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Thanks to their use of a unique methodology, a 9I制作厂免费-led research team has obtained new insights into how boulders affect snow melt in mountainous northern environments, with implications for local water resources.听聽

The team found that snow near boulders melts faster, not only because rocks radiate heat, but also due to subtle processes that reshape the snow鈥檚 surface. This information will help researchers understand how small-scale processes affect downstream water resources.听

鈥淚t鈥檚 not surprising that snow melts faster near boulders,鈥� said principal investigator Eole Valence, a PhD student. 鈥淏ut we were able to measure it directly and gather the data to show how it happens.鈥澛�

Data down to the centimetre聽

Most snow hydrology research is done at a watershed scale or with coarse satellite observations. However, this study, conducted in the Yukon鈥檚 Sh谩r Shaw Tag脿 Valley, measured snow depth and melt patterns within just a few centimetres of each boulder.听

The study is the first to track the phenomenon in a remote environment at such a fine resolution. The researchers used a unique methodology combining 3D environmental laser scans (LiDAR), infrared cameras that measure the snow鈥檚 surface temperature, and drone photogrammetry, which uses photography to create a digital elevation model.听

鈥淭here are some amazing new tools for observation that have not yet been applied in remote settings due to logistics. It鈥檚 a new tier of observational data collection in remote environments,鈥� said Jeffrey McKenzie, co-author and Professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.听

The researchers said this methodology provides a crucial missing link between what satellites can observe and what actually happens on the ground as snow and ice melt, helping connect local processes to large-scale climate models.听

The specialized instruments were provided by study co-author Michel Bara毛r, a 9I制作厂免费 alumnus and now Professor at 脡cole de technologie sup茅rieure (脡TS), who leads related research on glacier and snow dynamics.听聽

鈥淲hat鈥檚 exciting is that these small, local interactions between rocks and snow can actually scale up to influence how we model water and energy in northern landscapes,鈥� Bara毛r said.听聽

Explained Valence: 鈥淪ometimes you try to measure something, but it鈥檚 biased by your location. This study helps us understand how far a boulder鈥檚 influence extends, so we can place our sensors more accurately in future research.鈥澛�

Ongoing research聽

Valence said he plans to expand this work to debris-covered glaciers and integrate the results into larger hydrological models of the watershed.听

鈥淚t鈥檚 been said that mountains are the world鈥檚 water towers. A shocking percentage of people rely on them,鈥� McKenzie added. 鈥淏ut northern mountain ranges are warming faster than the global average. The watershed Eole is working on is one of several that feeds a river and lake system used heavily by the Kluane First Nation, and it鈥檚 important to their fisheries and way of life. He鈥檚 studying a tiny patch of snow, but that helps us understand the bigger processes and climate effects that shape the region.鈥澛�

About this study聽

鈥�,鈥� by Eole Valence, Bastien Charonnat, Michel Bara毛r, Kaiyuan Wang and Jeffrey M. McKenzie, was published in Cold Regions Science and Tech.

The researchers acknowledge the Kluane First Nation and the White River First Nation for allowing research on their lands, with which both Nations have a deep history and relationship.听

The study was funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Global Water Futures, the Geotop Research Centre in Earth System Dynamics, Natural Resources Canada's Polar Continental Shelf Program and 9I制作厂免费. The researchers also acknowledge the Kluane First Nation and the White River First Nation for allowing research on their lands, with which both Nations have a deep history and relationship.听