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Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring (CALM) Program Network

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Entry ID

GGD313

Summary

The CALM network currently includes 130 active sites in both hemispheres, with 15 participating countries. An additional 20 or more secondary sites are co-located with these primary sites, resulting in a total over 150 sites that report active-layer thickness on an annual basis. 100 sites collect soil and permafrost temperature data; of these, 60 are from boreholes. Maximum active layer thickness is interpolated from these temperature profiles. Most sites in the CALM network are located in Arctic and Subarctic lowlands, although 20 boreholes are in mountainous regions of the Northern Hemisphere above 1300 m elevation. A new Antarctic component is being organized and currently includes 13 sites.

The active layer thickness is measured by physical probing on grids ranging in size from 100 to 1000 meters, by probing at a single point or along transects or from permanently installed frost tubes and soil temperature cables. Sites include several coastal to inland transects in North America, a longitudinal array of sites across Eurasia, and individual sites in several mid-latitude, mountainous regions. The majority of the sites are in arctic tundra regions consisting of fine grained sediments. Bouldery and rocky sites in mountains are being added to the network primarily in Europe as part of the EC Permafrost and Climate in Europe (PACE) project. CALM is being considered as the part of the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS). CALM is closely affiliated with the International Permafrost Association (IPA), several IPA working groups, and the International Tundra Experiment (ITEX). The current protocol for observing the active layer thickness is given in the published ITEX Manual and on the ITEX and IPA web sites. These activities are part of the IPA Global Geocryological Database (GGD). A map on the CAPS CD-ROM illustrates the locations of the 130 sites. A comprehensive metadata file for all sites is available.

The CAPS CD-ROM contains detailed metadata and summary data. Raw data can be found at the CALM web site.

Geographic Coverage

 

Spatial Coordinates:
N: -74.03333°     S: -78.51667°     E: 166.76667°     W: 160.6°     Min Depth: 10 centimeters     Max Depth: 1698 centimeters
N: 81.81667°     S: 31.81667°     E: 180°     W: -180°     Min Depth: 2 centimeters     Max Depth: 4852 centimeters

Data Set Citation

Dataset Creator: Brown, J., K. Hinkel, and F. Nelson (comp.)
Dataset Title: Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring (CALM) Program Network
Dataset Release Date: 2003-01-01
Dataset Release Place: Boulder, Colorado USA
Dataset Publisher: NSIDC: National Snow and Ice Data Center
Online Resource: http://nsidc.org/data/ggd313.html

Temporal Coverage

Start Date: 1991-01-01

Location Keywords

  • CONTINENT ANTARCTICA
  • CONTINENT ASIA EASTERN ASIA CHINA
  • CONTINENT ASIA EASTERN ASIA MONGOLIA
  • CONTINENT ASIA SOUTHCENTRAL ASIA KAZAKHSTAN
  • CONTINENT EUROPE EASTERN EUROPE RUSSIA
  • CONTINENT EUROPE NORTHERN EUROPE SCANDANAVIA NORWAY
  • CONTINENT EUROPE NORTHERN EUROPE SCANDANAVIA SWEDEN
  • CONTINENT EUROPE WESTERN EUROPE AUSTRIA
  • CONTINENT EUROPE WESTERN EUROPE SWITZERLAND
  • CONTINENT NORTH AMERICA CANADA
  • CONTINENT NORTH AMERICA GREENLAND
  • CONTINENT NORTH AMERICA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ALASKA
  • GEOGRAPHIC REGION ARCTIC
  • GEOGRAPHIC REGION NORTHERN HEMISPHERE
  • GEOGRAPHIC REGION POLAR CIRCUMPOLAR
  • GEOGRAPHIC REGION SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE
  • OCEAN ATLANTIC OCEAN NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN SVALBARD AND JAN MAYEN

Science Keywords

  • Cryosphere Frozen Ground Active Layer
  • Cryosphere Frozen Ground Permafrost
  • Cryosphere Frozen Ground Soil Temperature
  • Cryosphere Snow/Ice Permafrost
  • Land Surface Frozen Ground Active Layer
  • Land Surface Frozen Ground Soil Temperature
  • Land Surface Soils Soil Moisture/Water Content
  • Land Surface Soils Soil Temperature

Ancillary Keywords

  • Active Layer
  • Monitoring
  • Permafrost
  • Permafrost Temperature
  • Soil Moisture
  • Soil Temperature

Project

  • CALM Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring Program

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 Frozen Ground Data Center
Data Center URL: http://nsidc.org/fgdc/

Data Center Personnel

Name: NSIDC FGDC 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 Format: Microsoft Excel

Personnel

Kenneth M. Hinkel
Role: INVESTIGATOR
Phone: 1 513 556-3421
Email: Ken_Hinkel@compuserve.com
Contact Address:

  • University of Cincinnati
  • Department of Geography
  • ML131

City: Cincinnati
Province or State: OH
Postal Code: 45221-0131
Country: USA

Frederick E. (Fritz) Nelson
Role: INVESTIGATOR
Email: fnelson@udel.edu
Contact Address:

  • University of Delaware
  • Department of Geography

City: Newark
Province or State: DE
Country: USA

Jerry Brown
Role: INVESTIGATOR
Phone: 1 508 457-4982
Fax: 1 508 457-4982
Email: jerrybrown@igc.apc.org
Contact Address:

  • International Permafrost Association
  • PO Box 7

City: Woods Hole
Province or State: MA
Postal Code: 02543
Country: USA

Related URL

VIEW RELATED INFORMATION
Circumpolar Active-Layer Permafrost System (CAPS)

Metadata Name and Version

Metadata Name: CEOS IDN DIF
Metadata Version: 9.7

Creation and Review Dates

DIF Creation Date: 2003-01-01
Last DIF Revision Date: 2012-08-23

Metadata Views

DIF Text-Only

Directory Interchange Format (DIF) in plain text

DIF XML

Directory Interchange Format (DIF) in Extensible Markup Language (XML)

FGDC HTML

U.S. Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (CSDGM)

ISO HTML

International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 19115:2003 Geographic Information Metadata

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