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Interannual variations of light‐absorbing particles in snow on Arctic sea ice
Author(s) -
Doherty Sarah J.,
Steele Michael,
Rigor Ignatius,
Warren Stephen G.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-8996
pISSN - 2169-897X
DOI - 10.1002/2015jd024018
Subject(s) - snow , arctic , atmospheric sciences , environmental science , meltwater , sea ice , dominance (genetics) , latitude , firn , climatology , oceanography , arctic ice pack , geology , chemistry , geomorphology , biochemistry , geodesy , gene
Samples of snow on sea ice were collected in springtime of the 6 years 2008–2013 in the region between Greenland, Ellesmere Island, and the North Pole (82°N –89°N, 0°W–100°W). The meltwater was passed through filters, whose spectral absorption was then measured to determine the separate contributions by black carbon (BC) and other light‐absorbing impurities. The median mixing ratio of BC across all years' samples was 4 ± 3 ng g −1 , and the median fraction of absorption due to non‐BC absorbers was 36 ± 11%. Variances represent both spatial and interannual variability; there was no interannual trend in either variable. The absorption Ångström exponent, however, decreased with latitude, suggesting a transition from dominance by biomass‐burning sources in the south to an increased influence by fossil‐fuel‐burning sources in the north, consistent with earlier measurements of snow in Svalbard and at the North Pole.