Abstract
Snow melt is calculated at 1780 m a.s.l., near the Main Divide of the Southern Alps, using a bulk aerodynamic energy balance approach. Results are related to melt measured directly using a lysimeter and to synoptic weather patterns. Measurements are taken half hourly, over a 38 day period from the start of the spring melt season. Melt values at the site average 10 mm day−1 but vary from less than 1 mm day−1 to 63 mm day−1. The energy balance model overestimated measured melt by 8 per cent. The synoptic situation exerts a strong influence on the magnitude of melt. Melt is highest during north-westerly storms, and three such days contributed one-third of the total melt recorded during the field season. Melt is also high during anticyclones. Different synoptic situations generate distinctive energy budgets, with radiation dominating during large-scale anticyclonic patterns, but sensible heat flux also is important during north-westerly circulation patterns. Distinct pulses of melt, each lasting a period of about 1 week, reflect the cyclical passage of troughs and anticyclones across New Zealand. © 1997 Royal Meteorological Society.
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