
80309-0449, USA.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHIES e-mail: [email protected]
Terry V. Callaghan (&) is a Distinguished Research Professor at the
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and Professor of Arctic Ecology Olga N. Bulygina is Lead Scientist at the Department of Climatology
at the Universities of Sheffield, UK and Lund, Sweden. He specializes at the All-Russian Institute for Hydrometeorological Information,
in arctic ecology, and climate and UV-B radiation impacts on arctic Obninsk, Kaluga Region, The Russian Federation. Her research
ecosystems. interests include climatic data quality control, archiving, synthesis,
Address: Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, 104 05 Stockholm, analysis, and dissemination for the territory of the Commonwealth of
Sweden. Independent States.
e-mail: [email protected] Address: Climatology Department, All-Russian Research Institute of
Hydrometeorological Information—World Data Centre (RIHMI-
Margareta Johansson is a research scientist at the Department of WDC), 6 Koroleva Street, Obninsk, Kaluga Region, The Russian
Earth and Ecosystem Sciences, Lund University and at the Royal Federation 249035.
Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm, Sweden. She specializes e-mail: [email protected]
in permafrost dynamics in relation to climate change and its impact
on ecosystems. Richard L. H. Essery is a Reader in the School of GeoSciences at the
Address: Department of Earth and Ecosystem Sciences, Division of University of Edinburgh with research interests in modeling and
Physical Geography and Ecosystem Analyses, Lund University, observation of land-atmosphere interactions in cold regions.
Sölvegatan 12, 223 62 Lund, Sweden. Address: School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
e-mail: [email protected] UK.
e-mail: [email protected]
Ross D. Brown is a research scientist with the Climate Research
Division of Environment Canada located at the Ouranos Climate D. M. Frolov is a Research Scientist at the Laboratory of Snow
Consortium in Montreal, Canada. His research interests include Avalanches and Mudflows at Geographical Faculty of Moscow State
documenting and understanding snow cover variability and change, University, Moscow, The Russian Federation. His research interests
the representation of snow processes in climate and hydrological include regularities of snow cover formation and the processes in
models, and the validation of snow cover in regional and global cli- snow cover.
mate models. Address: Laboratory of Snow Avalanches and Mudflows, Faculty of
Address: Climate Research Division of Environment Canada, Our- Geography, Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, 1, Moscow,
anos Climate Consortium, c/o Ouranos, 550 Sherbrooke St. West, The Russian Federation 119991.
19th Floor, Montreal, QC H3A 1B9, Canada. e-mail: [email protected]
e-mail: [email protected]
Vladimir N. Golubev is lead Scientist at the Laboratory of Snow
Pavel Ya. Groisman is a Research Scientist with the Global Climate Avalanches and Mudflows at Geographical Faculty of Moscow State
Applications Division of the National Climatic Data Center/NOAA, University, Moscow, The Russian Federation. His research interests
Asheville, North Carolina USA. His research interests include cli- include: ice crystal formation in atmosphere, solid precipitation and
mate, data synthesis and analysis, the diagnosis of climate variations, snowfalls, modeling of vapor transfer and isotopic content of snow
and Arctic climate. cover.
Address: NOAA/NESDIS National Climatic Data Center, Veach- Address: Laboratory of Snow Avalanches and Mudflows, Faculty of
Baley Federal Building, 151 Patton Avenue, Asheville, NC 28801- Geography, Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, 1, Moscow,
5001, USA. The Russian Federation 119991.
e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected]

Niklas Labba is the leader of Gáisi Sámi Centre in Tromsø, Norway. Thomas C. Grenfell is Professor emeritus in the Department of
His research interests include traditional Sámi ecological knowledge Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
and reindeer herding economy. He specialize in the interaction of solar, infrared, and microwave
Address: Gáisi Sámi Centre, Lakselvbukt, 9042 Laksvatn, Norway. radiation with polar snow and ice masses and its implications for
e-mail: [email protected] polar and global climate related problems.
Address: Department of Atmospheric Sciences, MS 351640, Uni-
Vladimir Radionov is the Head of the Department of Meteorology at versity of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1640, USA.
the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, Saint Petersburg. His e-mail: [email protected]
research interests include analysis and generalization of hydromete-
orological and solar radiation data in both polar regions. Marina N. Petrushina is an Associate Professor at the Department of
Address: AARI, 38 Bering Str., Saint Petersburg, The Russian Fed- Physical Geography and Landscapes at Geographical Faculty of
eration 199397. Moscow State University, Moscow, The Russian Federation. Her
e-mail: [email protected] research interests include snow and landscapes.

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AMBIO (2011) 40:17–31 31

Address: Department of Physical Geography and Landscapes, Faculty Andrey B. Shmakin is the head of Laboratory of Climatology at the
of Geography, Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, 1, Moscow, Institute of Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences. His research
The Russian Federation 119991. interests include diagnosis of contemporary changes of climate and
e-mail: [email protected] snow cover characteristics, numerical modeling of the soil-vegeta-
tion-snow-atmosphere heat/water transfer, and applied climatic
Vyacheslav N. Razuvaev is a Head of Climatology Department of research.
the All-Russian Research Institute of Hydrometeorological Informa- Address: Institute of Geography, 29 Staromonetny St., Moscow, The
tion-World Data Centre (RIHMI-WDC). He specializes in investi- Russian Federation 119017.
gation of climate change on the regional scale and creation of baseline e-mail: [email protected]
data sets for climate research.
Address: RIHMI-WDC, 6, Korolev Str., Obninsk, Kaluga Region, Sergey A. Sokratov is senior research scientist in Natural Risks
The Russian Federation 249035. Assessment Laboratory and in the Research Laboratory of Snow
e-mail: [email protected] Avalanches and Debris Flows, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov
Moscow State University. His interests include mass and energy
David A. Robinson is a Professor at the Department of Geography at balance of the snow cover and physical processes in snow. The
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. His research interests applied face of his research is the quantification of the snow-related
include regional to global snow cover kinematics and dynamics, natural hazards.
interactions of snow cover with other climate elements, and the col- Address: Faculty of Geography, Natural Risks Assessment Labora-
lection and archiving of accurate climatic data. tory, Moscow State University, GSP-1, Leninskiye Gory 1, Moscow,
Address: Department of Geography, Rutgers University, 54 Joyce The Russian Federation 119991.
Kilmer Avenue, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA. e-mail: [email protected]
e-mail: [email protected]
Stephen Warren is Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, and of Earth
Peter Romanov is a Research Scientist with the Office of Satellite & Space Sciences, at the University of Washington in Seattle. His
Applications and Research of the National Environmental Satellite research interest is solar and infrared radiative properties of snow, sea
Data and Information Service (NESDIS)/NOAA, Camp Springs, ice, glacier ice, and clouds.
Maryland USA. His research interests include processing and appli- Address: Department of Atmospheric Sciences, and of Earth & Space
cation of satellite observation data for land surface monitoring. Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1640, USA.
Address: NOAA/NESDIS World Weather Building Rm. 711, 5200 e-mail: [email protected]
Auth Rd., Camp Springs, MD 20746, USA.
e-mail: [email protected] Daquing Yang is an Associate Professor at the University of Alaska
Fairbanks. His research interests include cold region hydro-clima-
Drew Shindell is a senior scientist at the NASA Goddard Institute for tology, snow hydrology, climate and climate change, and applications
Space Studies in New York City. His research interests include of remote sensing data/products in the high latitude regions.
radiative forcing and climate response, especially for short-lived Address: Water and Environmental Research Center, University of
gases and aerosols, and interactions between air quality and climate Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA.
change. e-mail: [email protected]
Address: NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, 2880 Broadway,
New York, NY 10025, USA.
e-mail: [email protected]

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