Since the middle of the 20th century, the average temperature of the atmosphere near Earthsurface has increased. The global warming causes many effects in hydrological systems, suchas changes in thermal structure, water quality, aquatic ecosystems, etc. This thesis studies theimpact of climate change on Akkajaure reservoir, the second largest regulated reservoir inSweden, by simulating a predicted temperature rise based on the climate and hydrologicalconditions of Akkajaure in 1998-2002. The congeal duration, ice thickness and the turbulentkinetic energy (TKE) in the lake were calculated by the catchment hydrological model and thelake model. The movement of phytoplankton and their mean net production (MeanNP) rateare simulated by the dispersion model and the photosynthesis model. By comparing thesimulation results of past situation and three predicted scenarios, it is obtained that theincreases of temperature shorten the congeal duration, which is a lead factor for shortening thetrough period and amplification of peak value of TKE. The comparison of plankton particlesposition illustrates that the particles stay in a deeper position for a longer time because of thechanges of TKE. Though the plankton stays in euphotic zone longer as the temperatureincreases, the comparison of the mean production rate between the real scenario and thepredicted scenarios concludes that the mean production rate grows as the temperatureincreases because the shortened ice cover period makes the duration of absorbed sunlightincreases in lake. The effects of global warming may influence the distribution of microalgaein on high latitude lakes and reservoirs. The phytoplankton will stay in deeper water layers fora longer time.

The Mesozoic is punctuated by several rapid global warming events that are marked by the worldwide deposition of organic-rich marine sediments. These events, known as oceanic anoxic events (OAEs), are characterised by intervals where the worldwide carbon cycle suffers a disruption due to major palaeoceanographic and climatic shifts, leading to anoxic marine environments and the creation of black shales. For this study, the Oceanic Anoxic Event 1a (OAE 1a), which occurred during the Early Cretaceous Aptian age (~120 Ma) was analysed. It was likely triggered by the Greater Ontong Java underwater volcanic event and is associated with major changes in marine environments and ecosystems, including nekton and plankton turnover, and sea water composition changes. The impact of this event on terrestrial land-based ecosystems is, however, less well understood. Here I document well preserved and diverse spore-pollen assemblages spanning OAE 1a from southern Sweden by examining the Höllviken I core. Before the OAE, palynofloras are dominated by conifers, suggestive of a relatively mild and dry coastal environment. At the onset of the OAE a fern spike occurs, where there is a shift to early successional stage vegetation. Gymnosperm diversity and abundance sharply decrease, and the palynofloral assemblages become dominated by ferns, indicating a shift to warm and wet conditions. Gymnosperms gradually recover thereafter, but the formerly abundant conifer pollen Classopollis does not recover and remains rare. Dinoflagellate cysts and microforaminiferal test linings increase in abundance after OAE 1a, suggesting a higher degree of marine influence. These findings show that OAE 1a had a substantial impact on the composition and diversity of high latitude terrestrial vegetation and marine plankton communities. / <p>The work for this thesis was financially supported by the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree PANGEA programme.</p>

Research over the years has established that the Gradient Drift Instability process causes small-scale irregularities, mostly along the edges of the high-latitude polar cap patches. Studying these irregularities will help in the development of a global Scale Ionospheric model, which is a central part of a global space weather forecast system. Much theoretical work has been done with varying degrees of complexity to study this instability in the high latitude patches. In this work we have used the Utah State University Time Dependent Ionospheric Model to model the high-latitude patches, calculate the growth rate of the instability, and perform a macro-scale study of the phenomenon. This is the first time that real ionospheric values have been used to calculate the growth rate and to provide two-dimensional maps identifying Gradient Drift Instability-caused irregularity regions in the polar cap. Our research shows that regions of intense instability occur along the edges of the tongue of ionization and its throat regions with strong rates along the borders of the cusp region.

High-latitude reefs have been postulated as refugia, centers for resilience or the first areas to undergo re-organization under climate change. The Southeast Florida Reef Tract (SEFRT) is a high-latitude reef system (>25 °N) running parallel to the highly urbanized coastline of southeast Florida. With a benthic community comprised of a mixture of coral reef associated assemblages, the SEFRT is towards the northern limit of stony coral cover due to temperature constraints. This study analyzed spatial variations in benthic cover, spatiotemporal changes in the benthic community and the impact of spatial and temporal fluctuations in temperature on benthic cover on the SEFRT, from 2007-2016. Photographic data from two long term monitoring projects was used to calculate the percent cover of taxonomic assemblages in the benthic community. In situ temperature data and modelled data from HYCOM were used in combination to assess the impact of temperature fluctuations and thermal stress events. Data was split on a latitudinal gradient into six defined ecosystem regions based on biogeographic boundaries and at major port channels. These accounted for any possible range expansion and spatiotemporal variations on the SEFRT. Statistical analysis via generalized linear models (GLM) identified significant changes in the major benthic taxa, stony coral, octocoral, sponges and macroalgae. Ecosystem regions showed strong clustering by their taxonomic composition and this was in part created by temperature variation. Stony coral cover significantly declined on the SEFRT and a concomitant significant increase in macroalgae cover may create a negative feedback loop which hinders recovery. Spatiotemporal variations in benthic cover were found between ecosystem regions and thermal stress events, both hot and cold, had immediate and latent impacts on benthic cover. This has resulted in biotic homogenization on the SEFRT with a retraction of outlier regions towards the mean. Anthropogenically influenced high-latitude reefs are significantly impacted by thermal stress. As oceans continue to warm, populations expand, coastlines continue to develop and pollutants persist, the benefits of potential thermal refugia are negated.

<p> "Jason's Creek" is a stream draining 2.2 km^2 of arctic limestone terrain. Its annual regime consists of a ten-month period in which it is frozen to its bed, a short spring flood which occurs shortly after tenperatures cross the freezing-point in late June, and a period of about two months during which discharge is relatively low and fluctuates diurnally in response to inputs of radiative and heat energy to the snowpack. In 1970, the spring flood occupied the first two weeks of July and effected the discharge of some nine-tenths of total annual runoff. Tne low flow period was punctuated by rainstorms which generated sharply-defined floods: basin response was rapid and efficient, for storm runoff is facilitated over the unvegetated ground and through the shallow active layer above the permafrost table. Covariance and spectral analyses suggest a basin lag time of five hours, both for low discharges of snowmelt water and flood discharge of rainwater. It appears, from the spectra of the time series, that radiation is a better index of snowmelt discharge than is temperature.</p> <p> Most of the annual removal of sediment from the basin takes place during the spring flood, when the stream is turbid and movement of channel bed material is vigorous, In the longer period after the flood the main component of stream load is the solute load. The concentration of dissolved material varies inversely while suspended sediment concentration varies directly with discharge. Solute concentrations are lower than those commonly found in limestone streams at lower latitudes, suggesting that in "Jason's Creek" the increased solubility of CO2 at low temperatures is more than counteracted by a decrease in the rate of solution of CaCO3. There are also indications that the concentration of CO2 in snowmelt water 2 may be smaller, in absolute terms, than in rainwater.</p> <p> The role of water is crucial in many processes acting on slopes and delivering detritus to stream channels; rills, for example, remove ions in solution and fine particles in suspension, notably from the base of talus slopes, and lubrication of the active layer after rainstorms generates bowl-slide and mudflow activity.</p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Electron density irregularities influence Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals, manifesting as ionospheric scintillation. Scintillation poses a service risk to safety-critical GNSS applications at high latitudes. It is difficult to predict, as ionospheric instability processes are not yet fully characterised. This research combines the fields of ionospheric imaging and scintillation monitoring, to investigate the causes of scintillation in the Antarctic and Arctic. Results revealed a plasma patch structure above Antarctica, in response to the impact of a solar wind shock front. Measurements from a network of Global Positioning System scintillation receivers across the continent revealed moderate levels of phase scintillation associated with Total Electron Content (TEC) gradients at the patch break-off point. Scintillation was also driven by solar particle precipitation at E and F region altitudes, verified with in situ spectrometers on polar-orbiting satellites. The current receiver coverage in the region provided the Multi-Instrument Data Analysis Software (MIDAS) tomography tool with sufficient data to track the lifetime of the plasma patch without a convection model. A second experiment was performed at the South Pole, using a collocated GPS scintillation receiver and auroral imager. This allowed simultaneous line-of-sight tracking of GPS signals through the optical auroral emissions. Results showed the first statistical evidence that auroral emissions can be used a proxy for ionospheric irregularities causing GPS scintillation. The relationship was strongest during the presence of discrete auroral arcs. Correlation levels of up to 74% were found over periods of 2-3 hours. The use of multiple emission wavelengths provided basic altitude discrimination. Current capability of ionospheric TEC mapping in the Arctic was tested, where GPS receiver distribution is extensive compared to present Antarctic coverage. Analysis of the ionosphere’s response to a storm event revealed a sequential picture of polar cap patch activity, without the aid of plasma convection modelling. The electron density enhancements of the auroral oval were imaged in completeness for the first time using GPS tomography. Reconstructions were verified using ultraviolet auroral imagery from polar-orbit satellites, and vertical profiles from an incoherent scatter radar.

By examining continuous data from the Poker Flat Incoherent Scatter Radar (PFISR) in Poker Flat, Alaska, short-lived enhancements in the F-region ion temperature, or "Tᵢ spikes", were discovered in the evening while the radar was on the equatorward edge of the high latitude convection region. These enhancements were several hundred Kelvin above the background temperature, would last less than 15 minutes and were preceded by sharp depletions in plasma density (of roughly one half). Though they were mostly detected in the summer, 25 events throughout a whole year of data were identi ed in which the spike occurred within 1.5 hours of the density drop. By examining the location of PFISR at the time of the enhancements, as well as the conditions under which these spikes occurred, it was concluded that these enhancements were the result of electric elds increasing the frictional heating between ions and neutrals. By then examining geophysical data, it was found that these events were temporal and related to changes in magnetic indices. One possible explanation for the observations is that the electric eld is at its strongest near the plasmapause during substorms. Another more likely possibility is that during substorms the region of sunward ion convection expands into a region in the evening side where the neutral gas moves in a direction opposite to the ions, thereby enhancing the frictional heating rate.

Here we investigate sedimentological responses to past climate change in shallow to deep marine depositional environments. Our primary study spans from the Late Pliocene to the Pleistocene (3.3 to 0.7 Ma), and features results from two International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Sites U1525 and U1524. Each of these sites is discussed in separate chapters here (Chapters 1 and 2). This interval experienced the change from the warming of the Late Pliocene, known as the Mid-Piacenzian Warming Period, to the Pleistocene cooling. This shift significantly impacted the expansion of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, sea ice/polynya formation, and, notably, the genesis of Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW), a crucial component of the global thermohaline circulation. In Chapter 1, we propose that turbidite currents, arising from the formation of dense shelf water (DSW) in the Ross Sea (a precursor to AABW), leave a distinct record in the levees of Hillary Canyon. This canyon acts as a conduit, channeling DSW into the deep ocean and contributing to AABW production. By analyzing turbidite beds based on their frequency, thickness, and grain size, we gain insights into the historical occurrence and magnitude of these currents. Furthermore, we explore the influence of factors such as shelf availability and sea ice/polynya formation within the broader climate context of AABW formation. Chapter 2 shifts its focus to the sedimentological variability from shelf-to-slope along Hillary Canyon. This chapter examines the turbidite record associated with AABW formation within the shared timeframe (2.1 to 0.7 million years ago) between IODP Sites U1524 and U1525, and the impact of along slope currents and other processes in the sedimentary deposition and transport. The second study interval (Chapter 3), focuses on the regional sedimentological response proximal to a hydrothermal vent complex associated with the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM; ca. 56 Ma), a global warming event during which thousands of Gt C was released into the ocean-atmosphere on Kyr timescales. IODP Site U1568, strategically located near the hydrothermal vent complex and part of a broader drilling transect in the Modgunn Arch, North Atlantic, is the main study subject. This site's proximity to the vent complex offers a distinctive environment for refining our understanding of stratigraphy and sedimentology within the PETM. We achieve this through a comprehensive analysis of grain size and composition, coupled with a comparison to XRF data. Our findings show that the timing between the onset of the PETM and the response of the sedimentary system to the warming, reflected in the grain size coarsening after the start of the PETM, is not synchronous. Notably, the transition from a marine to a more terrestrial composition predates this shift in grain size, aligning with the PETM onset instead. / Doctor of Philosophy / Deep-marine core records are invaluable sources of sedimentological information that provide insights into the ocean's response to past climates. These cores, extracted from the deep-ocean floor, contain layers of sediment that accumulate over time because of the different processes that occur in the ocean. Analyzing these sediments, by looking at their physical characteristics like how frequently are they deposited, the thickness of the layers, their grain size, and their composition helps to reconstruct past environmental conditions and understand how the oceans have responded to climatic changes. This dissertation focuses on studying the record of two main processes. The first one is the sedimentary record left behind by the formation of Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW), one of the coldest (-1°C), deepest (> 2000 meters below sea level), and densest water masses in the ocean. AABW is a key component of the global ocean circulation system, often referred to as the "global conveyor belt" or the thermohaline circulation. This circulation pattern plays a crucial role in redistributing heat, salt, and nutrients around the world's oceans. AABW is formed near Antarctica through a process that begins with the cooling and sinking of surface waters near the continent. As these waters sink, they become denser and eventually form AABW, filling the deep ocean basins around Antarctica. The dense water flows from the surface to the bottom of the ocean forming turbidity currents. These turbidity currents, dense plumes of water and sediments, flow down submarine conduits, such as Hillary Canyon in the Ross Sea, Antarctica, leaving a sedimentary record in the levees or flanks, called turbidites. The turbidite sequences in sediment cores can reveal information about the frequency and magnitude of these currents, providing insights into the sediment transport processes in deep-marine settings, and for this work, the history of the AABW formation over the last 3.3 Ma. This study will help to understand what are the main controls for AABW formation across different climates in the past, and how we project this into the future climate scenarios. In the second part of the study (Chapter 3), we look at the sedimentary record of a warming event that happened around 56 million years ago. This event, known as the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), involved a significant amount of carbon being released into the air and oceans over thousands of years (150,000 to 200,000). Our focus is IODP Site U1568, located near a submarine hydrothermal vent, and part of a larger drilling transect in the North Atlantic's Modgunn Arch. The vent's unique location provides a crucial perspective for understanding how the system responded to the warming during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). This warming event was triggered by the release of carbon into the atmosphere, with the vent serving as one of the conduits for this release. To understand this, we studied the grain size and content of the sediment, and compared that with XRF data. Changes in grain size serve as indicators of shifts in the energy of the environment – coarser grains signify a more energetic system. Warmer weather, for instance, can increase precipitation, leading to more erosion and sediment influx into the basin. This influx also brings in more materials from the land, as evidenced by the presence of microfossils and plant fragments. Our discoveries indicate that the sedimentary system responded gradually to the PETM, as reflected in the coarsening of grain size after the PETM's onset. Notably, the transition from a marine to a more terrestrial composition occurred before the change in grain size, aligning more closely with the initiation of the PETM itself.

The representation of high-latitude surface processes and quantifying surface-climate feedbacks are some of the most serious shortcomings of present day Arctic land surface modelling. The energy balance of seasonally snow-covered sparse deciduous forests at high latitudes is poorly understood and inaccurately represented within hydrological and climate models. Snow cover plays an important role in wintertime fluxes of energy, water and carbon, controlling the length of the active growing season and hence the overall carbon balance of Arctic ecosystems. Snow cover is non-uniform and spatially variable, as wind redistributes snow from areas of exposed open tundra to sheltered areas within the forest, where a deeper snowpack develops. Low solar zenith angles, coupled with sparse deciduous leafless trees, cast shadows across the snow surface. The spatial distribution of canopy gaps determines the timing of direct radiation which penetrates down through the canopy to the snow surface. The forest canopy also excludes incoming longwave radiation and yet also emits longwave radiation to the snow surface. Consequently the forest canopy plays a key role in the radiation balance of sparse forests. To improve our knowledge of these complex processes, meteorological and field observations were taken in an area of highly heterogeneous birch Betula pubescens ssp. czerepanovii forest in Abisko, Sweden during the spring of 2008 and 2009. Detailed measurements of short and longwave radiation above and below the canopy, hemispherical photographs, tree temperatures and snow surveys were conducted to quantify the radiation balance of the sparse deciduous forest. An array of below canopy pyranometers found the mean canopy transmissivity to be 74 % in 2008 and 76 % in 2009. Hemispherical photographs taken at the pyranometer locations analysed with Gap Light Analyzer (GLA) showed reasonable agreement with a mean canopy transmissivity of 75 % in 2008 and 74 % in 2009. The canopy transmissivity was found to be independent of the diffuse fraction of radiation as the canopy is very sparse. A series of survey grids and transects were established to scale up from the below canopy pyranometers to the landscape scale. Hemispherical photographs analysed with GLA showed the sparse forest canopy had a mean transmissivity of 78 % and a mean LAI of 0.25, whereas the open tundra had a mean transmissivity of 97 % and a mean LAI of < 0.01. Snow surveys showed the sparse forest snow depth to vary between 0.34 and 0.55 m, whereas the snow depth in the open tundra varied between 0.12 and 0.18 m. Observations of canopy temperatures showed a strong influence of incident shortwave radiation warming the tree branches to temperatures up to 15 °C warmer than ambient air temperature on the south facing sides of the trees, and up to 6 °C on the north facing sides of the trees. To reproduce the observed radiation balance, two canopy models (Homogenous and Clumped) were developed. The Homogeneous canopy model assumes a single tree tile with a uniform sparse canopy. The Clumped canopy model assumes a tree and a grass tile, where the tree tile is permanently in shade from the canopy and the grass tile receives all the incoming radiation. These canopy models identified the need for a parameter that accounts for the spatial and temporal variation of the shaded gaps within the sparse forest. JULES (Joint UK Land Environment Simulator) is the community land surface model used in the UK Hadley Centre GCM suite. Modifications of the land-surface interactions were included in JULES to represent the shaded gaps within the sparse deciduous forest. New parameterisations were developed for the time-varying sunlit fractions of the gap (flit), the sky-view fraction (fv), and the longwave radiation emitted from the canopy (LWtree). These model developments were informed by field observations of the forest canopy and evaluated against the below canopy short and longwave radiation observed data sets. The JULES Shaded gap model output showed a strong positive relationship with the observations of below canopy shortwave and longwave radiation. The JULES Shaded gap model improves the ratio of observed to modelled short and longwave radiation on sunny days compared to the JULES model. The JULES Shaded gap model reduces the time to snow melt by 2 to 4 days compared to the JULES model, making the model output more aligned with in-situ observational data. This shortening of the modelled snow-season directly impacts on the simulated carbon and water balance regionally and has wider relevance at the pan-Arctic scale. When JULES Shaded Gap was evaluated on the global scale, it improved the modelled snowmass across large areas of sparse forest in northern Canada, Scandinavia and Northern Russia with respect to GlobSnow. The performance of the land surface-snow-vegetation interactions of JULES was improved by using the Shaded gap to model the radiation balance of sparse forests in climate-sensitive Arctic regions. Furthermore these observational data can be used to develop and evaluate high latitude land-surface processes and biogeochemical feedbacks in other earth system models.