Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Perspective
  • Published:

Snow in the changing sea-ice systems

Nature Climate Change volume 8, pages 946–953 (2018)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Snow is the most reflective, and also the most insulative, natural material on Earth. Consequently, it is an integral part of the sea-ice and climate systems. However, the spatial and temporal heterogeneities of snow pose challenges for observing, understanding and modelling those systems under anthropogenic warming. Here, we survey the snow–ice system, then provide recommendations for overcoming present challenges. These include: collecting process-oriented observations for model diagnostics and understanding snow–ice feedbacks, and improving our remote sensing capabilities of snow for monitoring large-scale changes in snow on sea ice. These efforts could be achieved through stronger coordination between the observational, remote sensing and modelling communities, and would pay dividends through distinct improvements in predictions of polar environments.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: A schematic of the complex set of processes that takes place between snow and sea ice.

Matthew Sturm

Fig. 2: Arctic snow depth distributions.
Fig. 3: Antarctic snow depth distributions.

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

The N-ICE2015 snow data101 are available via the Norwegian Polar Institute at https://go.nature.com/2OBliCi. The climatological snow data are available at https://doi.org/10.7265/N5MS3QNJ. The ice mass balance buoy data102 are available at: http://imb-crrel-dartmouth.org. The ERA-Interim data103 used for Fig. 2 are available at https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.828. The in situ data shown in Fig. 3a were provided by the SCAR Antarctic Sea Ice Processes and Climate (ASPeCt) programme (http://aspect.antarctica.gov.au). The Operation IceBridge snow radar data104 are available at https://doi.org/10.5067/FAZTWP500V70.

References

  1. Warren, S. G. Optical properties of snow. Rev. Geophys. 20, 67–89 (1982).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Perovich, D. K., Grenfell, T. C., Light, B. & Hobbs., P. V. Seasonal evolution of the albedo of multiyear Arctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. 107(C10), 8044 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Derksen, C. & Brown, R. Spring snow cover extent reductions in the 2008–2012 period exceeding climate model projections. Geophys. Res. Lett. 39, L19504 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. IPCC Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report (eds Core Writing Team, Pachauri, R. K. & Meyer, L. A.) (IPCC, 2014).

  5. Mudryk, L. R., Kushner, P. J., Derksen, C. & Thackeray, C. Snow cover response to temperature in observational and climate model ensembles. Geophys. Res. Lett. 44, 919–926 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Ledley, T. S. Snow on sea ice: competing effects in shaping climate. J. Geophys. Res. 96, 17195–17208 (1991).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Sturm, M. & Massom, R. A. in Sea Ice 3rd edn (ed. Thomas, D. N.) 65–109 (Wiley and Blackwell, Oxford, 2017).The most recent review of snow on Arctic and Antarctic sea ice.

  8. Maykut, G. A. & Untersteiner, N. Some results from a time-dependent thermodynamic model of sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. 76, 1550–1575 (1971).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Sturm, M., Perovich, D. K. & Holmgren, J. Thermal conductivity and heat transfer through the snow on the ice of the Beaufort Sea. J. Geophys. Res. 107(C21), 8043 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Sturm, M., Holmgren, J. & Perovich, D. K. Winter snow cover on the sea ice of the Arctic Ocean at the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA): temporal evolution and spatial variability. J. Geophys. Res. 107(C10), 8047 (2002). An observational analysis on the evolution and spatial distribution of snow on Arctic sea ice over the seasonal cycle, which concludes with recommendations for representing snow cover variations in models.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Filhol, S. & Sturm, M. Snow bedforms: a review, new data and a formation model. J. Geophys. Res. 120, 1645–1669 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Trujillo, E., Leonard, K., Maksym, T. & Lehning, M. Changes in snow distribution and surface topography following a snowstorm on Antarctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. Earth Surf. 121, 2172–2191 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Leonard, K. & Maksym, T. The importance of wind-blown snow redistribution to accumulation on and mass balance of Bellingshausen Sea ice. Ann. Glaciol. 52, 271–278 (2011).This analysis uses Antarctic field observations to quantify snow accumulation on level ice and inform a modelling investigation, which showed that about half of precipitation over sea ice could be lost to leads.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Déry, S. J. & Tremblay, L. ‐B. Modeling the effects of wind redistribution on the snow mass budget of polar sea ice. J. Phys. Oceanogr. 34, 258–271 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Eicken, H., Lange, M. A., Hubberten, H.-W. & Wadhams, P. Characteristics and distribution patterns of snow and meteoric ice in the Weddell Sea and their contribution to the mass balance of sea ice. Ann. Geophys. 12, 80–93 (1994).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Massom, R. A., Drinkwater, M. R. & Haas, C. Winter snow cover on sea ice in the Weddell Sea. J. Geophys. Res. 102, 1101–1117 (1997).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Sturm, M., Morris, K. & Massom, R. in Antarctic Sea Ice: Physical Processes, Interactions and Variability Vol. 74 (ed. Jeffries, M. O.) 1–18 (AGU, Washington DC, 1998).

  18. O’Brien, H. W. & Munis, R. H. Red and Near-Infrared Spectral Reflectance of Snow Report No. 332 (Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, 1975).

  19. Colbeck, S. C. The layered character of snow covers. Rev. Geophys. 291, 81–96 (1991).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Warren, S. et al. Snow depth on Arctic sea ice. J. Clim. 12, 1814–1829 (1999).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Gerland, S. & Haas, C. Snow‐depth observations by adventurers traveling on Arctic sea ice. Ann. Glaciol. 52, 369–376 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Webster, M. A. et al. Interdecadal changes in snow depth on Arctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 119, 5395–5406 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Haas, C. et al. Ice and snow depth variability and change in the high Arctic Ocean observed by in situ measurements. Geophys. Res. Lett. 44, 10462–10469 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Simmonds, I., Burke, C. & Keay, K. Arctic climate change as manifest in cyclone behavior. J. Clim. 21, 5777–5796 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Lique, C., Holland, M. M., Dibike, Y. B., Lawrence, D. M. & Screen, J. A. Modeling the Arctic freshwater system and its integration in the global system: lessons learned and future challenges. J. Geophys. Res. Biogeosci. 121, 540–566 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Boisvert, L. et al. Intercomparison of precipitation estimates over the Arctic Ocean and its peripheral seasfrom reanalyses. J. Clim. 31, 8441–8462 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Gallet, J. C. et al. Spring snow conditions on Arctic sea ice north of Svalbard during the Norwegian young sea ICE (N-ICE2015) expedition. J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 122, 10820–10836 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Granskog, M. A. et al. Snow contribution to first-year and second-year Arctic sea ice mass balance north of Svalbard. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 122, 2539–2549 (2017). Isotope data from sea-ice cores is used to quantify the contribution of snow-ice formation to sea ice north of Svalbard.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Merkouriadi, I., Cheng, B., Graham, R. M., Rösel, A. & Granskog, M. A. Critical role of snow on sea ice growth in the Atlantic sector of the Arctic Ocean. Geophys. Res. Lett. 44, 10479–10485 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Provost, C. et al. Observations of flooding and snow-ice formation in a thinner Arctic sea-ice regime during the N-ICE2015 campaign: influence of basal ice melt and storms. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 122, 7115–7134 (2017). An investigation on the observed flooding and snow-ice formation north of Svalbard due to storm-induced breakup of ice floes and loss of buoyancy due to basal ice melt.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Rösel, A. et al. Thin sea ice, thick snow and widespread negative freeboard observed during N-ICE2015 north of Svalbard. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 123, 1156–1176 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Hezel, P. J., Zhang, X., Bitz, C. M., Kelly, B. P. & Massonnet, F. Projected decline in spring snow depth on Arctic sea ice caused by progressively later autumn open ocean freeze-up this century. Geophys. Res. Lett. 39, L17505 (2012). The first analysis of snow depth on Arctic sea ice from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5, which showed a decline in snow depth and attributed the decline to the loss of sea-ice area in autumn and winter.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Blanchard-Wrigglesworth, E., Webster, M. A., Farrell, S. L. & Bitz, C. M. Reconstruction of snow on Arctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 123, 3588–3602 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Perovich, D. K. et al. Increasing solar heating of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas, 1979–2005: attribution and role in the ice-albedo feedback. Geophys. Res. Lett. 34, L19505 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Holland, M. M. & Landrum, L. Factors affecting projected Arctic surface shortwave heating and albedo change in coupled climate models. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. A 373, 20140162 (2015).A large ensemble from an Earth system model is used to quantify the simulated changes associated with changing solar radiation and ice conditions in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Markus, T., Stroeve, J. C. & Miller, J. Recent changes in Arctic sea ice melt onset, freezeup, and melt season length. J. Geophys. Res. 114, C12024 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Bliss, A. C. & Anderson, M. R. Arctic sea ice melt onset timing from passive microwave- and surface air temperature-based methods. J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 123, 9063–9080 (2018).

    Google Scholar 

  38. Eicken, H., Grenfell, T. C., Perovich, D. K., Richter-Menge, J. A. & Frey, K. Hydraulic controls of summer Arctic pack ice albedo. J. Geophys. Res. 109, C08007 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Polashenski, C. et al. Percolation blockage: a process that enables melt pond formation on first year Arctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 122, 413–440 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Petrich, C. et al. Snow dunes: a controlling factor of melt pond distribution on Arctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. 117, C09029 (2012).

    Google Scholar 

  41. Polashenski, C., Perovich, D. K. & Courville, Z. The mechanisms of sea ice melt pond formation and evolution. J. Geophys. Res. 117, C01001 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Nghiem, S. V. et al. Rapid reduction of Arctic perennial sea ice. Geophys. Res. Lett. 34, L19504 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Maslanik, J., Stroeve, J., Fowler, C. & Emery, W. Distribution and trends in Arctic sea ice age through spring 2011. Geophys. Res. Lett. 38, L13502 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Nicolaus, M., Katlein, C., Maslanik, J. & Hendricks, S. Changes in Arctic sea ice result in increasing light transmittance and absorption. Geophys. Res. Lett. 39, L24501 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Light, B., Perovich, D. K., Webster, M., Polashenski, C. & Dadic, R. Optical properties of melting first-year Arctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 120, 7657–7675 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Massom, R. A. et al. Snow on Antarctic sea ice. Rev. Geophys. 39, 413–445 (2001).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. Maksym, T., Stammerjohn, S. E., Ackley, S. & Massom, R. Antarctic sea ice – a polar opposite? Oceanography 25(3), 140–151 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. Kwok, R., Pang, S. S. & Kacimi, S. Sea ice drift in the Southern Ocean: regional patterns, variability, and trends. Elem. Sci. Anthrop. 5, 32 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  49. Worby, A. P., Massom, R. A., Allison, I., Lytle, V. I. & Heil, P. in Antarctic Sea Ice: Physical Processes, Interactions and Variability Vol. 74 (ed. Jeffries, M. O.) 41–67 (AGU, Washington DC, 1998).

  50. Simmonds, I. & Keay, K. Mean Southern Hemisphere extratropical cyclone behavior in the 40-year NCEP–NCAR reanalysis. J. Clim. 13, 873–885 (2000).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  51. Worby, A. P. et al. Thickness distribution of Antarctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. 11, C05S92 (2008).

    Google Scholar 

  52. Kurtz, N. T. & Markus, T. Satellite observations of Antarctic sea ice thickness and volume. J. Geophys. Res. 117, C08025 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  53. Lindsay, R. & Schweiger, A. Arctic sea ice thickness loss determined using subsurface, aircraft, and satellite observations. Cryosphere 9, 269–283 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  54. Weeks, W. On Sea Ice (Univ. Alaska Press, Fairbanks, 2010).

    Google Scholar 

  55. Arndt, S. et al. Influence of snow depth and surface flooding on light transmission through Antarctic pack ice. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 122, 2108–2119 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  56. Iacozza, J. & Barber, D. G. An examination of the distribution of snow on sea-ice. Atmos. Ocean 37, 21–51 (1999).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  57. Jeffries, M. O., Krouse, H. R., Hurst-Cushing, B. & Maksym, T. Snow-ice accretion and snow-cover depletion on Antarctic first-year sea-ice floes. Ann. Glaciol. 33, 51–60 (2001).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  58. Toyota, T. et al. On the extraordinary snow on the sea ice off East Antarctica in late winter, 2012. Deep Sea Res. Pt II 131, 53–67 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  59. Lecomte, O., Fichefet, T., Flocco, D., Schroeder, D. & Vancoppenolle, M. Interactions between wind-blown snow redistribution and melt ponds in a coupled ocean–sea ice model. Ocean Model. 87, 67–80 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  60. Arndt, S., Willmes, S., Dierking, W. & Nicolaus, M. Timing and regional patterns of snowmelt on Antarctic sea ice from passive microwave satellite observations. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 121, 5916–5930 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  61. Massom, R. A., Lytle, V. I., Worby, A. P. & Allison, I. Winter snow cover variability on East Antarctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. 103, 24837–24855 (1998).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  62. Maksym, T. & Markus, T. Antarctic sea ice thickness and snow-to-ice conversion from atmospheric reanalysis and passive microwave snow depth. J. Geophys. Res. 113, C02S12 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  63. Haas, C., Thomas, D. N. & Bareiss, J. Surface properties and processes of perennial Antarctic sea ice in summer. J. Glaciol. 47, 613–625 (2001).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  64. Toyota, T., Massom, R., Tateyama, K., Tamura, T. & Fraser, A. Properties of snow overlying the sea ice off East Antarctica in late winter, 2007. Deep Sea Res. Pt II 58, 1137–1148 (2011).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  65. Lubin, D. & Massom, R. A. Polar Remote Sensing Volume 1: Atmosphere and Ocean (Springer, Chichester, 2006).

  66. Stroeve, J. C. et al. Impact of surface roughness on AMSR-E sea ice products. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 44, 3103–3117 (2006).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  67. Worby, A. P., Markus, T., Steer, A. D., Lytle, V. I. & Massom, R. A. Evaluation of AMSR-E snow depth product over East Antarctic sea ice using in situ measurements and aerial photography. J. Geophys. Res. 113, C05S94 (2008).

    Google Scholar 

  68. Flato, G. et al. in Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis (eds Stocker, T. F. et al.) Ch. 9 (IPCC, Cambridge Univ. Press, 2013).

  69. Hunke, E., Lipscomb, W. & Turner, A. Sea-ice models for climate study: retrospective and new directions. J. Glaciol. 56, 1162–1172 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  70. Sturm, M., Holmgren, J., Koenig, M. & Morris, K. The thermal conductivity of seasonal snow. J. Glaciol. 43, 26–41 (1997).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  71. Blazey, B. A., Holland, M. M. & Hunke, E. C. Arctic Ocean sea ice snow depth evaluation and bias sensitivity in CCSM. Cryosphere 7, 1887–1900 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  72. Lecomte, O. et al. On the formulation of snow thermal conductivity in large-scale sea ice models. J. Adv. Model. Earth Syst. 5, 542–557 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  73. Castro-Morales, K. et al. Sensitivity of simulated Arctic sea ice to realistic ice thickness distributions and snow parameterizations. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 119, 559–571 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  74. Yang, D. et al. Accuracy of Tretyakov precipitation gauge: result of WMO intercomparison. Hydrol. Proc. 9, 877–895 (1995).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  75. Dai, A. Precipitation characteristics in eighteen coupled climate models. J. Clim. 19, 4605–4630 (2006).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  76. Ricker, R., Hendricks, S., Perovich, D. K., Helm, V. & Gerdes, R. Impact of snow accumulation on CryoSat-2 range retrievals over Arctic sea ice: an observational approach with buoy data. Geophys. Res. Lett. 42, 4447–4455 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  77. Nandan, V. et al. Effect of snow salinity on CryoSat-2 Arctic first-year sea ice freeboard measurements. Geophys. Res. Lett. 44, 10419–10426 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  78. Goosse, H. et al. Quantifying climate feedbacks in polar regions. Nat. Commun. 9, 1919 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  79. Massonnet, F. et al. Arctic sea-ice change tied to its mean state through thermodynamic processes. Nat. Clim. Change 8, 599–603 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  80. Liston, G. E. Representing sub-grid snow cover heterogeneities in regional and global models. J. Clim. 17, 1381–1397 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  81. Jordan, R., Albert, M. & Brun, E. in Snow and Climate: Physical Processes, Surface Energy Exchange and Modeling (eds Armstrong, R. L. & Brun, E.) 12–69 (Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, 2008).

  82. Liston, G. E. et al. Distributed snow evolution model for sea ice applications (SnowModel). J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 7, 1259–1276 (2018).

  83. Giles, K. A. et al. Combined airborne laser and radar altimeter measurements over the Fram Strait in May 2002. Remote Sens. Environ. 111, 182–194 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  84. Koenig, L., Martin, S., Studinger, M. & Sonntag, J. Polar airborne observations fill gap in satellite data. Eos 91, 333–334 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  85. Kwok, R. et al. Airborne surveys of snow depth over Arctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. 116, C11018 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  86. Kwok, R. & Maksym, T. Snow depth of the Weddell and Bellingshausen sea ice covers from IceBridge surveys in 2010 and 2011: an examination. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 119, 41414167 (2014).

    Google Scholar 

  87. Kurtz, N. & Farrell, S. Large-scale surveys of snow depth on Arctic sea ice from Operation IceBridge. Geophys. Res. Lett. 38, L20505 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  88. Markus, T. & Cavalieri, D. J. in Antarctic Sea Ice: Physical Processes, Interactions and Variability Vol. 74 (ed. Jeffries, M. O.) 19–39 (AGU, Washington DC, 1998).

  89. Comiso, J. C., Cavalieri, D. J. & Markus, T. Sea ice concentration, ice temperature, and snow depth using AMSR-E data. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 41, 243–252 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  90. Brucker, L. & Markus, T. Arctic-scale assessment of satellite passive microwave-derived snow depth on sea ice using Operation IceBridge airborne data. J. Geophys. Res. Oceans 118, 2892–2905 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  91. Willmes, S., Nicolaus, M. & Haas, C. The microwave emissivity variability of snow covered first-year sea ice from late winter to early summer: a model study. Cryosphere 8, 891–904 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  92. Guerreiro, K., Fleury, S., Zakharova, E., Remy, F. & Kourev, A. Potential for estimation of snow depth on Arctic sea ice from CryoSat-2 and SARAL/AltiKa missions. Remote Sens. Environ. 186, 339–349 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  93. Kwok, R. & Markus, T. Potential basin-scale estimates of Arctic snow depth with sea ice freeboards from CryoSat-2 and ICESat-2: an exploratory analysis. Adv. Space Res. 62, 1243–1250 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  94. Holland, M. & Perovich, D. Sea ice summer camp: bringing together sea ice modelers and observers to advance polar science. Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc. 98, 2057–2059 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  95. Richter-Menge, J. A. et al. Ice mass balance buoys: a tool for measuring and attributing changes in the thickness of the Arctic sea ice cover. Ann. Glaciol. 44, 205–210 (2006).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  96. Jackson, K. et al. A novel and low-cost sea ice mass balance buoy. J. Atmos. Ocean Technol. 30, 2676–2688 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  97. Kwok, R. & Cunningham, G. F. ICESat over Arctic sea ice: estimation of snow depth and ice thickness. J. Geophys. Res. 113, C08010 (2008).

    Google Scholar 

  98. Maksym, T. & Jeffries, M. O. A one-dimensional percolation model of flooding and snow ice formation on Antarctic sea ice. J. Geophys. Res. 105, 26313–26332 (2000).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  99. Wang, C., Cheng, B., Wang, K., Gerland, S. & Pavlova, O. Modelling snow ice and superimposed ice on landfast sea ice in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard. Polar Res. 34, 20828 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  100. Kwok, R. et al. Intercomparison of snow depth retrievals over Arctic sea ice from radar data acquired by Operation IceBridge. Cryosphere 11, 2571–2593 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  101. N-ICE2015 Datasets (Norwegian Polar Institute, 2016).

  102. Perovich, D. et al. Observing and Understanding Climate Change: Monitoring the Mass Balance, Motion, and Thickness of Arctic Sea Ice (CRREL and Univ. Dartmouth, 2017).

  103. Dee, D. P. et al. The ERA-Interim reanalysis: configuration and performance of the data assimilation system. Q. J. R. Meteorol. Soc. 137, 553–597 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  104. Leuschen, C. IceBridge Snow Radar L1B Geolocated Radar Echo Strength Profiles version 2 (NASA NSIDC Distributed Active Archive Center, 2014).

Download references

Acknowledgements

M.S. was funded by the NASA Terrestrial Hydrology Program. R.M. was supported by the Australian Antarctic Division and the Australian Government’s Cooperative Research Centres Programme through the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre. M.H. was supported by the National Science Foundation. D.P. and M.W. were funded by the NASA Cryospheric Sciences Program. O.L. was supported by the Belgian Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique and the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 projects APPLICATE (GA 727862) and PRIMAVERA (GA 641727). S.G. was supported by the project ID Arctic, funded by the Norwegian Ministries for Foreign Affairs and Climate and Environment (programme Arktis 2030). E.C.H. was supported by the Earth system modelling programme of the Department of Energy’s Biological and Environmental Research Program. R.K. was supported by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology under contract with NASA. We thank the following investigators for the 2000–2017 spring snow depth data shown in Fig. 2a: C. Polashenski, N. Wright, G. Liston and C. Planck from the project Snow, Wind, and Time: Understanding Snow Redistribution and its Effects on Sea Ice Mass Balance (NSF Award Number: 1603361); B. Notenboom on behalf of the 2-Degree North Pole Expedition; the Norwegian Polar Institute’s long-term Arctic sea ice monitoring programme and the Norwegian Young Sea Ice Cruise (N-ICE2015); B. Ousland (and T. Ulrich in 2007) from Arctic traverses in 2001 and 2007, and A. Hubert and D. Dansercoer from the ESA-sponsored Arctic Arc expedition in 2007.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA

    Melinda Webster

  2. Norwegian Polar Institute, Tromsø, Norway

    Sebastian Gerland

  3. National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, USA

    Marika Holland

  4. Fluid Dynamics and Solid Mechanics Group T-3, Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, USA

    Elizabeth Hunke

  5. Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, USA

    Ron Kwok

  6. Georges Lemaitre Centre for Earth and Climate Research, Earth and Life Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium

    Olivier Lecomte

  7. Australian Antarctic Division and Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia

    Robert Massom

  8. Thayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA

    Don Perovich

  9. University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA

    Matthew Sturm

Authors
  1. Melinda Webster
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Sebastian Gerland
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Marika Holland
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Elizabeth Hunke
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Ron Kwok
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Olivier Lecomte
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Robert Massom
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Don Perovich
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Matthew Sturm
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

M.W. carried out the data synthesis and led the writing. All authors contributed to the interpretation of the results and writing, each contributing to multiple aspects of the manuscript and its ideas. M.S. created Fig. 1. S.G. and D.P. provided in situ and buoy snow data in Fig. 2. R.K. provided snow depths derived from NASA’s Operation IceBridge snow radar data for Figs. 2 and 3, and the ERA-Interim reconstructed snow depths in Fig. 2.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Melinda Webster.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher’s note: Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Webster, M., Gerland, S., Holland, M. et al. Snow in the changing sea-ice systems. Nature Clim Change 8, 946–953 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-018-0286-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-018-0286-7

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing