Nonlinear responses in interannual variability of lake ice to climate change

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DOI

  • David C. Richardson
    SUNY New Paltz, NY
  • Alessandro Filazzola
    Apex Resource Management Solutions, Ottawa
  • R. Iestyn Woolway
  • M. Arshad Imrit
    York University, Toronto
  • Damien Bouffard
    Eawag Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology
  • Gesa A. Weyhenmeyer
    Uppsala University
  • John Magnuson
    University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Sapna Sharma
    York University, Toronto
Abstract Climate change is contributing to rapid changes in lake ice cover across the Northern Hemisphere, thereby impacting local communities and ecosystems. Using lake ice cover time-series spanning over 87?yr for 43 lakes across the Northern Hemisphere, we found that the interannual variability in ice duration, measured as standard deviation, significantly increased in only half of our studied lakes. We observed that the interannual variability in ice duration peaked when lakes were, on average, covered by ice for about 1?month, while both longer and shorter long-term mean ice cover duration resulted in lower interannual variability in ice duration. These results demonstrate that the ice cover duration can become so short that the interannual variability rapidly declines. The interannual variability in ice duration showed a strong dependency on global temperature anomalies and teleconnections, such as the North Atlantic Oscillation and El Niño?Southern Oscillation. We conclude that many lakes across the Northern Hemisphere will experience a decline in interannual ice cover variability and shift to open water during the winter under a continued global warming trend which will affect lake biological, cultural, and economic processes.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)789-801
Number of pages13
JournalLimnology and Oceanography
Volume69
Issue number4
Early online date21 Feb 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Apr 2024
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