scholarly journals Height dependence of the tendency for reduction in seasonal snow cover in the Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau region, 1966–2001

2006 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
pp. 369-377 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kunio Rikiishi ◽  
Haruka Nakasato
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Plateau Region ◽  
Seasonal Snow ◽  
Snow Covered Area ◽  
Covered Area ◽  
Height Dependence ◽  
Seasonal Snow Cover ◽  
The Himalaya

AbstractThe dataset of Northern Hemisphere EASE-Grid Weekly Snow Cover and Sea Ice Extent for the period October 1966-July 2001 is analyzed to examine the height dependence of declining tendencies of seasonal snow cover in the Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau region (25−45˚ N, 70−110˚E). It is found that the annual mean snow-covered area is decreasing in the Himalaya/Tibet region at a rate of ∼ 1 % a−1, implying that the mean snow-covered area has decreased by one-third from 1966 to 2001. The rate of decrease is largest (1.6%) at the lowest elevations (0−500 m). On the other hand, the length of the snow-cover season is declining at all elevations, with the greatest rate of decline in the 4000−6000 m height range. On the Tibetan Plateau (∼4000−6000 m a.s.l.), the length of the snow-cover season has decreased by 23 days, and the end date for snow cover has advanced by 41 days over this 35 year period. These rates might be somewhat overestimated by the binary definition of snow cover on satellite images. It is likely that the reduction of the snow surface albedo by deposition of Asian dust and anthropogenic aerosols may be at least partly responsible for earlier snowmelt.

scholarly journals Estimated seasonal snow cover and snowfall in Japan

1993 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 179-184
Author(s):  
Tsutomu Nakamura ◽  
Osamu Abe
Keyword(s):  
Snow Cover ◽  
Snow Depth ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Heavy Snowfall ◽  
Seasonal Snow ◽  
Snow Covered Area ◽  
Covered Area ◽  
Prone Area ◽  
Snow Water ◽  
Seasonal Snow Cover

The average amounts of seasonal snow cover and snowfall in Japan were calculated as 7.9 × 1013kg and 1.2 × 1014kg, respectively. The mass of seasonal snow cover of a heavy-snowfall winter, 1980–81 (56-Gosetsu), was calculated as 1.3 × 1014kg. The amount of 7.9 × 1013kg was converted to water equivalent of 230 mm on the whole snow-covered area, including snow-prone area. A mean of 370 mm in snow water equivalent was calculated for the snow area where mean snow depth on the ground was more than 10 cm.

scholarly journals Estimated seasonal snow cover and snowfall in Japan

1993 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 179-184
Author(s):  
Tsutomu Nakamura ◽  
Osamu Abe
Keyword(s):  
Snow Cover ◽  
Snow Depth ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Heavy Snowfall ◽  
Seasonal Snow ◽  
Snow Covered Area ◽  
Covered Area ◽  
Prone Area ◽  
Snow Water ◽  
Seasonal Snow Cover

The average amounts of seasonal snow cover and snowfall in Japan were calculated as 7.9 × 1013kg and 1.2 × 1014kg, respectively. The mass of seasonal snow cover of a heavy-snowfall winter, 1980–81 (56-Gosetsu), was calculated as 1.3 × 1014kg. The amount of 7.9 × 1013kg was converted to water equivalent of 230 mm on the whole snow-covered area, including snow-prone area. A mean of 370 mm in snow water equivalent was calculated for the snow area where mean snow depth on the ground was more than 10 cm.

scholarly journals Snow-Covered Area Retrieval from Himawari–8 AHI Imagery of the Tibetan Plateau

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (20) ◽  
pp. 2391
Author(s):  
Gongxue Wang ◽  
Lingmei Jiang ◽  
Jiancheng Shi ◽  
Xiaojing Liu ◽  
Jianwei Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Temporal Resolution ◽  
Estimation Method ◽  
High Temporal Resolution ◽  
Landsat 8 ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Snow Covered Area ◽  
Covered Area ◽  
Fractional Snow Cover

Daily snow-covered area retrieval using the imagery in solar reflective bands often encounters extensive data gaps caused by cloud obscuration. With the inception of geostationary satellites carrying advanced multispectral imagers of high temporal resolution, such as Japan’s geostationary weather satellite Himawari–8, considerable progress can now be made towards spatially-complete estimation of daily snow-covered area. We developed a dynamic snow index (normalized difference snow index for vegetation-free background and normalized difference forest–snow index for vegetation background) fractional snow cover estimation method using Himawari–8 Advanced Himawari Imager (AHI) observations of the Tibetan Plateau. This method estimates fractional snow cover with the pixel-by-pixel linear relationship of snow index observations acquired under snow-free and snow-covered conditions. To achieve reliable snow-covered area mapping with minimal cloud contamination, the daily fractional snow cover can be represented as the composite of the high temporal resolution fractional snow cover estimates during daytime. The comparison against reference fractional snow cover data from Landsat–8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) showed that the root–mean–square error (RMSE) of the Himawari–8 AHI fractional snow cover ranged from 0.07 to 0.16, and that the coefficient of determination (R2) reached 0.81–0.96. Results from the 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 winters indicated that the daily composite of Himawari–8 observations obtained a 14% cloud percentage over the Tibetan Plateau, which was less than the cloud percentage (27%) from the combination of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) onboard Terra and Aqua.

scholarly journals Changes in seasonal snow cover in Hindu Kush-Himalayan region

2011 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 755-777 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. R. Gurung ◽  
A. V. Kulkarni ◽  
A. Giriraj ◽  
K. S. Aung ◽  
B. Shrestha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Snow Cover ◽  
Linear Trend ◽  
Geographical Area ◽  
Western Himalaya ◽  
Seasonal Snow ◽  
Snow Covered Area ◽  
Covered Area ◽  
Depletion Curve ◽  
Hindu Kush ◽  
Seasonal Snow Cover

Abstract. The changes in seasonal snow covered area in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan (HKH) region have been examined using Moderate – resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 8-day standard snow products. The average snow covered area of the HKH region based on satellite data from 2000 to 2010 is 0.76 million km2 which is 18.23% of the total geographical area of the region. The linear trend in annual snow cover from 2000 to 2010 is −1.25±1.13%. This is in consistent with earlier reported decline of the decade from 1990 to 2001. A similar trend for western, central and eastern HKH region is 8.55±1.70%, +1.66% ± 2.26% and 0.82±2.50%, respectively. The snow covered area in spring for HKH region indicates a declining trend (−1.04±0.97%). The amount of annual snowfall is correlated with annual seasonal snow cover for the western Himalaya, indicating that changes in snow cover are primarily due to interannual variations in circulation patterns. Snow cover trends over a decade were also found to vary across seasonally and the region. Snow cover trends for western HKH are positive for all seasons. In central HKH the trend is positive (+15.53±5.69%) in autumn and negative (−03.68&plusmn3.01) in winter. In eastern HKH the trend is positive in summer (+3.35±1.62%) and autumn (+7.74±5.84%). The eastern and western region of HKH has an increasing trend of 10% to 12%, while the central region has a declining trend of 12% to 14% in the decade between 2000 and 2010. Snow cover depletion curve plotted for the hydrological year 2000–2001 reveal peaks in the month of February with subsidiary peaks observed in November and December in all three regions of the HKH.

scholarly journals Adaptation to climate change in Kazakhstan using data from space monitoring of snowmelt

2020 ◽  
Vol 223 ◽  
pp. 03006
Author(s):  
Aknur Zholdasbek ◽  
Azamat Kauazov
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Temporal Distribution ◽  
Snow Melting ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Snow Covered Area ◽  
Covered Area ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Seasonal Snow Cover

The present article is concerned with the applied aspects of applying the results of space monitoring of snow cover, in particular, it is proposed to present the results of the analysis in the form of specialized bulletins. The purpose of this publication is to present the available results of space monitoring of snow cover in Kazakhstan as an element of adaptation to climate change. A three-level system of space monitoring of snow cover is proposed, which includes three technological complexes: operational mapping of snow cover boundaries; monitoring of seasonal snow cover dynamics; analysis of long-term snow cover dynamics. A map of snow melting in Kazakhstan in 2020, the dynamics of long-term changes of snow covered area, as well as methods for analyzing the spatial- temporal distribution of snow cover and formats of special bulletins are presented. It is most appropriate to present the results of space monitoring of snow cover in a complex, maximally generalized form (product). The results of the work can be applied in the scientific, industrial and educational spheres to adapt and increase resistance.

Determination of snow cover from MODIS data for the Tibetan Plateau region

2013 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
pp. 356-365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo-Hui Tang ◽  
Basanta Shrestha ◽  
Zhao-Liang Li ◽  
Gaohuan Liu ◽  
Hua Ouyang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Plateau Region ◽  
Modis Data

A Toolkit for Snow-Cover Area Calculation and Display Based on the Interactive Multisensor Snow and Ice Mapping System and an Example for the Tibetan Plateau Region

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (01) ◽  
pp. 1850003
Author(s):  
Tyler C. Tucker ◽  
Samuel S. P. Shen
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Plateau Region ◽  
Snow Cover Area ◽  
Ice Coverage ◽  
Mapping System ◽  
Snow And Ice

This research develops a toolkit for snow-cover area calculation and display (SACD) based on the Interactive Multisensor Snow and Ice Mapping System (IMS). The paper uses the Tibetan Plateau region as an example to describe the toolkit’s method, results, and usage. The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) provides to the public IMS a well-used system for monitoring the snow and ice cover. The newly developed toolkit is based on a simple shoe-lace formula for a grid box area on a sphere and can be conveniently used to calculate the total area of snow cover given the IMS data. The toolkit has been made available as an open source Python software on GitHub. The toolkit generates the time series of the daily snow-covered area for any region over the Northern Hemisphere from 4 February 1997. The toolkit also creates maps showing snow and ice coverage with an elevation background. The Tibetan Plateau (TP) region [Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text]N)[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text]E) is used as an example to demonstrate our work on SACD. The IMS products at 24, 4, and 1[Formula: see text]km resolutions include each grid’s latitude and longitude coordinates that are used to calculate the grid box’s area using the shoe-lace formula. The total TP area calculated by the sum of the areas of all the grid boxes approximates the true spherical TP surface area bounded by [Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text]N) [Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text]E) with a difference 0.046% for the 24[Formula: see text]km grid and 0.033% for the 4[Formula: see text]km grid. The differences in the snow-cover area reported by the 24[Formula: see text]km and 4[Formula: see text]km grids vary between [Formula: see text]% and 6.24%. The temporal variations of the daily TP snow cover are displayed in time series from 4 February 1997 to present with 4[Formula: see text]km and 24[Formula: see text]km resolutions.

scholarly journals Spatio-temporal dynamics of snow cover based on multi-source remote sensing data in China

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaodong Huang ◽  
Jie Deng ◽  
Xiaofang Ma ◽  
Yunlong Wang ◽  
Qisheng Feng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Snow Depth ◽  
Temporal Dynamics ◽  
Microwave Remote Sensing ◽  
Annual Number ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Annual Average ◽  
Snow Covered Area ◽  
Covered Area

Abstract. Through combining optical remote sensing snow cover products with passive microwave remote-sensing snow depth data, we produced a MODIS cloudless binary snow cover product and a 500-m spatial resolution snow depth product for December 2000 to November 2014. We used the synthesized products to analyze the temporal and spatial variation of the snow cover in China. The results indicated that in the past 14 years, the overall annual number of snow-covered days and average snow depth in China increased. The annual average snow-covered area did not change significantly, and the number of snow-covered days in summer in China decreased. The number of snow-covered days in the winter, spring, and fall seasons all increased. The average snow-covered area in the summer and winter seasons decreased, whereas the average snow-covered area in the spring and fall seasons increased. The average snow depth in the winter, summer, and fall seasons decreased. Only the average snow depth in spring increased. The spatial distribution of the increase and decrease in the annual average snow depth was highly consistent with that of the annual number of snow-covered days. The spatial distributions of the variation of the number of snow-covered days and the average snow depth of each season were also highly consistent. The regional differences in the snow cover variation in China were significant. The snow cover increased significantly in South and Northeast China, decreased significantly in Xinjiang, increased in the southwest edge and southeast of the Tibetan Plateau, and mainly decreased in the north and northwest regions of the plateau.

scholarly journals Impact of Snow-Darkening by Deposition of Light-Absorbing Aerosols on Snow Cover in the Himalaya-Tibetan-Plateau and Influence on the Asian Monsoon: A Possible Mechanism for the Blanford Hypothesis 

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
William K. Lau ◽  
Kyu-Myong Kim
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Asian Monsoon ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Surface Solar Radiation ◽  
Gangetic Plain ◽  
Northern India ◽  
Absorbing Aerosols ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Himalaya

The impact of snow darkening by deposition of light absorbing aerosols (LAAs) on snow cover over the Himalaya-Tibetan-Plateau (HTP) and influence on the Asian monsoon are investigated using the NASA Goddard Earth Observing System Model Version 5 (GEOS-5). We find that during April-May-June, deposition of LAAs on snow leads to a reduction in surface albedo, initiating a sequence of feedback processes, starting with increased surface solar radiation, rapid snowmelt in HTP and warming of the surface and upper troposphere, followed by enhanced low-level southwesterlies and increased dust loading over the Himalayas-Indo-Gangetic Plain. The warming is amplified by increased dust aerosol heating, and subsequently amplified by latent heating from enhanced precipitation over the Himalaya foothills and northern India, via the Elevated Heat Pump (EHP) effect during June-July-August. The reduced snow cover in the HTP anchors the enhanced heating over the Tibetan Plateau and its southern slopes, in conjunction with an enhancement of the Tibetan Anticyclone, and the development of an anomalous Rossby wavetrain over East Asia, leading to weakening of the subtropical westerly jet, and northward displacement and intensification of the Mei-Yu rainbelt. Our results suggest that atmosphere-land heating by LAAs, particularly desert dust play a fundamental role in physical processes underpinning the snow-monsoon relationship proposed by Blandford more than a century ago.

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