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A 50 % increase in the mass of terrestrial particles delivered by the Mackenzie River into the Beaufort Sea (Canadian Arctic Ocean) over the last 10 years

Eleven years (2003-2013) of satellite data were processed to observe the variations in suspended particulate matter concentrations at the mouth of the Mackenzie River and estimate the fluxes exported into the Canadian Arctic Ocean. Results show that these concentrations at the river mouth, in the delta zone and in the river plume have increased by 46%, 71% and 33%, respectively, since 2003. This corresponds to a more than 50% increase in particulate export from the river into the Beaufort Sea.

Emergence of multiple ocean ecosystem drivers in a large ensemble suite with an Earth system model

A large initial-condition ensemble suite of simulations with an Earth system model is applied to evaluate emergence characteristics of four ocean ecosystem drivers under climate change. The drivers considered are warming, acidification, deoxygenation, and perturbations to biological productivity. The spatial and temporal hierarchies of the emergence of these drivers are considered, using concepts of both time of emergence and confidence intervals.

Ideas and perspectives: on the emission of amines from terrestrial vegetation in the context of new atmospheric particle formation

In this article we summarise recent science which shows how airborne amines, specifically methylamines (MAs), play a key role in new atmospheric particle formation (NPF) by stabilising small molecule clusters.

Snowfall in the Himalayas: an uncertain future from a little-known past

Snow and ice provide large amounts of meltwater to the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. In this study we show that climate change will reduce the amount of snow falling in the Himalayas, Hindu Kush and Karakoram substantially. The limited number of observations in remote upper-level terrain makes it difficult to get a complete overview of the situation today, but our results indicate that by 2071–2100 snowfall may be reduced by 30–70% with the strongest anthropogenic forcing scenario.

Reliable, robust and realistic: the three R’s of next-generation land-surface modelling

Land surface models (LSMs) describe how carbon and water fluxes react to environmental change. They are key component of climate models, yet they differ enormously. Many perform poorly, despite having many parameters. We outline a development strategy emphasizing robustness, reliability and realism, none of which is guaranteed by complexity alone. We propose multiple constraints, benchmarking and data assimilation, and representing unresolved processes stochastically, as tools in this endeavour.

Modelling glacier change in the Everest region, Nepal Himalaya

A glacier mass balance and redistribution model that integrates field observations and downscaled climate fields is developed to examine glacier sensitivity to future climate in the Everest region of Nepal. The modelled sensitivity of glaciers to future climate change is high, and glacier mass loss is sustained through the 21st century for both middle- and high-emission scenarios. Projected temperature increases will expose large glacier areas to melt and reduce snow accumulations.

Local and regional scale measurements of CH₄, δ¹³CH₄, and C₂H₆ in the Uintah Basin using a mobile stable isotope analyzer

We describe an innovative instrument based on cavity ring down spectroscopy that analyzes the stable isotopes of methane in the ambient atmosphere. This instrument was used to study atmospheric emissions from oil and gas extraction activities in the Uintah Basin in Utah. These measurements suggest that 86 ± 7% of the total emissions in the basin are from natural gas production. The easy field deployment of this instrument can enable similar regional attribution studies across the world.

Oceanic and atmospheric forcing of Larsen C Ice-Shelf thinning

Antarctic Peninsula ice shelves have collapsed in recent decades. The surface of Larsen C Ice Shelf is lowering, but the cause of this has not been understood. This study uses eight radar surveys to show that the lowering is caused by both ice loss and a loss of air from the ice shelf’s snowpack. At least two different processes are causing the lowering. The stability of Larsen C may be at risk from an ungrounding of Bawden Ice Rise or ice-front retreat past a ‘compressive arch’ in strain rates.

The GAMDAM glacier inventory: a quality-controlled inventory of Asian glaciers

We present a new glacier inventory for high-mountain Asia named Glacier Area Mapping for Discharge from the Asian Mountains (GAMDAM). Glacier outlines were delineated manually using 356 Landsat ETM+ scenes in 226 path-row sets from the period 1999–2003, in conjunction with a digital elevation model and high-resolution Google EarthTM imagery. Our GAMDAM Glacier Inventory includes 87,084 glaciers covering a total area of 91,263 ± 13,689 km² throughout high-mountain Asia.

Open ocean dead zones in the tropical North Atlantic Ocean

This study is the first report of the formation of dead zones in the open ocean. A combination of multiple ocean observing system elements (mooring, floats, satellites, ships) allowed us to reconstruct the generation of the dead zones and to connect the formation to enhanced respiration within mesoscale ocean eddies. The dead zones present specific threats to the ecosystem, such as the interruption of the diurnal migration of zooplankters.

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