Articles | Volume 23, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1867-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1867-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Midwinter melts in the Canadian prairies: energy balance and hydrological effects
Igor Pavlovskii
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Geoscience, University of Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
Masaki Hayashi
Department of Geoscience, University of Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
Daniel Itenfisu
Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, Edmonton, Alberta, T6H 5T6, Canada
Related authors
Aaron A. Mohammed, Igor Pavlovskii, Edwin E. Cey, and Masaki Hayashi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 5017–5031, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-5017-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-5017-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
In cold regions, the permeability of the frozen ground is an important factor influencing a watershed's response to snowmelt. This study highlights the effects of preferential flow in frozen soils on snowmelt redistribution and groundwater recharge in seasonally frozen landscapes.
Gerardo Zegers, Masaki Hayashi, and Rodrigo Pérez-Illanes
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2575, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2575, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This research showed that airflow within sediment accumulations promotes cooling and sustains mountain permafrost. By enhancing a numerical model, we showed that natural air movement, driven by temperature differences between sediments and external air, allows permafrost to survive. Our work aids in predicting where and how permafrost exists, which is essential for understanding its role in mountain water systems and its response to climate change.
Chris M. DeBeer, Howard S. Wheater, John W. Pomeroy, Alan G. Barr, Jennifer L. Baltzer, Jill F. Johnstone, Merritt R. Turetsky, Ronald E. Stewart, Masaki Hayashi, Garth van der Kamp, Shawn Marshall, Elizabeth Campbell, Philip Marsh, Sean K. Carey, William L. Quinton, Yanping Li, Saman Razavi, Aaron Berg, Jeffrey J. McDonnell, Christopher Spence, Warren D. Helgason, Andrew M. Ireson, T. Andrew Black, Mohamed Elshamy, Fuad Yassin, Bruce Davison, Allan Howard, Julie M. Thériault, Kevin Shook, Michael N. Demuth, and Alain Pietroniro
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1849–1882, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1849-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1849-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
This article examines future changes in land cover and hydrological cycling across the interior of western Canada under climate conditions projected for the 21st century. Key insights into the mechanisms and interactions of Earth system and hydrological process responses are presented, and this understanding is used together with model application to provide a synthesis of future change. This has allowed more scientifically informed projections than have hitherto been available.
Aaron A. Mohammed, Igor Pavlovskii, Edwin E. Cey, and Masaki Hayashi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 5017–5031, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-5017-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-5017-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
In cold regions, the permeability of the frozen ground is an important factor influencing a watershed's response to snowmelt. This study highlights the effects of preferential flow in frozen soils on snowmelt redistribution and groundwater recharge in seasonally frozen landscapes.
H. Wang, L. Xiang, H. Steffen, P. Wu, L. Jiang, Q. Shen, D. Piretzidis, M. G. Sideris, M. Hayashi, and L. Jia
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLII-2-W13, 1793–1796, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W13-1793-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W13-1793-2019, 2019
William Quinton, Aaron Berg, Michael Braverman, Olivia Carpino, Laura Chasmer, Ryan Connon, James Craig, Élise Devoie, Masaki Hayashi, Kristine Haynes, David Olefeldt, Alain Pietroniro, Fereidoun Rezanezhad, Robert Schincariol, and Oliver Sonnentag
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2015–2039, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2015-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2015-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper synthesizes nearly three decades of eco-hydrological field and modelling studies at Scotty Creek, Northwest Territories, Canada, highlighting the key insights into the major water flux and storage processes operating within and between the major land cover types of this wetland-dominated region of discontinuous permafrost. It also examines the rate and pattern of permafrost-thaw-induced land cover change and how such changes will affect the hydrology and water resources of the region.
Jesse He and Masaki Hayashi
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 11, 111–117, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-111-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-111-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents an extensive hydrological and meteorological dataset from the Lake O'Hara alpine hydrological observatory within the Rocky Mountains. These data have supported many hydrological investigations and have provided insight into the key role of groundwater within alpine regions. We believe this dataset will be useful for the future study of alpine regions, where substantial and long-term datasets are scarce.
Xicai Pan, Daqing Yang, Yanping Li, Alan Barr, Warren Helgason, Masaki Hayashi, Philip Marsh, John Pomeroy, and Richard J. Janowicz
The Cryosphere, 10, 2347–2360, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2347-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-10-2347-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
This study demonstrates a robust procedure for accumulating precipitation gauge measurements and provides an analysis of bias corrections of precipitation measurements across experimental sites in different ecoclimatic regions of western Canada. It highlights the need for and importance of precipitation bias corrections at both research sites and operational networks for water balance assessment and the validation of global/regional climate–hydrology models.
Related subject area
Subject: Snow and Ice | Techniques and Approaches: Theory development
A local thermal non-equilibrium model for rain-on-snow events
Temporal and spatial variability of ice cover occurrence on Carpathian rivers: A regional perspective
Changing snow water storage in natural snow reservoirs
Hydrological response to warm and dry weather: do glaciers compensate?
Impact of glacier loss and vegetation succession on annual basin runoff
Forest impacts on snow accumulation and ablation across an elevation gradient in a temperate montane environment
Morphological dynamics of an englacial channel
Recent climatic, cryospheric, and hydrological changes over the interior of western Canada: a review and synthesis
Laboratory evidence for enhanced infiltration of ion load during snowmelt
Thomas Heinze
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 2059–2080, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2059-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2059-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
When water infiltrates into a snowpack, it alters the thermal state of the system. This work presents a first-of-its-kind multi-phase heat transfer model for local thermal non-equilibrium scenarios of water infiltration into an existing snowpack, such as during rain-on-snow events. The model can be used to calculate the formation of ice layers, as well as partial melting of the snow. Hence, it can support hazard assessment for flash floods and snow avalanches.
Maksymilian Fukś and Łukasz Wiejaczka
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-368, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-368, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for HESS
Short summary
Short summary
The article presents a temporal and spatial analysis of ice cover occurrence on rivers in the Carpathian Mountains (Central Europe) in a regional perspective. The study reveals a decrease in the frequency of ice cover formation and a shift in its structure, characterized by an increased frequency of border ice and a reduced occurrence of total ice cover. These changes in the ice regime of rivers are mainly due to climatic factors, overlaid by the operation of dam reservoirs.
Christina Marie Aragon and David F. Hill
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 781–800, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-781-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-781-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
A novel snow metric, snow water storage (SwS), is used to characterize the natural reservoir function of snowpacks, quantifying how much water is held in snow reservoirs and for how long. Despite covering only 16 % of US land area, mountainous regions contribute 72 % of the annual SwS. Recent decades show a 22 % decline in annual mountain SwS. Flexible snow metrics such as SwS may become more valuable for monitoring and predicting water resources amidst a future of increased climate variability.
Marit Van Tiel, Anne F. Van Loon, Jan Seibert, and Kerstin Stahl
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3245–3265, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3245-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3245-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Glaciers can buffer streamflow during dry and warm periods, but under which circumstances can melt compensate precipitation deficits? Streamflow responses to warm and dry events were analyzed using
long-term observations of 50 glacierized catchments in Norway, Canada, and the European Alps. Region, timing of the event, relative glacier cover, and antecedent event conditions all affect the level of compensation during these events. This implies that glaciers do not compensate straightforwardly.
Evan Carnahan, Jason M. Amundson, and Eran Hood
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 1667–1681, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1667-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1667-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
We model the effects of glacier dynamics, climate, and plant succession on annual streamflow during glacier retreat. Streamflow initially increases as the glacier melts, but eventually decreases to below preretreat levels due to increases in evapotranspiration. Glacier dynamics largely controls early variations in streamflow, whereas plant succession plays a progressively larger roll throughout. We show that glacier dynamics and landscape evolution are equally important in predicting streamflow.
Travis R. Roth and Anne W. Nolin
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 5427–5442, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-5427-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-5427-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Maritime snowpacks are temperature sensitive and experience disproportionate effects of climate warming and changing forest cover. We studied the combined effects of forest cover, climate variability, and elevation on snow in a maritime montane environment. The dense, relatively warm forests at Low and Mid sites impede snow accumulation through increased canopy snow interception and increased energy inputs to the snowpack. These results are needed for improved forest cover model representation.
Geir Vatne and Tristram D. L. Irvine-Fynn
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 2947–2964, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2947-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2947-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Ten years of direct observations of an englacial conduit in a cold based glacier in Svalbard document for the first time how a vertical meltwater waterfall (moulin) is formed from gradual incision of a meltwater channel. This evolution appears to be dominated by knickpoints that incise upstream at rates several times faster than the vertical incision in adjacent near horizontal channel sections.
Chris M. DeBeer, Howard S. Wheater, Sean K. Carey, and Kwok P. Chun
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 1573–1598, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1573-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1573-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
This paper provides a comprehensive review and up-to-date synthesis of the observed changes in air temperature, precipitation, seasonal snow cover, mountain glaciers, permafrost, freshwater ice cover, and river discharge over the interior of western Canada since the mid- or late 20th century. Important long-term observational networks and data sets are described, and qualitative linkages among the changing Earth system components are highlighted.
G. Lilbæk and J. W. Pomeroy
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 14, 1365–1374, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-14-1365-2010, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-14-1365-2010, 2010
Cited articles
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: A National Ecological Framework for
Canada: GIS data,
available at: http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/nsdb/ecostrat/gis_data.html (last
access: 14 June 2016), 2003.
Akinremi, O., McGinn, S., and Barr, A.: Simulation of soil moisture and
other components of the hydrological cycle using a water budget approach,
Can. J. Soil Sci., 75, 133–142, 1996.
Barnett, T. P., Adam, J. C., and Lettenmaier, D. P.: Potential impacts of a
warming climate on water availability in snow-dominated regions, Nature, 438,
303–309, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04141, 2005.
Barnhart, T. B., Molotch, N. P., Livneh, B., Harpold, A. A., Knowles, J. F., and
Schneider, D.: Snowmelt rate dictates streamflow, Geophys. Res. Lett., 43,
8006–8016, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL069690, 2016.
Brubaker, K. L., Pinker, R. T., and Deviatova, E.: Evaluation and comparison
of MODIS and IMS snow-cover estimates for the continental United States
using station data, J. Hydrometeorol., 6, 1002–1017, https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM447.1,
2005.
Burn, D. H., Fan, L., and Bell, G.: Identification and quantification of
streamflow trends on the Canadian Prairies, Hydrolog. Sci. J., 53, 538–549,
https://doi.org/10.1623/hysj.53.3.538, 2008.
Burrows, A. T.: The chinook winds, J. Geogr., 2, 124–136,
https://doi.org/10.1080/00221340308985932, 1903.
Coles, A. E., McConkey, B. G., and McDonnell, J. J.: Climate change impacts on
hillslope runoff on the northern Great Plains, 1962–2013, J. Hydrol., 550,
538–548, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2017.05.023, 2017.
DeBeer, C. M. and Pomeroy, J. W.: Influence of snowpack and melt energy
heterogeneity on snow cover depletion and snowmelt runoff simulation in a
cold mountain environment, J. Hydrol., 553, 199–213,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2017.07.051, 2017.
Dixon, D. and Boon, S.: Comparison of the SnowHydro snow sampler with
existing snow tube designs, Hydrol. Process., 26, 2555–2562,
https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.9317, 2012.
Fang, X. and Pomeroy, J. W.: Snowmelt runoff sensitivity analysis to
drought on the Canadian prairies, Hydrol. Process., 21, 2594–2609, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.6796, 2007.
Fang, X. and Pomeroy, J. W.: Drought impacts on Canadian prairie wetland
snow hydrology, Hydrol. Process., 22, 2858–2873, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.7074, 2008.
Fayad, A., Gascoin, S., Faour, G., López-Moreno, J. I., Drapeau, L.,
Page, M. L, and Escadafal, R.: Snow hydrology in Mediterranean mountain
regions: A review, J. Hydrol., 551, 374–396,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2017.05.063, 2017.
Fenton, M. M., Waters, E. J., Pawley, S. M., Atkinson, N., Utting, D. J., and
Mckay, K.: Digital Data 2013-0002 Surficial geology of Alberta,
1:1 000 000 scale (GIS data, polygon features),
available at: https://ags.aer.ca/publications/DIG_2013_0002.html (last access: 6 August 2018),
2013.
Fulton, R. J.: Surficial Materials of Canada, Map 1880A, Atlas of Canada 6th
Edition, Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, 1995.
Government of Alberta: Natural regions and subregions of Alberta (shapefile),
available at:
http://www.albertaparks.ca/media/429607/natural_regions_subregions_of_alberta.zip
(last access: 6 August 2018), 2005.
Government of Canada: Historical Climate data, available at: http://climate.weather.gc.ca, last access: 2 November 2017.
Granger, R. J. and Male, D. H.: Melting of a Prairie Snowpack, J. Appl. Meteorol., 17, 1833–1842,
https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0450(1978)017<1833:MOAPS>2.0.CO;2, 1978.
Granger, R. J., Gray, D. M., and Dyck, G. E.: Snowmelt infiltration to frozen
Prairie soils, Can. J. Earth Sci., 21, 669–677, https://doi.org/10.1139/e84-073, 1984.
Granger, R. J., Essery, R., and Pomeroy, J. W.: Boundary-layer growth over snow
and soil patches: field observations, Hydrol. Process., 20, 943–951, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.6123,
2006.
Harder, P., Pomeroy, J. W., and Helgason, W.: Local-scale advection of
sensible and latent heat during snowmelt, Geophys. Res. Lett., 44,
9769–9777, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL074394, 2017.
Harder, P., Helgason, W. D., and Pomeroy, J. W.: Modeling the Snowpack Energy
Balance during Melt under Exposed Crop Stubble, J. Hydrometeorol., 19,
1191–1214, https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-18-0039.1, 2018.
Hayashi, M., Hirota, T., Iwata, Y., and Takayabu, I.: Snowmelt energy
balance and its relation to foehn events in Tokachi, Japan, J. Meteorol.
Soc. Jpn., 83, 783–798, https://doi.org/10.2151/jmsj.83.783, 2005.
Horst, T. W. and Weil, J. C.: How far is far enough?: The fetch requirements
for micrometeorological measurement of surface fluxes, J. Atmos. Ocean.
Technol., 11, 1018–1025,
https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0426(1994)011<1018:HFIFET>2.0.CO;2, 1994.
Hubbard, B. and Neil, G.: Field techniques in glaciology and glacial
geomorphology, Wiley-Blackwell, John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Hoboken, USA, 2005.
Johnson, W. C. and Poiani, K. A.: Climate change effects on prairie pothole
wetlands: findings from a twenty-five year numerical modeling project,
Wetlands, 36, 273–285, https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-016-0790-3, 2016.
Kochendorfer, J., Nitu, R., Wolff, M., Mekis, E., Rasmussen, R., Baker, B.,
Earle, M. E., Reverdin, A., Wong, K., Smith, C. D., Yang, D., Roulet, Y.-A.,
Buisan, S., Laine, T., Lee, G., Aceituno, J. L. C., Alastrué, J., Isaksen,
K., Meyers, T., Brækkan, R., Landolt, S., Jachcik, A., and Poikonen, A.:
Analysis of single-Alter-shielded and unshielded measurements of mixed and
solid precipitation from WMO-SPICE, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3525–3542,
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3525-2017, 2017.
Koivusalo, H. and Kokkonen, T.: Snow processes in a forest clearing and in a
coniferous forest, J. Hydrol., 262, 145–164,
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(02)00031-8, 2002.
Kort, J., Bank, G., Pomeroy, J., and Fang, X.: Effects of shelterbelts on
snow distribution and sublimation, Agroforest. Syst., 86, 335–344,
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-011-9466-4, 2011.
Lundberg, A., Ala-Aho, P., Eklo, O.-M., Klöve, B., Kvaerner, J., and
Stumpp, C.: Snow and frost: implications for spatiotemporal infiltration
patterns – a review, Hydrol. Process., 30, 1230–1250,
https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.10703, 2015.
MacDonald, M. K., Pomeroy, J. W., and Essery, R. L. H.: Water and energy
fluxes over northern prairies as affected by chinook winds and winter
precipitation, Agr. Forest. Meteorol., 248, 372–385,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2017.10.025, 2018.
Male, D. H. and Granger, R. J.: Snow surface energy exchange, Water Resour.
Res., 17, 609–627, https://doi.org/10.1029/WR017i003p00609, 1981.
Maulé, C., Chanasyk, D., and Muehlenbachs, K.: Isotopic determination of
snow-water contribution to soil water and groundwater, J. Hydrol., 155,
73–91, 1994.
Mazurkiewicz, A. B., Callery, D. G., and McDonnell, J. J.: Assessing the
controls of the snow energy balance and water available for runoff in a
rain-on-snow environment, J. Hydrol., 354, 1–14,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2007.12.027, 2008.
Mekis, É. and Vincent, L. A.: An overview of the second generation
adjusted daily precipitation dataset for trend analysis in Canada, Atmos.
Ocean, 49, 163–177, 2011.
Mott, R., Gromke, C., Grünewald, T., and Lehning, M.: Relative importance
of advective heat transport and boundary layer decoupling in the melt
dynamics of a patchy snow cover, Adv. Water Resour., 55, 88–97,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advwatres.2012.03.001, 2013.
National Ice Center: IMS daily northern hemisphere snow and ice analysis at
4 km resolution, NSIDC: National Snow and Ice Data Center, Boulder, Colorado, USA, https://doi.org/10.7265/N52R3PMC, 2008a.
National Ice Center: IMS daily northern hemisphere snow and ice analysis at
24 km resolution, NSIDC: National Snow and Ice Data Center, Boulder, Colorado, USA, https://doi.org/10.7265/N52R3PMC, 2008b.
Nkemdirim, L.: Canada's chinook belt, Int. J. Climatol., 16, 441–462, 1996.
Oncley, S. P., Foken, T., Vogt, R., Kohsiek, W., DeBruin, H. A. R., Bernhofer,
C., Christen, A., van Gorsel, E., Grantz, D., Feigenwinter, C., Lehner, I.,
Liebethal, C., Liu, H., Mauder, M., Pitacco, A., Ribeiro, L., and Weidinger,
T.: The energy balance experiment EBEX-2000. Part I: Overview and energy
balance, Bound.-Lay. Meteorol., 123, 1–28,
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10546-007-9161-1, 2007.
Owor, M., Taylor, R. G., Tindimugaya, C., and Mwesigwa, D.: Rainfall intensity
and groundwater recharge: Empirical evidence from the Upper Nile Basin, Environ. Res. Lett., 4, 0–6, https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/4/3/035009,
2009.
Pomeroy, J. W. and Goodison, B. E.: Winter and snow, in: The surface climates of Canada, edited by: Bailey, W. G., Oke,
T. R., and Rouse, W. R., McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal, Quebec, 68–100, 1997.
Pomeroy, J. W., Gray, D. M., Shook, K. R., Toth, B., Essery, R. L. H.,
Pietroniro, A., and Hedstrom, N.: An evaluation of snow accumulation and
ablation processes for land surface modelling, Hydrol. Process., 12,
2339–2367, https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1085(199812)12:15<2339::AID-HYP800>3.0.CO;2-L,
1998.
Rauscher, S. A., Pal, J. S., Diffenbaugh, N. S., and Benedetti, M. M.: Future
changes in snowmelt-driven runoff timing over the western US, Geophys. Res.
Lett., 35, 1–5, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008GL034424, 2008.
Sauchyn, D. J. and Beaudoin, A. B.: Recent environmental change in the
Southwestern Canadian plains, Can. Geogr.-Geogr. Can., 42, 337–353,
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1541-0064.1998.tb01350.x, 1998.
Shepherd, A. and McGinn, S. M.: Assessment of climate change on the Canadian
Prairies from downscaled GCM data, Atmos. Ocean, 41, 301–316, https://doi.org/10.3137/ao.410404,
2003.
Shook, K. and Gray, D. M.: Snowmelt resulting from advection, Hydrol.
Process., 11, 1725–1736, https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1085(19971030)11:13<1725::AID-HYP601>3.0.CO;2-P,
1997.
Shook, K., Pomeroy, J., and van der Kamp, G.: The transformation of
frequency distributions of winter precipitation to spring streamflow
probabilities in cold regions; case studies from the Canadian Prairies, J.
Hydrol., 521, 394–409, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.12.014, 2015.
Stewart, I. T.: Changes in snowpack and snowmelt runoff for key mountain
regions, Hydrol. Process., 23, 78–94, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.7128, 2009.
Tetzlaff, D., Buttle, J., Carey, S. K., McGuire, K., Laudon, H., and Soulsby,
C.: Tracer-based assessment of flow paths, storage and runoff generation in
northern catchments: a review, Hydrol. Process., 29, 3475–3490,
https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.10412, 2015.
Trenberth, K. E., Dai, A., Rasmussen, R. M., and Parsons, D. B.: The changing
character of precipitation, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 84, 1205–1218, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-84-9-1205,
2003.
van der Kamp, G. and Hayashi, M.: The groundwater recharge function of small
wetlands in the semi-arid northern prairies, Gt. Plains Res., 8, 39–56,
1998.
van der Kamp, G., Hayashi, M., and Gallen, D.: Comparing the hydrology of
grassed and cultivated catchments in the semi-arid Canadian prairies,
Hydrol. Process., 17, 559–575, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.1157, 2003.
Vincent, L. A., Wang, X. L., Milewska, E. J., Wan, H., Yang, F., and Swail, V.:
A second generation of homogenized Canadian monthly surface air temperature
for climate trend analysis, J. Geophys. Res.-Atmos., 117, D18110, https://doi.org/10.1029/2012JD017859, 2012.
Vincent, L. A., Zhang, X., Mekis, É., Wan, H., and Bush, E. J.: Changes in
Canada's Climate: Trends in Indices Based on Daily Temperature and
Precipitation Data, Atmos. Ocean, 56, 332–349, https://doi.org/10.1080/07055900.2018.1514579, 2018.
Wang, R., Kumar, M., and Link, T. E.: Potential trends in snowmelt-generated
peak streamflows in a warming climate, Geophys. Res. Lett., 43, 5052–5059,
https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL068935, 2016.
Webb, E. K., Pearman, G. I., and Leuning, R.: Correction of flux measurements
for density effects due to heat and water vapour transfer, Q. J. Roy.
Meteor. Soc., 106, 85–100, https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.49710644707,
1980.
Wilczak, J. M., Oncley, S. P., and Stage, S. A.: Sonic anemometer tilt
correction algorithms, Bound.-Lay. Meteorol., 99, 127–150,
https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018966204465, 2001.
Zeeman, M. J., Mauder, M., Steinbrecher, R., Heidbach, K., Eckart, E., and
Schmid, H. P.: Reduced snow cover affects productivity of upland temperate
grasslands, Agr. Forest. Meteorol., 232, 514–526, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2016.09.002, 2017.
Zhou, H., Aizen, E., and Aizen, V.: Seasonal snow cover regime and
historical change in Central Asia from 1986 to 2008, Global Planet. Change,
148, 192–216, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2016.11.011, 2017.
Short summary
Midwinter melts are often an overlooked factor in hydrological processes in the cold regions. The present paper highlights the effect of melt timing on energy balance and discusses how midwinter melts affect streamflows and groundwater recharge.
Midwinter melts are often an overlooked factor in hydrological processes in the cold regions....