Abstract: Stable Water Isotopes Are A Tracer Of Hydrological Processes And A Paleoclimate Proxy From Ice Core Records. The Interpretation Of The Latter Relies On Fractionation Processes Throughout The Hydrological Cycle, From The Evaporation Over The Ocean, During Each Precipitation Event, And During Post-deposition Processes, In Particular Due To The Exchanges Between The Snow And The Moisture In The Atmosphere. Thanks To New Developments In Infrared Spectroscopy, It Is Now Possible To Monitor Not Only The Snow Isotopic Composition But Also The Vapour Continuously, And Thus Document Exchanges Between The Snow And The Vapour. On The East Antarctic Plateau, Records Of Water Vapour Isotopic Composition In Kohnen And Dome C During Summer Have Revealed Significant Diurnal Variability Which Can Be Used To Address The Exchange Between Surface Snow And Atmospheric Water Vapour As Well As The Stability Of The Atmospheric Boundary Layer. in This Study, We Present The First Vapour Monitoring On A Transect Across East Antarctica For A Period Of 3 Months From November 2019 To February 2020 During The Eaiist Traverse, Covering More Than 3600 Km. In Parallel, We Also Monitored The Vapour Isotopic Composition At Two Stations: Dumont D’urville (Ddu), The Starting Point, And Dome C, Half Way Through. Efforts On The Calibration On Each Monitoring Station, As Well As Cross-calibration Of The Different Instruments Offer A Unique Opportunity To Compare Both The Spatial And Temporal (Diurnal Variability Or At The Scale Of Several Days) Gradients Of Humidity, Temperature And Water Vapour Isotopic Composition In East Antarctica During The Summer Season. with The Use Of The Modele Atmospherique Régional (Mar), We Compare The Variability Measured In Water Vapour Isotopic Composition, Temperature And Humidity With The Different Systems (Fixed Or Mobile Location). Although Further Comparisons With The Surface Snow Isotopic Composition Are Required To Quantify The Impact Of The Snow-atmosphere Exchanges On The Local Surface Mass Balance, These Three Simultaneous Measurements Of The Vapour Isotopic Composition Show The Potential Of Using Water Stables Isotopes To Evaluate Hydrological Processes In East Antarctica.  

Abstract:

Due to recent climate change conditions, i.e. increasing temperatures and changing precipitation patterns, arctic snow cover dynamics exhibit strong changes in terms of extent and duration. Arctic amplification processes and impacts are well documented expected to strengthen in coming decades. In this context, innovative observation methods are helpful for a better comprehension of the spatial variability of snow properties relevant for climate research and hydrological applications.

Microwave remote sensing provides exceptional spatial and temporal performance in terms of all-weather application and target penetration. Time-series of Synthetic Active Radar images (SAR) are becoming more accessible at different frequencies and polarimetry has demonstrated a significant advantage for detecting changes in different media. Concerning arctic snow monitoring, SAR sensors can offer continuous time-series during the polar night and with cloud cover, providing a consequent advantage in regard of optical sensors.

The aim of this study is dedicated to the spatial/temporal variability of snow in the Ny-Ålesund area on the Br∅gger peninsula, Svalbard (N 78°55’ / E 11° 55’). The TerraSAR-X satellite (DLR, Germany) operated at X-band (3.1 cm, 9.6 GHz) with dual co-pol mode (HH/VV) at 5-m spatial resolution, and with high incidence angles (36° to 39°) poviding a better snow penetration and reducing topographic constraints. A dataset of 92 images (ascending and descending) is available since 2017, together with a high resolution DEM (NPI 5-m) and consistent in-situ measurements of meteorological data and snow profiles including glaciers sites.

Polarimetric processing is based on the Kennaugh matrix decomposition, copolar phase coherence (CCOH) and copolar phase difference (CPD). The Kennaugh matrix elements K₀, K₃, K_4, and K₇ are, respectively, the total intensity, phase ratio, intensity ratio, and shift between HH and VV phase center. Their interpretation allows analysing the structure of the snowpack linked to the near real time of in-situ measurements (snow profiles).

The X-band signal is strongly influenced by the snow stratigraphy: internal ice layers reduce or block the penetration of the signal into the snow pack. The best R² correlation performances between estimated and measured snow heights are ranging from 0.50 to 0.70 for dry snow conditions. Therefore, the use of the X-band for regular snow height estimations remains limited under these conditions.

Conversely, this study shows the benefit of TerraSAR-X thanks to the Kennaugh matrix elements analysis. A focus is set on the Copolar Phase Difference (CPD, Leinss 2016) between VV and HH polarization: Φ CPD = Φ _VV – Φ _HH. Our results indicate that the CPD values are related to the snow metamorphism: positive values correspond to dry snow (horizontal structures), negative values indicate recrystallization processes (vertical structures).

Backscattering evolution in time offer a good proxy for meteorological events detection, impacting on snow metamorphism. Fresh snowfalls or melting processes can then be retrieved at the regional scale and linked to air temperature or precipitation measurements at local scale. Polarimetric SAR time series is therefore of interest to complement satellite-based precipitation measurements in the Arctic.

Abstract: This Book Brings Together Expert Opinions From Scientists To Consider The Evidence For Climate Change And Its Impacts On Ticks And Tick-borne Infections, And Provide Predictions For The Future. It Considers What Is Meant By 'Climate Change', How Good Are Climate Models Relevant To Ecosystems, And Predictions For Changes In Climate At Global, Regional, And Local Scales Relevant For Ticks And Tick-borne Infections. It Examines Changes To Tick Distribution And The Evidence That Climate Change Is Responsible. The Effect Of Climate On The Physiology And Metabolism Of Ticks, Including Potentially Critical Impacts On The Tick Microbiome Is Stressed. Given That The Notoriety Of Ticks Derives From Pathogens They Transmit, Do Changes In Climate Affect Vector Capacity? Ticks Transmit A Remarkable Range Of Micro- And Macro-parasites Many Of Which Are Pathogens Of Humans And Domesticated Animals. The Intimacy Between Tick-borne Agent And Tick Vector Means That Any Impacts Of Climate On A Tick Vector Will Impact Tick-borne Pathogens. Most Obviously, Such Impacts Will Be Apparent As Changes In Disease Incidence And Prevalence. The Evidence That Climate Change Is Affecting Diseases Caused By Tick-borne Pathogens Is Considered, Along With The Potential To Make Robust Predictions Of Future Events.

Abstract: Summary The seismologically observed structures of both the solid inner core and the liquid outer core are the ground truth for the material properties of solid and liquid iron and its alloying elements. The key properties, from a materials science standpoint, are density, seismic wave speeds, and anisotropy. The anisotropy of the inner core does not appear to be simple; it varies laterally at the same radial level as well as varying radially. Four themes including uncertainty, model variability, virtues of solid vs. liquid properties, and composition, are the focus of this chapter. Their elaboration hopefully help present and future investigators of the physical state and composition of the core understand the problems associated with certain types of data and to focus experimental work on avenues of research providing tight observational constraints on the core's character.