Field Experiments on the Development of Depth Hoar

Abstract

Depth hoar is the coarsest grained snow structure that can form in the absence of the liquid phase. It consists of large well-developed skeletal crystals, formed by sublimation. Weak intercrystalline bonding causes depth hoar layers to be fragile. It forms in seasonal and perennial snow strata as a result of upward vapor transport along vapor pressure gradients produced by temperature gradients in the snow. Depth hoar strata are essential parts of the annual discontinuity that permits one to interpret snow stratigraphy where melting does not occur on the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets. In mountain regions these layers contribute to...