Brief communication: Firn data compilation reveals the evolution ofthe firn air content on the Greenland ice sheet
2018
Abstract. The
firncovering the
Greenland ice sheetinterior can retain part of the surface melt, buffering the ice sheet’s contribution to sea level, but its characteristics are still little known. Using remote-sensing observations from 2000–2017, we estimate that
firncovers 1,405,500 ± 17,250 km 2 of the
ice sheet. We present 344
firn-core-derived observations of the top 10 m
firnair content (FAC 10 ), indicative of the firn’s
meltwaterretention capacity. FAC 10 remained stable in the coldest 74 % of the
firnarea during 1953–2017, while FAC 10 decreased in the warmest and driest 12 % of the
firnarea between 1997–2008 and 2011–2017, resulting in a loss of 180 ± 78 km 3 (−26 ± 11 %) of air from the near-surface
firn.
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