Annual Thaw Depths and Water Depths in Tanana Flats, Alaska

Summary

Thaw depths and water depths were monitored at 1 m to 2 m intervals along a 255-m transect across an area of discontinuous and degrading permafrost on the Tanana Flats south of Fairbanks, Alaska. Measurements were taken once a year in late August from 1995 to 2002 to show effects of winter snow depths, climate warming, and vegetation and wetland creation-surface subsidence. Data are in a single tab-delimited ASCII text file, available via FTP.

Citing These Data:

Racine, C., T. Jorgenson, and J. Walters. 2003. Annual Thaw Depths and Water Depths in Tanana Flats, Alaska. Boulder, CO: National Snow and Ice Data Center. Digital Media.

Overview Table

Table of Contents

1. Contacts and Acknowledgments
2. Detailed Data Description
3. References and Related Publications
4. Document Information

1. Contacts and Acknowledgments:

Investigator(s) Name and Title:

Dr. Charles Racine
Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL)
72 Lyme Rd
Hanover, NH  03755, USA

Torre M. Jorgenson
ABR, Inc.
P.O. Box 80410
Fairbanks, AK  99708

James H. Walters
Department of Earth Science
University of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0335

Technical Contact:

NSIDC User Services
National Snow and Ice Data Center
CIRES, 449 UCB
University of Colorado
Boulder, CO 80309-0449  USA
phone: +1 303.492.6199
fax: +1 303.492.2468
form: Contact NSIDC User Services
e-mail: nsidc@nsidc.org

2. Detailed Data Description:

Format:

The file "ggd623_thawdepth_tanana.txt" is in tab-delimited ASCII text format. Columns represent distance along the transect (m) from a reference rebar and thaw depth (cm) each August in 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, and 2002. Water depth (cm) was measured in August 2000 and 2002.

Following is the first three records from "ggd623_thawdepth_tanana.txt":

											
DistSept_95	ThawSept_95	DistAug_96	ThawAug_96	DistAug12_97	thawAug12_97	Dist_99	thaw_99	Dist_8_19_00	Thaw8_19_00	WatDepth8_19_00	Dist8_27_02	Thaw8_27_02	WatDep8_27_02
0	138	2	62	5	43	0	225	0	99	0	0	>120	66
5	165	4	47	10	128	2	63	2.5	62	0	2.5	115	45
10	155	6	57	15	75	4	50	5	74	0	5	81	0

If thaw depth was greater than the length of the probe (120 cm), then that record is assigned a value of ">120 cm."

File Naming Convention:

ggd623_thawdepth_tanana.txt

File Size:

The file "ggd623_thawdepth_tanana.txt" is 2.67 KB.

Spatial Coverage:

Data were collected in an area of discontinuous and degrading permafrost on the Tanana Flats south of Fairbanks, Alaska. Coordinates are 64.7°N, 147.9°W.

Temporal Coverage:

Data were collected once a year in August of 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, and 2002.

Parameter or Variable:

Thaw depth (cm) was measured each August in 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, and 2002. Water depth (cm) was measured in August 2000 and 2002.

3. References:

Jorgenson, T., C. Racine, J. Walters, and T. Osterkamp. 2001. Permafrost degradation and ecological changes associated with a warming climate in central Alaska. Climatic Change 48:551-579.

Osterkamp, T.E., L. Viereck, Y. Shur, M. Jorgenson, C. Racine, A. Doyle, and R. Boone. 2000. Observations of thermokarst and its impact on boreal forests in Alaska, USA. Arctic, Antarctic and Alpine Research 32:303-315.

4. Document Information:

Document Creation Date:

May 2003

Document Revision Date:

May 2003

Document URL:

http://nsidc.org/data/docs/fgdc/ggd623_thawdepth_alaska/index.html