scholarly journals Sustainability of High Arctic Ponds in a Polar Desert Environment

ARCTIC ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Abnizova ◽  
Kathy L. Young
Keyword(s):  
High Arctic ◽  
Desert Environment ◽  
Polar Desert ◽  
Arctic Ponds

Holocene ice wedge formation in the Eureka Sound Lowlands, high Arctic Canada

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Kethra Campbell-Heaton ◽  
Denis Lacelle ◽  
David Fisher ◽  
Wayne Pollard
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Organic Carbon ◽  
Numerical Simulations ◽  
High Arctic ◽  
Desert Environment ◽  
Peat Accumulation ◽  
Polar Desert ◽  
Molar Ratios ◽  
Air Temperatures ◽  
Ice Wedge

Abstract Ice wedges are ubiquitous periglacial features in permafrost terrain. This study investigates the timing of ice wedge formation in the Fosheim Peninsula (Ellesmere and Axel Heiberg Islands). In this region, ice wedge polygons occupy ~50% of the landscape, the majority occurring below the marine limit in the Eureka Sound Lowlands. Numerical simulations suggest that ice wedges may crack to depths of 2.7–3.6 m following a rapid cooling of the ground over mean winter surface temperatures of −18°C to −38°C, corresponding to the depth of ice wedges in the region. The dissolved organic carbon (DOC)/Cl molar ratios suggest that the DOC in the ice wedges is sourced from snowmelt and not from leaching of the active layer. Based on 32 14CDOC measurements from 15 ice wedges, the wedges were likely developing between 9000–2500 cal yr BP. This interval also corresponds to the period of peat accumulation in the region, a proxy of increased moisture. Considering that winter air temperatures remained favorable for ice wedge growth throughout the Holocene, the timing of ice wedge formation reflects changes in snowfall. Overall, this study provides the first reconstruction of ice wedge formation from a high Arctic polar desert environment.

Hillslope hydrological linkages: importance to ponds within a polar desert High Arctic wetland

2008 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 309-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Abnizova ◽  
Kathy L. Young
Keyword(s):  
High Arctic ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Patterned Ground ◽  
Polar Desert ◽  
Hydrologic Processes ◽  
Close Proximity ◽  
Arctic Ponds ◽  
Ecological Importance ◽  
Somerset Island

Arctic wetland environments are considered to be sensitive to ongoing climate change but they have received limited attention despite their ecological importance. To understand and quantify better the hydrologic processes which are leading to the sustainability and demise of High Arctic ponds, a water balance framework was employed on several ponds situated in two broad geomorphic areas near Creswell Bay, Somerset Island (72°43′N, 94°15′W). These ponds are also linked to an upland area through a range of linear features: stream, late-lying snowbeds and frost cracks. This study assesses the importance of these features with respect to the sustainability of these wetland ponds. A pond's position in the moraine landscape was important in determining its connectivity to a nearby stream and late-lying snowbed. Close proximity to a stream draining a large upland snow-covered catchment ensures steady water levels during the snowmelt period. Once discharge slows, a late-lying snowbed continues to supply the pond and others nearby with meltwater. The deeply thawed, sandy coastal zone is characterized by frost cracks, which contribute to the patterned ground of this wetland zone. These cracks, when situated downslope of ponds, function primarily as ‘sinks’ and serve to deprive small and medium-sized ponds of water during dry periods, often leading to their desiccation.

Hydrogeomorphology of patchy wetlands in the high arctic, polar desert environment

Wetlands ◽  
10.1672/8-20 ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming-ko Woo ◽  
Kathy L. Young
Keyword(s):  
High Arctic ◽  
Desert Environment ◽  
Polar Desert

scholarly journals Microbial Community Structure in Lake and Wetland Sediments from a High Arctic Polar Desert Revealed by Targeted Transcriptomics

PLoS ONE ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. e89531 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena K. Stoeva ◽  
Stéphane Aris-Brosou ◽  
John Chételat ◽  
Holger Hintelmann ◽  
Philip Pelletier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Community Structure ◽  
Microbial Community ◽  
Microbial Community Structure ◽  
High Arctic ◽  
Polar Desert

Limnology of high arctic ponds (Cape Herschel, Ellesmere Island, N. W. T.)

1994 ◽  
Vol 131 (4) ◽  
pp. 401-434
Author(s):  
Marianne S. V. Douglas ◽  
John P. Smol
Keyword(s):  
High Arctic ◽  
Ellesmere Island ◽  
Arctic Ponds

Rotifers from five high arctic ponds (Cape Herschel, Ellesmere Island, N.W.T.)

Hydrobiologia ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 173 (3) ◽  
pp. 231-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Nogrady ◽  
John P. Smol
Keyword(s):  
High Arctic ◽  
Ellesmere Island ◽  
Arctic Ponds

scholarly journals Comparing Rock-inhabiting Microbial Communities in Different Rock Types from a High Arctic Polar Desert

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong-Hoe Choe ◽  
Mincheol Kim ◽  
Jusun Woo ◽  
Mi Jung Lee ◽  
Jong Ik Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Communities ◽  
High Arctic ◽  
Polar Desert ◽  
Rock Types

scholarly journals An estimate of ice wedge volume for a High Arctic polar desert environment, Fosheim Peninsula, Ellesmere Island

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 3589-3604 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Bernard-Grand'Maison ◽  
Wayne Pollard
Keyword(s):  
Satellite Imagery ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
High Arctic ◽  
Ellesmere Island ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Ground Ice ◽  
Polar Desert ◽  
Ice Volume ◽  
Carbon Release ◽  
Wedge Volume

Abstract. Quantifying ground-ice volume on a regional scale is necessary to assess the vulnerability of permafrost landscapes to thaw-induced disturbance like terrain subsidence and to quantify potential carbon release. Ice wedges (IWs) are a ubiquitous ground-ice landform in the Arctic. Their high spatial variability makes generalizing their potential role in landscape change problematic. IWs form polygonal networks that are visible on satellite imagery from surface troughs. This study provides a first approximation of IW ice volume for the Fosheim Peninsula, Ellesmere Island, a continuous permafrost area characterized by polar desert conditions and extensive ground ice. We perform basic GIS analyses on high-resolution satellite imagery to delineate IW troughs and estimate the associated IW ice volume using a 3-D subsurface model. We demonstrate the potential of two semi-automated IW trough delineation methods, one newly developed and one marginally used in previous studies, to increase the time efficiency of this process compared to manual delineation. Our methods yield acceptable IW ice volume estimates, validating the value of GIS to estimate IW volume on much larger scales. We estimate that IWs are potentially present on 50 % of the Fosheim Peninsula (∼3000 km2), where 3.81 % of the top 5.9 m of permafrost could be IW ice.

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