Melt ponds
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Melt ponds |
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Our
pond studies are focused on understanding (1) the temporal evolution of pond
volume and distribution, (2) the partitioning of surface meltwater between
storage in ponds and runoff into leads, and (3) the effect of ponds on the
optical and structural properties of the underlying ice.
As the snow melted in June, melt ponds began to form on the surface. As melt progressed, these ponds grew in both areal extent and depth. Throughout June and July the melt ponds deepened, in some cases completely melting through to the ocean. Once a pond had a saltwater connection to the ocean, melting accelerated further. "In the land of ice, salt water is the ultimate corrosive." Average pond depths at the end of July were were roughly 0.5 m. By mid-August, the pond surfaces were freezing. We monitored pond extent and depth along the albedo line from mid-June through mid-August. Data are in the directory POND under filenames ALMPmmdd.csv. Profiles of pond depth were recorded every 4 days. During the course of the summer, ponds along the albedo line grew about 0.5 m deeper and a few meters wider. The maximum pond fraction along the albedo line was 32% on 8 August. Pond depths and widths were also measured for a "sea level" pond at Seattle and the "alpine" pond at The Ridge. The pond fraction and average pond depth along the albedo line from 20 June to 10 August 1998 are plotted to the right. |
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Time series of melt pond depth along the albedo line. |
Closeup of evolution of one melt pond. |
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Photograph of "alpine" melt pond 81, July 1998. |
Photograph of Seattle melt pond, July 1998. |
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