Articles | Volume 12, issue 6
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-2099-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-2099-2018
Research article
 | 
19 Jun 2018
Research article |  | 19 Jun 2018

Autonomous ice sheet surface mass balance measurements from cosmic rays

Ian M. Howat, Santiago de la Peña, Darin Desilets, and Gary Womack

Related authors

Filling and drainage of a subglacial lake beneath the Flade Isblink ice cap, northeast Greenland
Qi Liang, Wanxin Xiao, Ian Howat, Xiao Cheng, Fengming Hui, Zhuoqi Chen, Mi Jiang, and Lei Zheng
The Cryosphere, 16, 2671–2681, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2671-2022,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2671-2022, 2022
Short summary
The Reference Elevation Model of Antarctica
Ian M. Howat, Claire Porter, Benjamin E. Smith, Myoung-Jong Noh, and Paul Morin
The Cryosphere, 13, 665–674, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-665-2019,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-665-2019, 2019
Short summary
Seasonal to decadal variability in ice discharge from the Greenland Ice Sheet
Michalea D. King, Ian M. Howat, Seongsu Jeong, Myoung J. Noh, Bert Wouters, Brice Noël, and Michiel R. van den Broeke
The Cryosphere, 12, 3813–3825, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-3813-2018,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-3813-2018, 2018
Short summary
Winter mass balance of Drangajökull ice cap (NW Iceland) derived from satellite sub-meter stereo images
Joaquín M. C. Belart, Etienne Berthier, Eyjólfur Magnússon, Leif S. Anderson, Finnur Pálsson, Thorsteinn Thorsteinsson, Ian M. Howat, Guðfinna Aðalgeirsdóttir, Tómas Jóhannesson, and Alexander H. Jarosch
The Cryosphere, 11, 1501–1517, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-1501-2017,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-1501-2017, 2017
Short summary
An ice sheet model validation framework for the Greenland ice sheet
Stephen F. Price, Matthew J. Hoffman, Jennifer A. Bonin, Ian M. Howat, Thomas Neumann, Jack Saba, Irina Tezaur, Jeffrey Guerber, Don P. Chambers, Katherine J. Evans, Joseph H. Kennedy, Jan Lenaerts, William H. Lipscomb, Mauro Perego, Andrew G. Salinger, Raymond S. Tuminaro, Michiel R. van den Broeke, and Sophie M. J. Nowicki
Geosci. Model Dev., 10, 255–270, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-255-2017,https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-255-2017, 2017
Short summary

Related subject area

Discipline: Ice sheets | Subject: Instrumentation
Progress of the RADIX (Rapid Access Drilling and Ice eXtraction) fast-access drilling system
Jakob Schwander, Thomas F. Stocker, Remo Walther, and Samuel Marending
The Cryosphere, 17, 1151–1164, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1151-2023,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1151-2023, 2023
Short summary
High-accuracy UAV photogrammetry of ice sheet dynamics with no ground control
Thomas R. Chudley, Poul Christoffersen, Samuel H. Doyle, Antonio Abellan, and Neal Snooke
The Cryosphere, 13, 955–968, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-955-2019,https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-955-2019, 2019
Short summary

Cited articles

Alley, R., Meese, D., Shuman, C., Gow, A., Taylor, K., Grootes, P., White, J., Ram, M., Waddington, E., Mayewski, P., and Zielinski, G.: Abrupt Increase in Greenland Snow Accumulation at the End of the Younger Dryas Event, Nature, 362, 527–529, https://doi.org/10.1038/362527a0, 1993. 
Andreasen, M., Jensen, K. H., Desilets, D., Franz, T. E., Zreda, M., Bogena, H. R., and Looms, M. C.: Status and Perspectives on the Cosmic-Ray Neutron Method for Soil Moisture Estimation and Other Environmental Science Applications, Vadose Zone J., 16, 1–11, https://doi.org/10.2136/vzj2017.04.0086, 2017. 
Desilets, D., Zreda, M., and Prabu, T.: Extended scaling factors for in situ cosmogenic nuclides: New measurements at low latitude, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 246, 265–276, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2006.03.051, 2006. 
Dibb, J. and Fahnestock, M.: Snow accumulation, surface height change, and firn densification at Summit, Greenland: Insights from 2 years of in situ observation, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 109, D24113, https://doi.org/10.1029/2003JD004300, 2004. 
Hawdon, A., McJannet, D., and Wallace, J.: Calibration and correction procedures for cosmic-ray neutron soil moisture probes located across Australia, Water Resour. Res., 50, 5029–5043, https://doi.org/10.1002/2013WR015138, 2014. 
Download
Short summary
In this paper we present the first application of cosmic ray neutron sensing for continuously measuring in situ accumulation on an ice sheet. We validate these results with manual snow coring and snow stake measurements, showing that the cosmic ray observations are of similar if not better accuracy. We also present our observations of variability in accumulation over 24 months at Summit Camp, Greenland. We conclude that cosmic ray sensing has a high potential for measuring surface mass balance.