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Ice-free glacial northern Asia due to dust deposition on snow

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Abstract

During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 21 kyr BP), no large ice sheets were present in northern Asia, while northern Europe and North America (except Alaska) were heavily glaciated. We use a general circulation model with high regional resolution and a new parameterization of snow albedo to show that the ice-free conditions in northern Asia during the LGM are favoured by strong glacial dust deposition on the seasonal snow cover. Our climate model simulations indicate that mineral dust deposition on the snow surface leads to low snow albedo during the melt season. This, in turn, caused enhanced snow melt and therefore favoured snow-free peak summer conditions over almost the entire Asian continent during the LGM, whereas perennial snow cover is simulated over a large part of eastern Siberia when glacial dust deposition is not taken into account.

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Acknowledgments

This project was supported by the Fonds National de la Science (ACI Changement Climatique et Cryosphère). The simulations were carried out on the MIRAGE computer platform in Grenoble. We thank N. Mahowald for making her simulated present and glacial dust deposition fields available to us. The authors acknowledge the help of B. Crouzille in coding the snow albedo routine.

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Author notes

  1. Olivier Boucher

    Present address: Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research, Met Office, FitzRoy Road, Exeter, EX1 3PB, UK

Authors and Affiliations

  1. LGGE, CNRS-UJF Grenoble, BP 96, 38402, Saint Martin d’Hères, France

    Gerhard Krinner

  2. LOA, CNRS-Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, 59655, Villeneuve d’Ascq, France

    Olivier Boucher

  3. LSCE, CEA/CNRS Saclay, 91191, Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France

    Yves Balkanski

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  1. Gerhard Krinner
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Correspondence to Gerhard Krinner.

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Krinner, G., Boucher, O. & Balkanski, Y. Ice-free glacial northern Asia due to dust deposition on snow. Clim Dyn 27, 613–625 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-006-0159-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-006-0159-z

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