This Masters Thesis describes the continuation of the Snow Probe development. The focus of this project was to establish the rotational shear vane as a useful tool in avalanche safety work as well as develop a robust method for measuring the applied torque. A new and novel way of measuring the torque on a rotational shear vane has been developed to illustrate its effectiveness. The new system measures the power supplied to a cordless drill to get an indication of the applied torque. This was done because it was found that the earlier method of using a strain gauge/cantilever system repeatedly failed to work, largely due to complexity. The snow probe in its present embodiment has been shown to provide a good clear indication of the snow profile under easily repeated circumstances. Shear strength results are at this stage not sufficiently for reliable quantitative results. However the probe in its present form is able to give pictorial impressions of the snow pack that compare well to current hand hardness profiles derived from snow pit methods. Even in its current form the snow probe is able to collect useful snow profile data in a matter of minutes, much quicker than conventional snow pit methods. A loose relationship was found to exist between the approach angle of a shear vane blade and the clarity of the snow profile. These relationships are relatively inaccurate at present due to lack of rotational velocity data and therefore pproach angle data. It is believed that the addition of a rotation counter would greatly increase the accuracy of the probe results and enable a shear strength profile to be quantified. Further developments and testing are underway with a view to forming a company around the snow probe.

L'augmentation de l'accumulation de neige simulée en Antarctique de l'Est pour le siècle à venir est une contribution négative à la hausse du niveau moyen des mers. Les modèles climatiques simulant cette augmentation ne possèdent pas de paramétrisation du transport éolien de neige or ce dernier joue un rôle primordial sur l'accumulation d'après les observations. Les modèles climatiques régionaux possédant une paramétrisation du transport éolien permettent d'estimer l'incertitude des modèles climatiques sur la hausse du niveau moyen des mers en ne représentant pas ce processus. Cependant aucune donnée de transport ne permet une validation précise de ces modèles en Antarctique. Dans ce contexte, cette thèse décrit la constitution d'une base de données de transport éolien de neige en Antarctique ainsi qu'une validation d'un modèle climatique régional incluant le transport éolien de neige. Un instrument acoustique, le FlowCapt, a été choisi pour acquérir les données. Une comparaison avec un appareil de mesure optique du transport, le Snow Particle Counter, a été menée dans les Alpes françaises. Cette comparaison a permis de déterminer les limites des deux générations de FlowCapt existantes pour la détection des événements de transport et la quantification du flux de neige. Une base de données de trois années a été acquise en Terre Adélie, Antarctique, pour permettre une comparaison avec un modèle climatique régional. Elle a permis de calculer la hauteur de rugosité et la vitesse de frottement seuil avec leurs incertitudes. Les épisodes de transport éolien de neige et une borne inférieure de la quantité de neige déplacée en un point ont été estimés. Deux comparaisons ont été menées avec le Modèle Atmosphérique Régional, un modèle climatique régional incluant de nombreuses rétroactions du transport sur l'écoulement. Les deux simulations utilisées pour les comparaisons ont été faites sur un petit domaine à fine échelle sur une période d'un mois. Le modèle simule bien les épisodes de transport sauf lorsque de la fonte s'est produite juste avant un épisode ou lorsque les épisodes ont une hauteur maximale de transport inférieure à cinquante centimètres. Le modèle sous-estime les quantités de neige transportée. / Predicted accumulation by global numerical climate models for the next century increases in East Antarctica and negatively contributes to the mean sea level rise. None of the climate models integrates a blowing snow parametrisation. However few smaller scale regional climate models include a blowing snow parametrisation and thus can assess the climate models uncertainty on the mean sea level rise by not representing this process. Yet none of the blowing snow data available in Antarctica allows for a precise validation of a regional climate model. In this context, this PhD described the establishment of an Antarctica blowing snow database and the validation of a regional climate model including a blowing snow parametrisation. An acoustic blowing snow sensor, the FlowCapt, has been chosen to collect data in Antarctica. A comparison with an optic blowing snow sensor, the Snow Particle Counter, has been conducted in the French Alps. The capacity of the two existing FlowCapt generation has been determined on the blowing snow event and the flux quantification. A three years blowing snow model-oriented database is now available in Adélie Land, Antarctica. The threshold friction velocity and the roughness height have been calculated with their uncertainty. Blowing snow variability has been determined as well as the minimum transport rate at one field point. Two comparisons have been done with the Modèle Atmosphérique Regional (MAR), a regional climate model including a blowing snow parametrisation. Both simulations represent a small domain with a high vertical and horizontal resolution over one month. The model is able to reproduce the blowing snow event except when melting occurs or when the blowing snow height is encompassed within the first fifty centimetres above the ground. The model underestimate the snow quantity transported at the field measurement point.

Snö och permafrost är två interagerande komponenter i Kryosfären. Studien undersöker snödjupets representativitet vid marktemperaturmätningar under snötäcket (BTS) för identifiering av permafrost i Tarfala, norra Sverige. Snödjupsmätningar har utfördes i två korsande 20 m transekter i nordsydlig (NS) samt östvästlig (ÖV) riktning utifrån en BTS-punkt. Totalt har 37 BTS (snödjup > 80 cm) med tillhörande snödjupsmätningar registrerats och analyserats. Snödjupet varierar både lokalt kring mätpunkten och regionalt i mättransekter men är ändå ett representativt snödjup för en punkt. Representativa BTS, sett ur ett snödjupsperspektiv, bör registreras på platser med måttlig snödjupsvariation som på platser med homogent markunderlag, vindskyddade områden, lä bakom ryggar och sluttningar vinkelräta mot den dominerande vindriktningen. BTS provplatser bör också ta hänsyn till de mest förekommande klasserna av parametrarna altitud, sluttning och slutningsriktning för att erhålla representativa BTS. Detta baserat på jämförelse mellan två strategier för insamling av BTS genom permafrostmodellering mellan två dataset. Ett BTS dataset från 2011 jämfört med BTS insamlade mars 2013. / Snow and permafrost are two interacting components in the Cryosphere. This study is focusing on snow depth and its influence on bottom temperature of snow cover (BTS) in Tarfala, Northern Sweden. BTS indicate the absence or presence of permafrost if the snow depth > 80 cm. Snow depth measurements were carried out with a resolution of 1 m in two 20 m crossing transects in NS and EW direction around the BTS point. A total of 37 BTS with accompanying snow depths was measured and analyzed. Snow depths varied around the BTS but are representative for the measured 20 m transects. Locations with moderate snow depth variations make out representative probe sites from a snow depth perspective, such as homogenous ground cover, wind protected areas, in the lee behind ridges and slopes perpendicular towards the dominating wind direction. Also to find representative BTS probe site two strategies for collecting BTS have been evaluated through permafrost modeling. One dataset recorded in 2011 focused on covering a big variety of altitude, slope and aspects. The second dataset registered in March 2013 aimed to cover the most frequent classes of the mentioned parameters. The latter strategy is also the preferably method based on the comparison between the two models.

This diploma thesis follows visualization of snow formations, which are called penitentes. This work includes also collecting the data needed to derive the optical properties of the penitentes material. Which are different phases between snow and ice. For visualization method is used Progressive Transient Photon Beams, that this work implements with the help of SmallUbpb.

This thesis is focused on members of two groups, rangers and ski lift operators of the area of Krkonoše mountains. In Krkonoše National Park there si a huge gain of using artificial snow lately, which is globally supposed to be kind of adaptation on climatic changes. It leads to extension of ski season, which is livelihood for many ski lift operators. This fact evokes conflicts. Rangers say that artificial snow has negative influence on environment, such as decrease of water, biodiversity, soil etc. I have decided to find out, using a quantitative sociological method of semi-structured interviews followed by analysis, how these two groups percieve the nature and how their differnces influence negotiation of reproduction of countryside in Krkonoše mountains. Sources of my research were works of authors such as Swyngedouw, Macnaghten, Urry or Escobar. These works describe various kinds of socio-countrysides and authors try to destroy stereotype of one nature. These socio-countrysides may be the main reason for arguing about nature. This thesis extends knowledge about heretofore missing analysis of conflict between two groups of ski lift operators and rangers. Main contribution of the thesis is undertsanding to two groups dealing with the same issue, but with different perspective and opinion.

Due to a continual increase in the demand for water as well as an ongoing regional drought, there is an imminent need to monitor and forecast water resources in the Western United States. In particular, water resources in the IntermountainWest rely heavily on snow water storage. Thus, the need to improve seasonal forecasts of snowpack and considering new techniques would allow water resources to be more effectively managed throughout the entire water-year. Many available models used in forecasting snow water equivalent (SWE) measurements require delicate calibrations. In contrast to the physical SWE models most commonly used for forecasting, we offer a statistical model. We present a data-based statistical model that characterizes seasonal snow water equivalent in terms of a nested time-series, with the large scale focusing on the inter-annual periodicity of dominant signals and the small scale accommodating seasonal noise and autocorrelation. This model provides a framework for independently estimating the temporal dynamics of SWE for the various snow telemetry (SNOTEL) sites. We use SNOTEL data from ten stations in Utah over 34 water-years to implement and validate this model. This dissertation has three main goals: (i) developing a new statistical model to forecast SWE; (ii) bridging existing R packages into a new R package to visualize and explore spatial and spatio-temporal SWE data; and (iii) applying the newly developed R package to SWE data from Utah SNOTEL sites and the Upper Sheep Creek site in Idaho as case studies.

Snow represents an important resource in mountainous regions. Monitoring its extent and amount is relevant for several applications, such as hydrology, ecology, avalanche monitoring, or hydropower production. However, a correct understanding of the high spatial and temporal variability of snow accumulation, redistribution and ablation processes requires its monitoring in a spatialized and detailed way. Recently, the launch of the Sentinel missions has opened the doors to new approaches that mainly exploit high resolution (HR) data having a spatial detail of few dozens of m. In this thesis, we aimed at exploiting these new sources of information to retrieve important parameters related to the snowmelt processes. In detail, we i) investigated the use of Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) observations to evaluate snowmelt dynamics in alpine regions, ii) developed a novel approach based on a hierarchical multi-resolution analysis of optical time-series to reconstruct the daily HR snow cover area (SCA), and iii) explored the combination of HR SCA time-series, SAR snowmelt information and other multi-source data to reconstruct a daily HR snow water equivalent (SWE) time-series. In detail, in the first work we analyzed the relationship between the snowmelt phases of a snowpack and the multi-temporal SAR backscattering. We found that the SAR is able to provide useful information about the moistening, ripening and runoff phases. In the second work, we exploited the snow pattern repetition on an inter-annual basis driven by the geomorphological features of a study area to carry out historical analyses. Thus, we took advantage of these repeated patterns to fuse low resolution and HR satellite optical data and set up a gap filling to derive daily HR snow cover area (SCA) time-series. These two research works are the pillars for the last contribution, which aims at combining all these information sources together with both in-situ data and a simple yet robust degree day model that provides an estimate of the potential melting to derive daily HR SWE time-series. These final results have an unprecedented spatial detail, that allows to sample the phenomena linked to the complex snow accumulation, redistribution and ablation processes with the required spatial and temporal resolution. The methodology and the results of each experimental work are illustrated and discussed in detail in the chapters of this thesis, with a look on further research and potential applications.

Although most processes governing the surface mass balance on mountain glaciers are well understood, the causes and extent of spatial variability in accumulation remain poorly constrained. In the present study, the EBFM distributed mass balance model is newly coupled to terrain based modelling routines estimating mass redistribution by snowdrift, preferential deposition, and avalanching (ST-EBFM) in order to model winter balance on Storglaciären, Sweden. STEBFM improves the spatial accuracy of winter balance simulations and proves to be a versatile and computationally inexpensive model. Accumulation on Storglaciären is primarily driven by direct precipitation, which seems locally increased due to small scale orographic effects. Wind driven snow transport leads to significant deposition in the accumulation zone and slight erosion in the ablation zone. The pattern is generally consistent from year to year. Avalanching is the smallest contributor to winter balance, but cannot be neglected. The physical complexity of avalanches and high year to year variability render simulations of the process somewhat uncertain, but observations seem to confirm the large impact that the process can have on the glacier at very localised scales. The role of mass transporting processes in maintaining the current mass equilibrium on Storglaciären highlights the necessity to understand the links between climatic predictors and accumulation in order to accurately assess climate sensitivity.

Snow handling practices are managed by Swedish municipalities, and urban snow is usually removed to be placed at a central or local snow deposit. Snow deriving from urban areas can contain environmental pollutants in various extents. Through atmospheric deposition, traffic emissions and road maintenance strategies, urban snow accumulates pollutants such as metals, organic and inorganic compounds, which in turn spread to receiving waters and soil through the meltwater. During wintertime, snow is ploughed and removed from highways and roads to insure safe conditions for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians. This study has analyzed Swedish municipalities snow handling strategies regarding current environmental law and degree of environmental protection on land-based snow deposit sites. Through a semi-qualitative web survey sent to all 290 Swedish municipalities, respondents were asked questions regarding the organization’s snow handling strategies and environmentally protective actions within their snow deposits. The results of this study showed that the use of snow deposits varies in different regions, and that most snow deposits are not equipped with any technical infrastructure to mitigate eventual environmental effects on the local environment. Environmental management in the form of systematic sampling of snow, soil, groundwater and receiving waters are found to be rare, which sequentially makes it difficult for municipalities to investigate the possible local environmental effects caused by depositing snow. In conclusion, environmental investigation and protection at snow deposit sites can be crucial to hinder further local pollution in some areas, but is as of yet not constantly executed by current practices.

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