Brief communication: Impact of common ice mask in surface mass balance estimates over the Antarctic ice sheet

Hansen, Nicolaj; Simonsen, Sebastian B.; Boberg, Fredrik; Kittel, Christoph; Orr, Andrew ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5111-8402; Souverijns, Niels; van Wessem, J. Melchior; Mottram, Ruth. 2022 Brief communication: Impact of common ice mask in surface mass balance estimates over the Antarctic ice sheet. The Cryosphere, 16 (2). 711-718. 10.5194/tc-16-711-2022

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-711-2022

Abstract/Summary

Regional climate models compute ice sheet surface mass balance (SMB) over a mask that defines the area covered by glacier ice, but ice masks have not been harmonised between models. Intercomparison studies of modelled SMB therefore use a common ice mask. The SMB in areas outside the common ice mask, which are typically coastal and high-precipitation regions, is discarded. Ice mask differences change integrated SMB by between 40.5 and 140.6 Gt yr(-1) (1.8 % to 6.0 % of ensemble mean SMB), equivalent to the entire Antarctic mass imbalance. We conclude there is a pressing need for a common ice mask protocol.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.5194/tc-16-711-2022
ISSN:	1994-0424
Additional Keywords:	Regional climate model, elevation model
Date made live:	16 Mar 2022 08:28 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/532267

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

10.5194/tc-16-711-2022

ISSN:

1994-0424

Additional Keywords:

Regional climate model, elevation model

Date made live:

16 Mar 2022 08:28 +0 (UTC)

URI:

https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/532267