Snow distribution and heat flow in the taiga

Journal Article · Fri May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1992 · Arctic and Alpine Research (Boulder, Colorado); (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2307/1551534· OSTI ID:7161992

Sturm, M ^[1]

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1. US Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Lab., Fort Wainwright, AK (United States)

The trees of the taiga intercept falling snow and cause it to become distributed in an uneven fashion. Around aspen and birch, cone-shaped accumulations form. Beneath large spruce trees, the snow cover is depleted, forming a bowl-shaped depression called a tree well. Small spruce trees become covered with snow, creating cavities that funnel cold air to the snow/ground interface. The depletion of snow under large spruce trees results in greater heat loss from the ground. A finite difference model suggests that heat flow from tree wells can be more than twice that of undisturbed snow. In forested watersheds, this increase can be a significant percentage of the total winter energy exchange.

• OSTI ID: 7161992
• Journal Information: Arctic and Alpine Research (Boulder, Colorado); (United States), Journal Name: Arctic and Alpine Research (Boulder, Colorado); (United States) Vol. 24:2; ISSN ATLPAV; ISSN 0004-0851
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290301 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Environment
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& Safety-- Regional & Global Environmental Aspects-- (1992-)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540210* -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Basic Studies-- (1990-)
ALASKA
ASIA
ATMOSPHERIC PRECIPITATIONS
CALCULATION METHODS
CANADA
CONIFERS
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
DISTRIBUTION
ENERGY LOSSES
EUROPE
FINITE DIFFERENCE METHOD
FORESTS
HEAT FLOW
HEAT LOSSES
ITERATIVE METHODS
LOSSES
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NORTH AMERICA
NUMERICAL SOLUTION
PINOPHYTA
PLANTS
SIBERIA
SNOW
SOILS
SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION
SPRUCES
TREES
USA
USSR
WATERSHEDS