Regional Variations of Snow Accumulation on Spitsbergen, Svalbard, 1997-99

Abstract

End-of-winter snow accumulation has been measured over large areas on Spitsbergen, Svalbard, using Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) in the years of 1997, 1998, and 1999. Measuring transects following different latitudes reveal west-to-east and south-to-north gradients of snow accumulation. Generally, the east coast receives over 40% more snow (in water equivalent) than the west coast. A continental effect with lower accumulation rates can be seen in central parts of Spitsbergen at middle and northern latitudes. In the southern part of Spitsbergen accumulation rates are approximately twice as high as in the north. Elevation gradients of snow accumulation vary considerably, from –9 mm per 100 metre increase of elevation in the north-east to 258 mm/100 m in the central south. In average, the accumulation increases with 97 mm/100 m. Finally, accumulation rates close to the summit of Austfonna ice cap range from about 200 mm to 800 mm, i.e., with a factor of 4, over a few tens of kilometres. The average snow accumulation for all glacier localities measured on Spitsbergen (i.e., Austfonna excluded) for all three years is 590 mm.