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| Titel |
A satellite-based snow cover climatology (1985–2011) for the European Alps derived from AVHRR data |
| VerfasserIn |
F. Hüsler, T. Jonas, M. Riffler, J. P. Musial, S. Wunderle |
| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| ISSN |
1994-0416
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| Digitales Dokument |
URL |
| Erschienen |
In: The Cryosphere ; 8, no. 1 ; Nr. 8, no. 1 (2014-01-10), S.73-90 |
| Datensatznummer |
250116007
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| Publikation (Nr.) |
 copernicus.org/tc-8-73-2014.pdf |
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| Zusammenfassung |
Seasonal snow cover is of great environmental and socio-economic importance
for the European Alps. Therefore a high priority has been assigned to
quantifying its temporal and spatial variability. Complementary to land-based
monitoring networks, optical satellite observations can be used to derive
spatially comprehensive information on snow cover extent. For understanding
long-term changes in alpine snow cover extent, the data acquired by the
Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) sensors mounted onboard the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) and Meteorological
Operational satellite (MetOp) platforms offer a unique source of information.
In this paper, we present the first space-borne 1 km snow extent climatology
for the Alpine region derived from AVHRR data over the period 1985–2011. The
objective of this study is twofold: first, to generate a new set of
cloud-free satellite snow products using a specific cloud gap-filling
technique and second, to examine the spatiotemporal distribution of snow
cover in the European Alps over the last 27 yr from the satellite
perspective. For this purpose, snow parameters such as snow onset day, snow
cover duration (SCD), melt-out date and the snow cover area percentage (SCA)
were employed to analyze spatiotemporal variability of snow cover over the
course of three decades. On the regional scale, significant trends were found
toward a shorter SCD at lower elevations in the south-east and south-west.
However, our results do not show any significant trends in the monthly mean
SCA over the last 27 yr. This is in agreement with other research findings
and may indicate a deceleration of the decreasing snow trend in the Alpine
region. Furthermore, such data may provide spatially and temporally
homogeneous snow information for comprehensive use in related research fields
(i.e., hydrologic and economic applications) or can serve as a reference for
climate models. |
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