Snow and Vegetation Measurements from Selected Sites Near Council, Alaska, USA, 2000-2002  View Catalog Page Entry ID
ARCSS119
Summary
A combination of snow depth, snow temperature, snow water equivalent (SWE), and albedo measurements were taken from the spring of 2000 to the fall of 2002 at five sites near Council, Alaska. The sites vary in land cover type from forest to tundra. The purpose of the investigation was to understand the potential effects of climate change on the region by measuring how conditions change along a vegetation gradient. These data, which characterize snow cover and snow-holding capacity of various vegetation types, can help scientists understand how key meteorological events impact the arctic landscape. Data files, available via FTP, are in Excel format and include plots of the data and supplementary data information.
Geographic Coverage
Spatial Coordinates:
N: 64.9354°
S: 64.5029°
E: -163.6496°
W: -163.7378°
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Data Set Citation
Dataset Creator: Matthew Sturm
Dataset Title: Snow and Vegetation Measurements from Selected Sites Near Council, Alaska, USA, 2000-2002
Dataset Release Date: 2005-08-01
Dataset Release Place: Boulder, Colorado USA
Dataset Publisher: NSIDC: National Snow and Ice Data Center
Online Resource: http://nsidc.org/data/arcss119.html
Temporal Coverage
Start Date: 2000-05-09
Stop Date: 2002-10-03
Location Keywords
- CONTINENT NORTH AMERICA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ALASKA
- CONTINENT NORTH AMERICA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ALASKA
Science Keywords
- Biosphere Vegetation Canopy Characteristics
- Biosphere Vegetation Deciduous Vegetation
- Biosphere Vegetation Dominant Species
- Biosphere Vegetation Evergreen Vegetation
- Biosphere Vegetation Vegetation Cover
- Biosphere Vegetation Vegetation Species
- Cryosphere Snow/Ice Albedo
- Cryosphere Snow/Ice Snow Depth
- Cryosphere Snow/Ice Snow/Ice Temperature
- Cryosphere Snow/Ice Snow Water Equivalent
- Terrestrial Hydrosphere Snow/Ice Albedo
- Terrestrial Hydrosphere Snow/Ice Snow Depth
- Terrestrial Hydrosphere Snow/Ice Snow/Ice Temperature
- Terrestrial Hydrosphere Snow/Ice Snow Water Equivalent
Ancillary Keywords
- Alaska
- albedometer
- ARCSS
- ARCSS119
- ARCSS Data Coordination Center
- ATLAS
- automated snow depth probe
- GPS
- graduated pointed probe rod
- hand probes
- OPP9732077
- snow corer
- Snow Melt
- Snow Water Equivalent
- SWE
- tape measure
- thermistor probe
- vegetation gradient
Platform
- GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS
Instrument
- GPS Global Positioning System
- PROBES
- STEEL MEASURING TAPE
- TEMPERATURE LOGGERS
- TEMPERATURE PROBES
- THERMISTORS
Project
- ARCSS/LAII/ATLAS Arctic System Science/LAII/Arctic Transitions in the Land-Atmosphere System
Quality
Snow Depth
The brush at the Bear Creek site was so dense that the researchers found it difficult to collect the 100 m line data. Thus, they did not collect data as often here. Furthermore, the Bear Creek site was flooded in 2002, forming an aufeis (new ice formed on top of old ice), which prevented snow depths from being recorded.
The 'long line' data--position (UTM meters) and snow depth (cm)--have not been adjusted for the natural tendency of the operator to 'wander' about a straight line. The plots were adjusted so that the raw data fit the actual length of the straight line, by forcing each line to a fixed length. Please see the 'Plots' tab in the LongLines Excel files and refer to the 'Notes' tab for further explanation.
Snow Temperature
The summer temperatures collected with the Campbell CR-10X data logger and thermistors have questionable accuracy due to lack of solar shielding. Because of a large number of equipment failures, large gaps exist in some of the snow temperature data records.
Albedo
In several cases, the albedo meter was shaded, and/or the recorded value was greater than one. The actual albedo of the snow cover and vegetation is not known in such instances.
Snow Water Equivalent (SWE)
Air temperatures that were above freezing were a common source of error. The wet snow stuck to the core barrel resulting in low values. These data were noted as 'bad samples'.
Please refer to the 'Notes' page of the data file for information on questionable data measurements.
Data Set Progress
complete
Data Center
National Snow and Ice Data Center
Data Center URL: http://nsidc.org
Data Center Personnel
Name: NSIDC User Services
Phone: 1 303 492-6199
Fax: 1 303 492-2468
Email: nsidc@nsidc.org
Contact Address:
- National Snow and Ice Data Center
- CIRES, 449 UCB
- University of Colorado
City: Boulder
Province or State: CO
Postal Code: 80309-0449
Country: USA
NSIDC Arctic System Science Data Coordination Center
Data Center URL: http://nsidc.org/arcss/
Data Center Personnel
Name: NSIDC ARCSS User Services
Phone: 1 303 492-6199
Fax: 1 303 492-2468
Email: nsidc@nsidc.org
Contact Address:
- National Snow and Ice Data Center
- CIRES, 449 UCB
- University of Colorado
City: Boulder
Province or State: CO
Postal Code: 80309-0449
Country: USA
Distribution
Distribution Media: FTP
Distribution Size: 20 - 13619 KB
Distribution Format: JPEG
Distribution Media: FTP
Distribution Size: 20 - 13619 KB
Distribution Format: Microsoft Excel
Distribution Media: FTP
Distribution Size: 20 - 13619 KB
Distribution Format: TIFF
Personnel
Matthew Sturm
Role: INVESTIGATOR
Phone: 1 907 353-5183
Fax: 1 907 353-5142
Email: msturm@crrel.usace.army.mil
Contact Address:
- USA-CRREL-Alaska
- P.O. Box 35170
City: Ft. Wainwright
Province or State: AK
Postal Code: 99703-0170
Charles H. Racine
Role: INVESTIGATOR
Phone: 1 603 646-4519
Fax: 1 603 646-4785
Email: cracine@crrel41.crrel.usace.army.mil
Contact Address:
- US Army CRREL
- 72 Lyme Road
City: Hanover
Province or State: NH
Postal Code: 03755-1290
Country: USA
NSIDC User Services
Role: TECHNICAL CONTACT
Phone: 1 303 492-6199 x
Fax: 1 303 492-2468 x
Email: nsidc@nsidc.org
Contact Address:
- National Snow and Ice Data Center
- CIRES, 449 UCB
- University of Colorado
City: Boulder
Province or State: CO
Postal Code: 80309-0449
Country: USA
Metadata Name and Version
Metadata Name: CEOS IDN DIF
Metadata Version: 9.7
Creation and Review Dates
DIF Creation Date: 2005-08-01
Last DIF Revision Date: 2012-06-28
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