02859nas a2200181 4500008004100000245009200041210006900133260001200202300001400214490000700228520227800235100002002513700002502533700002402558700002102582700002002603856005402623 2024 eng d00aThe application and modification of WRF-Hydro/Glacier to a cold-based Antarctic glacier0 aapplication and modification of WRFHydroGlacier to a coldbased A c02/2024 a459 - 4780 v283 a

The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) are home to a unique microbial ecosystem that is dependent on the availability of freshwater. This is a polar desert and freshwater originates almost entirely from surface and near-surface melt of the cold-based glaciers. Understanding the future evolution of these environments requires the simulation of the full chain of physical processes from net radiative forcing, surface energy balance, melt, runoff and transport of meltwater in stream channels from the glaciers to the terminal lakes where the microbial community resides. To establish a new framework to do this, we present the first application of WRF-Hydro/Glacier in the MDV, which as a fully distributed hydrological model has the capability to resolve the streams from the glaciers to the bare land that surround them. Given that meltwater generation in the MDV is almost entirely dependent on small changes in the energy balance of the glaciers, the aim of this study is to optimize the multi-layer snowpack scheme that is embedded in WRF-Hydro/Glacier to ensure that the feedbacks between albedo, snowfall and melt are fully resolved. To achieve this, WRF-Hydro/Glacier is implemented at a point scale using automatic weather station data on Commonwealth Glacier to physically model the onset, duration and end of melt over a 7-month period (1 August 2021 to 28 February 2022). To resolve the limited energetics controlling melt, it was necessary to (1) limit the percolation of meltwater through the ice layers in the multi-layer snowpack scheme and (2) optimize the parameters controlling the albedo of both snow and ice over the melt season based on observed spectral signatures of albedo. These modifications enabled the variability of broadband albedo over the melt season to be accurately simulated and ensured that modelled surface and near-surface temperatures, surface height change and runoff were fully resolved. By establishing a new framework that couples a detailed snowpack model to a fully distributed hydrological model, this work provides a stepping stone to model the spatial and temporal variability of melt and streamflow in the future, which will enable some of the unknown questions about the hydrological connectivity of the MDV to be answered.

1 aPletzer, Tamara1 aConway, Jonathan, P.1 aCullen, Nicolas, J.1 aEidhammer, Trude1 aKaturji, Marwan uhttps://hess.copernicus.org/articles/28/459/2024/02348nas a2200253 4500008004100000022001400041245009900055210006900154260001200223300001100235520137700246653002501623653001901648653002401667653003201691653001701723100002601740700002401766700002501790700002501815700003201840700002001872856020201892 2023 eng d a0022-143000aMeteorological drivers of melt at two nearby glaciers in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica0 aMeteorological drivers of melt at two nearby glaciers in the McM c12/2023 a1 - 133 a

We study the meteorological drivers of melt at two glaciers in Taylor Valley, Antarctica, using 22 years of weather station observations and surface energy fluxes. The glaciers are located only 30 km apart, but have different local climates; Taylor Glacier is generally drier and windier than Commonwealth Glacier, which receives more snowfall due to its proximity to the coast. Commonwealth Glacier shows more inter-annual melt variability, explained by variable albedo due to summer snowfall events. A significant increase in surface melt at Commonwealth Glacier is associated with a decrease in summer minimum albedo. Inter-annual variability in melt at both glaciers is linked to degree-days above freezing during föhn events, occurring more frequently at Taylor Glacier. At Taylor Glacier melt occurs most often with positive air temperatures, but föhn conditions also favour sublimation, which cools the surface and prevents melt for the majority of the positive air temperatures. At Commonwealth Glacier, most of the melt instead occurs with sub-zero air temperatures, driven by strong solar radiative heating. Future melt at Taylor Glacier will likely be more sensitive to changes in föhn events, while Commonwealth Glacier will be impacted more by changes in near coastal weather, where moisture inputs can drive cloud cover, snowfall and change albedo.

10aAntarctic glaciology10aenergy balance10aglacier meteorology10aice/atmosphere interactions10amelt-surface1 aHofsteenge, Marte, G.1 aCullen, Nicolas, J.1 aConway, Jonathan, P.1 aReijmer, Carleen, H.1 avan den Broeke, Michiel, R.1 aKaturji, Marwan uhttps://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-glaciology/article/meteorological-drivers-of-melt-at-two-nearby-glaciers-in-the-mcmurdo-dry-valleys-of-antarctica/2B8ED17DEC26AB5F0905BC4C7ACA02FA02353nas a2200397 4500008004100000245012200041210006900163260001200232490000600244520115100250100002101401700002501422700002101447700002101468700001401489700002201503700001701525700002201542700001701564700002001581700002001601700002401621700002201645700001901667700002401686700002401710700001701734700002301751700002001774700001801794700002401812700002201836700002401858700001901882856005401901 2019 eng d00aBiotic interactions are an unexpected yet critical control on the complexity of an abiotically driven polar ecosystem0 aBiotic interactions are an unexpected yet critical control on th c02/20190 v23 a

Abiotic and biotic factors control ecosystem biodiversity, but their relative contributions remain unclear. The ultraoligotrophic ecosystem of the Antarctic Dry Valleys, a simple yet highly heterogeneous ecosystem, is a natural laboratory well-suited for resolving the abiotic and biotic controls of community structure. We undertook a multidisciplinary investigation to capture ecologically relevant biotic and abiotic attributes of more than 500 sites in the Dry Valleys, encompassing observed landscape heterogeneities across more than 200 km2. Using richness of autotrophic and heterotrophic taxa as a proxy for functional complexity, we linked measured variables in a parsimonious yet comprehensive structural equation model that explained significant variations in biological complexity and identified landscape-scale and fine-scale abiotic factors as the primary drivers of diversity. However, the inclusion of linkages among functional groups was essential for constructing the best-fitting model. Our findings support the notion that biotic interactions make crucial contributions even in an extremely simple ecosystem.

1 aLee, Charles, K.1 aLaughlin, Daniel, C.1 aBottos, Eric, M.1 aCaruso, Tancredi1 aJoy, Kurt1 aBarrett, John, E.1 aBrabyn, Lars1 aNielsen, Uffe, N.1 aAdams, Byron1 aWall, Diana, H.1 aHopkins, D., W.1 aPointing, Steve, B.1 aMcDonald, Ian, R.1 aCowan, Don, A.1 aBanks, Jonathan, C.1 aStichbury, Glen, A.1 aJones, Irfon1 aZawar-Reza, Peyman1 aKaturji, Marwan1 aHogg, Ian, D.1 aSparrow, Ashley, D.1 aStorey, Bryan, C.1 aGreen, T., G. Allan1 aCary, Craig, S uhttps://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-018-0274-502454nas a2200289 4500008004100000022001400041245011100055210006900166260001200235300001600247490000700263520153600270653001501806653001501821653003701836653002101873653002401894653003201918100002001950700001601970700002601986700002102012700001402033700002302047700001502070856007902085 2019 eng d a1558-842400aMeteorological connectivity from regions of high biodiversity within the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica0 aMeteorological connectivity from regions of high biodiversity wi c11/2019 a2437 - 24520 v583 a

Meteorological connectivity between biological hot spots of the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs) of Antarctica is thought to play a role in species distribution and abundance through the aeolian transport of bioaerosols. Understanding the potential role of such meteorological connectivity requires an understanding of near-surface wind flow within and between valley airsheds. To address this, we applied Lagrangian wind trajectory modeling to mesoscale (spatial resolution of ~1 km) weather model output to predict connectivity pathways, focusing on regions of high biodiversity. Our models produce maps of a likelihood metric of wind connectivity that demonstrate the synoptic and mesoscale dependence of connections between local, near-local, and nonlocal areas on wind transport, modulated by synoptic weather and topographic forcing. These connectivity areas can have spatial trends modulated by the synoptic weather patterns and locally induced topographically forced winds. This method is transferrable to other regions of Antarctica for broader terrestrial, coastal, and offshore ecological connectivity research. Also, our analysis and methods can inform better placement of aeolian dust and bioaerosol samplers in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, provide preliminary guidelines behind the meteorological controls of sediment transport and smaller particle distribution, and present quantifiable knowledge informing new hypotheses around the potential of wind acting as a physical driver for biological connectivity in the MDVs.

10aAntarctica10aatmosphere10abiosphere-atmosphere interaction10amesoscale models10amesoscale processes10anumerical analysis/modeling1 aKaturji, Marwan1 aKhan, Basit1 aSprenger, Michael, A.1 aDatta, Rajasweta1 aJoy, Kurt1 aZawar-Reza, Peyman1 aHawes, Ian uhttps://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/apme/58/11/jamc-d-18-0336.1.xml