Soil frost effects on soil water and runoff dynamics along a boreal forest transect: 1. Field investigations

To determine how soil frost changes flowpaths of runoff water along a hillslope, a transect consisting of four soil profiles directed towards a small stream in a mature forest stand was investigated at Svartberget, near Vindeln in northern Sweden. Soil temperature, unfrozen water content, groundwater level and snow depth were investigated along the transect, which started at the riparian peat, and extended 30 m upslope into mineral soils. The two, more organic‐rich profiles closest to the stream had higher water retention and wetter autumn conditions than the sandy mineral soils further upslope. The organic content of the soil influenced the variation in frost along the transect. The first winter (1995–96) had abnormally low snow precipitation, which gave a deep frost down to 40–80 cm, whereas the two following winters had frost depths of 5–20 cm. During winter 1995–96, the two organic profiles close to the stream had a shallower frost depth than the mineral soil profile higher upslope, but a considerably larger amount of frozen water. The fraction of water that did not freeze despite several minus degrees in the soil was 5–7 vol.% in the mineral soil and 10–15 vol.% in the organic soil. From the measurements there were no signs of perched water tables during any of the three snowmelt periods, which would have been strong evidence for changed water flowpaths due to soil frost. When shallow soil layers became saturated during snowmelt, especially in 1997 and 1998, it was because of rising groundwater levels. Several rain on frozen ground events during spring 1996 resulted in little runoff, since most of the rain either froze in the soil or filled up the soil water storage. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Spatio‐temporal controls of snowmelt and runoff generation during rain‐on‐snow events in a mid‐latitude mountain catchment

A network of 30 standalone snow monitoring stations was used to investigate the snow cover distribution, snowmelt dynamics, and runoff generation during two rain‐on‐snow (ROS) events in a 40 km² montane catchment in the Black Forest region of southwestern Germany. A multiple linear regression analysis using elevation, aspect, and land cover as predictors for the snow water equivalent (SWE) distribution within the catchment was applied on an hourly basis for two significant ROS flood events that occurred in December 2012. The available snowmelt water, liquid precipitation, as well as the total retention storage of the snow cover were considered in order to estimate the amount of water potentially available for the runoff generation. The study provides a spatially and temporally distributed picture of how the two observed ROS floods developed in the catchment. It became evident that the retention capacity of the snow cover is a crucial mechanism during ROS. It took several hours before water was released from the snowpack during the first ROS event, while retention storage was exceeded within 1 h from the start of the second event. Elevation was the most important terrain feature. South‐facing terrain contributed more water for runoff than north‐facing slopes, and only slightly more runoff was generated at open compared to forested areas. The results highlight the importance of snowmelt together with liquid precipitation for the generation of flood runoff during ROS and the large temporal and spatial variability of the relevant processes. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The cold rain‐on‐snow event of June 2013 in the Canadian Rockies — characteristics and diagnosis

The June 2013 flood in the Canadian Rockies featured rain‐on‐snow (ROS) runoff generation at alpine elevations that contributed to the high streamflows observed during the event. Such a mid‐summer ROS event has not been diagnosed in detail, and a diagnosis may help to understand future high discharge‐producing hydrometeorological events in mountainous cold regions. The alpine hydrology of the flood was simulated using a physically based model created with the modular cold regions hydrological modelling platform. The event was distinctive in that, although at first, relatively warm rain fell onto existing snowdrifts inducing ROS melt; the rainfall turned to snowfall as the air mass cooled and so increased snowcover and snowpacks in alpine regions, which then melted rapidly from ground heat fluxes in the latter part of the event. Melt rates of existing snowpacks were substantially lower during the ROS than during the relatively sunny periods preceding and following the event as a result of low wind speeds, cloud cover and cool temperatures. However, at the basin scale, melt volumes increased during the event as a result of increased snowcover from the fresh snowfall and consequent large ground heat contributions to melt energy, causing snowmelt to enhance rainfall–runoff by one fifth. Flow pathways also shifted during the event from relatively slow sub‐surface flow prior to the flood to an even contribution from sub‐surface and fast overland flow during and immediately after the event. This early summer, high precipitation ROS event was distinctive for the impact of decreased solar irradiance in suppressing melt rates, the contribution of ground heat flux to basin scale snowmelt after precipitation turned to snowfall, the transition from slow sub‐surface to fast overland flow runoff as the sub‐surface storage saturated and streamflow volumes that exceeded precipitation. These distinctions show that summer, mountain ROS events should be considered quite distinct from winter ROS and can be important contributors to catastrophic events. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Snow cover and runoff modelling in a high mountain catchment with scarce data: effects of temperature and precipitation parameters

Snowmelt is an important source of runoff in high mountain catchments. Snowmelt modelling for alpine regions remains challenging with scarce gauges. This study simulates the snowmelt in the Karuxung River catchment in the south Tibetan Plateau using an altitude zone based temperature‐index model, calibrates the snow cover area and runoff simulation during 2003–2005 and validates the model performance via snow cover area and runoff simulation in 2006. In the snowmelt and runoff modelling, temperature and precipitation are the two most important inputs. Relevant parameters, such as critical snow fall temperature, temperature lapse rate and precipitation gradient, determine the form and amount of precipitation and distribution of temperature and precipitation in hydrological modelling of the sparsely gauged catchment. Sensitivity analyses show that accurate estimation of these parameters would greatly help in improving the snowmelt simulation accuracy, better describing the snow‐hydrological behaviours and dealing with the data scarcity at higher elevations. Specifically, correlation between the critical snow fall temperature and relative humidity and seasonal patterns of both the temperature lapse rate and the precipitation gradient should be considered in the modelling studies when precipitation form is not logged and meteorological observations are only available at low elevation. More accurate simulation of runoff involving snowmelt, glacier melt and rainfall runoff will improve our understanding of hydrological processes and help assess runoff impacts from a changing climate in high mountain catchments. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Soil frost effects on soil water and runoff dynamics along a boreal transect: 2. Simulations

A physically based SVAT‐model was tested with soil and snow physical measurements, as well as runoff data from an 8600 m² catchment in northern Sweden in order to quantify the influence of soil frost on spring snowmelt runoff in a moderately sloped, boreal forest. The model was run as an array of connected profiles cascading to the brook. For three winter seasons (1995–98) it was able to predict the onset and total accumulation of the runoff with satisfactory accuracy. Surface runoff was identified as only a minor fraction of the total runoff occurring during short periods in connection with ice blocking of the water‐conducting pores. Little surface runoff, though, does not mean that soil frost is unimportant for spring runoff. Simulations without frost routines systematically underestimated the total accumulated runoff. The possibility of major frost effects appearing in response to specific combinations of weather conditions were also tested. Different scenarios of critical initial conditions for the winter, e.g. high water saturation and delayed snow accumulation leading to an increased frost penetration, were tested. These showed that under special circumstances there is potential for increased spring runoff due to soil frost. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Controls of streamflow generation in small catchments across the snow–rain transition in the Southern Sierra Nevada,California

Processes controlling streamflow generation were determined using geochemical tracers for water years 2004–2007 at eight headwater catchments at the Kings River Experimental Watersheds in southern Sierra Nevada. Four catchments are snow‐dominated, and four receive a mix of rain and snow. Results of diagnostic tools of mixing models indicate that Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, K⁺ and Cl^? behaved conservatively in the streamflow at all catchments, reflecting mixing of three endmembers. Using endmember mixing analysis, the endmembers were determined to be snowmelt runoff (including rain on snow), subsurface flow and fall storm runoff. In seven of the eight catchments, streamflow was dominated by subsurface flow, with an average relative contribution (% of streamflow discharge) greater than 60%. Snowmelt runoff contributed less than 40%, and fall storm runoff less than 7% on average. Streamflow peaked 2–4 weeks earlier at mixed rain–snow than snow‐dominated catchments, but relative endmember contributions were not significantly different between the two groups of catchments. Both soil water in the unsaturated zone and regional groundwater were not significant contributors to streamflow. The contributions of snowmelt runoff and subsurface flow, when expressed as discharge, were linearly correlated with streamflow discharge (R² of 0.85–0.99). These results suggest that subsurface flow is generated from the soil–bedrock interface through preferential pathways and is not very sensitive to snow–rain proportions. Thus, a declining of the snow–rain ratio under a warming climate should not systematically affect the processes controlling the streamflow generation at these catchments. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Observations of urban snow properties in Calgary,Canada

Urban winter hydrology has garnered very little attention owing to the general notion that high‐intensity rainfalls are the major flood‐generating events in urban areas. As a result, few efforts have been made to research urban snow and its melt characteristics. This study investigates the characteristics of urban snow that differentiate it from rural snow, and makes recommendations for incorporating these characteristics into an urban snowmelt model. A field study was conducted from the fall of 2001 to the spring of 2002 in the city of Calgary, Canada. Snow depths and densities, soil moisture, soil temperature, snow albedo, net radiation, snow evaporation, and surface temperature were measured at several locations throughout the winter period. The combination of urban snow removal practices and the physical elements that exist in urban areas were found to influence the energy balance of the snowpack profoundly. Shortwave radiation was found to be the main source of energy for urban snow; as a consequence, the albedo of urban snow is a very important factor in urban snowmelt modelling. General observations lead to the classification of snow as one of four types: snow piles, snow on road shoulders, snow on sidewalk edges, and snow in open areas. This resulted in the development of four separate functions for the changing snow albedo values. A study of the frozen ground conditions revealed that antecedent soil moisture conditions had very little impact on frozen ground, and thus frozen ground very nearly always acts as a near impervious area. Improved flood forecasting for urban catchments in cold regions can only be achieved with accurate modelling of urban winter runoff that involves the energy balance method, incorporating snow redistribution and urban snow‐cover characteristics, and using small time steps. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of frozen soil and snow cover on cold‐season soil water dynamics in Tokachi,Japan

Despite the potential impact of winter soil water movements in cold regions, relatively few field studies have investigated cold‐season hydrological processes that occur before spring‐onset of snowmelt infiltration. The contribution of soil water fluxes in winter to the annual water balance was evaluated over 5 years of field observations at an agricultural field in Tokachi, Hokkaido, Japan. In two of the winters, soil frost reached a maximum depth of 0·2 m (‘frozen’ winters), whereas soil frost was mostly absent during the remaining three winters (‘unfrozen’ winters). Significant infiltration of winter snowmelt water, to a depth exceeding 1·0 m, occurred during both frozen and unfrozen winters. Such infiltration ranged between 126 and 255 mm, representing 28–51% of total annual soil water fluxes. During frozen winters, a substantial quantity of water (ca 40 mm) was drawn from deeper layers into the 0–0·2 m topsoil layer when this froze. Under such conditions, the progression and regression of the freezing front, regulated by the thickness of snow cover, controlled the quantity of soil water flux below the frozen layer. During unfrozen winters, 13–62 mm of water infiltrated to a depth of 0·2 m, before the spring snowmelt. These results indicate the importance of correctly evaluating winter soil water movement in cold regions. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Snow and frost: implications for spatiotemporal infiltration patterns – a review

Vast regions of the northern hemisphere are exposed to snowfall and seasonal frost. This has large effects on spatiotemporal distribution of infiltration and groundwater recharge processes as well as on the fate of pollutants. Therefore, snow and frost need to be central inherent elements of risk assessment and management schemes. However, snow and frost are often neglected or treated summarily or in a simplistic way by groundwater modellers. Snow deposition is uneven, and the snow is likely to sublimate, be redistributed and partly melt during the winter influencing the mass and spatial distribution of snow storage available for infiltration, the presence of ice layers within and under the snowpack and, therefore, also the spatial distribution of depths and permeability of the soil frost. In steep terrain, snowmelt may travel downhill tens of metres in hours along snow layers. The permeability of frozen soil is mainly influenced by soil type, its water and organic matter content, and the timing of the first snow in relation to the timing of sub‐zero temperatures. The aim with this paper is to review the literature on snow and frost processes, modelling approaches with the purpose to visualize and emphasize the need to include these processes when modelling, managing and predicting groundwater recharge for areas exposed to seasonal snow and frost. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Snowmelt and the hydrological interaction of forest–grassland ecosystems in Central Yakutia,eastern Siberia

In the last two decades the major focus of study in forest water and carbon balances in eastern Siberia has been on the effect of rain during the growing season. Little attention has been paid to the contribution of snowmelt water. The results of the present study indicate that weather conditions during the snowmelt period as well as the soil moisture conditions carried from the previous year's growing season strongly determined the water availability for the forest ecosystem at the beginning of the next growing season. In the forest–grassland intermingled ecosystem of lowland Central Yakutia, gradual snowmelt water flow from the forest into the adjacent grassland depressions increased when soil moisture was high and air temperature was low, whereas low soil moisture and high air temperatures accelerated soil thawing and consequently snowmelt water infiltration into the forest soil. We found that snow depth did not determine the volume of snowmelt water moving to the grassland depression since the thermokarst lake water level in the adjacent grassland was about 25 cm lower in 2005 than in May 2006, even though maximum snow depth reached 57 cm and 43 cm in the winter of 2004–05 and 2005–06, respectively. The contribution of snowmelt water to forest growth as well as the flow of water from the forest to the grasslands showed a strong annual variability. We conclude that warmer springs and high variability in precipitation regimes as a result of climate change will result in more snowmelt water infiltration into the forest soil when the previous year's precipitation is low while more snowmelt water will flow into the thermokarst lake when the previous year's precipitation is high. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Seasonal snowpack dynamics and runoff in a cool temperate forest: lysimeter experiment in Niigata,Japan

Seasonal snowpack dynamics are described through field measurements under contrasting canopy conditions for a mountainous catchment in the Japan Sea region. Microclimatic data, snow accumulation, albedo and lysimeter runoff are given through the complete winter season 2002–03 in (1) a mature cedar stand, (2) a larch stand, and (3) a regenerating cedar stand or opening. The accumulation and melt of seasonal snowpack strongly influences streamflow runoff during December to May, including winter baseflow, mid‐winter melt, rain on snow, and diurnal peaks driven by radiation melt in spring. Lysimeter runoff at all sites is characterized by constant ground melt of 0·8–1·0 mm day⁻¹. Rapid response to mid‐winter melt or rainfall shows that the snowpack remains in a ripe or near‐ripe condition throughout the snow‐cover season. Hourly and daily lysimeter discharge was greatest during rain on snow (e.g. 7 mm h⁻¹ and 53 mm day⁻¹ on 17 December) with the majority of runoff due to rainfall passing through the snowpack as opposed to snowmelt. For both rain‐on‐snow and radiation melt events lysimeter discharge was generally greatest at the open site, although there were exceptions such as during interception melt events. During radiation melt instantaneous discharge was up to 4·0 times greater in the opening compared with the mature cedar, and 48 h discharge was up to 2·5 times greater. Perhaps characteristic of maritime climates, forest interception melt is shown to be important in addition to sublimation in reducing snow accumulation beneath dense canopies. While sublimation represents a loss from the catchment water balance, interception melt percolates through the snowpack and contributes to soil moisture during the winter season. Strong differences in microclimate and snowpack albedo persisted between cedar, larch and open sites, and it is suggested further work is needed to account for this in hydrological simulation models. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Runoff sensitivity to snow depletion curve representation within a continental scale hydrologic model

The spatial variability of snow water equivalent (SWE) can exert a strong influence on the timing and magnitude of snowmelt delivery to a watershed. Therefore, the representation of sub-grid or sub-watershed snow variability in hydrologic models is important for accurately simulating snowmelt dynamics and runoff response. The U.S. Geological Survey National Hydrologic Model infrastructure with the precipitation-runoff modelling system (NHM-PRMS) represents the sub-grid variability of SWE with snow depletion curves (SDCs), which relate snow-covered area to watershed-mean SWE during the snowmelt period. The main objective of this research was to evaluate the sensitivity of simulated runoff to SDC representation within the NHM-PRMS across the continental United States (CONUS). SDCs for the model experiment were derived assuming a range of SWE coefficient of variation values and a lognormal probability distribution function. The NHM-PRMS was simulated at a daily time step for each SDC over a 14-year period. Results highlight that increasing the sub-grid snow variability (by changing the SDC) resulted in a consistently slower snowmelt rate and longer snowmelt duration when averaged across the hydrologic response unit scale. Simulated runoff was also found to be sensitive to SDC representation, as decreases in simulated snowmelt rate by 1 mm day⁻¹ resulted in decreases in runoff ratio by 1.8% on average in snow-dominated regions of the CONUS. Simulated decreases in runoff associated with slower snowmelt rates were approximately inversely proportional to increases in simulated evapotranspiration. High snow persistence and peak SWE:annual precipitation combined with a water-limited dryness index was associated with the greatest runoff sensitivity to changing snowmelt. Results from this study highlight the importance of carefully parameterizing SDCs for hydrologic modelling. Furthermore, improving model representation of snowmelt input variability and its relation to runoff generation processes is shown to be an important consideration for future modelling applications.     

Incorporating accumulated temperature and algorithm of snow cover calculation into the snowmelt runoff model

An accurate simulation of snowmelt runoff is of much importance in arid alpine regions. Data availability is usually an obstacle to use energy‐based snowmelt models for the snowmelt runoff simulation, and temperature‐based snowmelt models are more appealing in these regions. The snow runoff model is very popular nowadays, especially in the data sparse regions, because only temperature, precipitation and snow cover data are required for inputs to the model. However, this model uses average temperature as index, which cannot reflect the snowmelt simulation in the high altitude band. In this study, the snow runoff model is modified on the basis of accumulated active temperature. Snow cover calculation algorithm is added and is no longer needed as input but output. This makes the model able to simulate long‐time runoff and long‐time snow cover variation in every band. An examination of the improved model in the Manas River basin showed that the model is effective. It can reproduce the behaviour of the hydrology and can reflect the actual snow cover fluctuation. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Integrating observations and models to determine the effect of seasonally frozen ground on hydrologic partitioning in alpine hillslopes in the Colorado Rocky Mountains,USA

This study integrated spatially distributed field observations and soil thermal models to constrain the impact of frozen ground on snowmelt partitioning and streamflow generation in an alpine catchment within the Niwot Ridge Long-Term Ecological Research site, Colorado, USA. The study area was comprised of two contrasting hillslopes with notable differences in topography, snow depth and plant community composition. Time-lapse electrical resistivity surveys and soil thermal models enabled extension of discrete soil moisture and temperature measurements to incorporate landscape variability at scales and depths not possible with point measurements alone. Specifically, heterogenous snowpack thickness (~0–4 m) and soil volumetric water content between hillslopes (~0.1–0.45) strongly influenced the depths of seasonal frost, and the antecedent soil moisture available to form pore ice prior to freezing. Variable frost depths and antecedent soil moisture conditions were expected to create a patchwork of differing snowmelt infiltration rates and flowpaths. However, spikes in soil temperature and volumetric water content, as well as decreases in subsurface electrical resistivity revealed snowmelt infiltration across both hillslopes that coincided with initial decreases in snow water equivalent and early increases in streamflow. Soil temperature, soil moisture and electrical resistivity data from both wet and dry hillslopes showed that initial increases in streamflow occurred prior to deep soil water flux. Temporal lags between snowmelt infiltration and deeper percolation suggested that the lateral movement of water through the unsaturated zone was an important driver of early streamflow generation. These findings provide the type of process-based information needed to bridge gaps in scale and populate physically based cryohydrologic models to investigate subsurface hydrology and biogeochemical transport in soils that freeze seasonally.     

Hydrologic flowpaths during snowmelt in forested headwater catchments under differing winter climatic and soil frost regimes

Changes in hydrologic flowpaths have important impacts on the timing, magnitude and hydrochemistry of run‐off during snowmelt in forested catchments, but how flowpaths are affected by variation in winter climate and the irregular presence of soil frost remains poorly understood. The depth and extent of soil frost may be expected to increase as snowpack decreases or develops later because of climate change. In this study, we used end‐member mixing analysis to determine daily contributions of snow, forest floor soil water and groundwater to stream run‐off during snowmelt under different soil frost regimes resulting from interannual and elevational variation at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in New Hampshire, USA. We observed greater routing of run‐off through forest floor flowpaths during early snowmelt in 2011, when the snowpack was deep and soil frost was minimal, compared with the early snowmelt in 2012 under conditions of deep and extensive soil frost. The results indicate that widespread soil frost that penetrated the depth of the forest floor decreased the flow signal through the shallowest subsurface flowpaths, but did not reduce overall infiltration of melt waters, as the contribution from the snow‐precipitation end‐member was similar under both conditions. These results are consistent with development of granular soil frost which permits vertical infiltration of melt waters, but either reduces lateral flow in the forest floor or prevents the solute exchange that would produce the typical chemical signature of shallow subsurface flowpaths in streamwater. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimating source regions for snowmelt runoff in a Rocky Mountain basin: tests of a data‐based conceptual modeling approach

In many mountain basins, river discharge measurements are located far away from runoff source areas. This study tests whether a basic snowmelt runoff conceptual model can be used to estimate relative contributions of different elevation zones to basin‐scale discharge in the Cache la Poudre, a snowmelt‐dominated Rocky Mountain river. Model tests evaluate scenarios that vary model configuration, input variables, and parameter values to determine how these factors affect discharge simulation and the distribution of runoff generation with elevation. Results show that the model simulates basin discharge well (NSCE and R >0.90) when input precipitation and temperature are distributed with different lapse rates, with a rain‐snow threshold parameter between 0 and 3.3 °C, and with a melt rate parameter between 2 and 4 mm °C^?1 d^?1 because these variables and parameters can have compensating interactions with each other and with the runoff coefficient parameter. Only the hydrograph recession parameter can be uniquely defined with this model structure. These non‐unique model scenarios with different configurations, input variables, and parameter values all indicate that the majority of basin discharge comes from elevations above 2900 m, or less than 25% of the basin total area, with a steep increase in runoff generation above 2600 m. However, the simulations produce unrealistically low runoff ratios for elevations above 3000 m, highlighting the need for additional measurements of snow and discharge at under‐sampled elevations to evaluate the accuracy of simulated snow and runoff patterns. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Soil temperature and soil moisture dynamics in winter and spring under heavy snowfall conditions in North-Eastern Japan

Warm winters and high precipitation in north-eastern Japan generate snow covers of more than three meters depth and densities of up to 0.55 g cm⁻³. Under these conditions, rain/snow ratio and snowmelt have increased significantly in the last decade under increasing warm winters. This study aims at understanding the effect of rain-on-snow and snowmelt on soil moisture under thick snow covers in mid-winter, taking into account that snowmelt in spring is an important source of water for forests and agriculture. The study combines three components of the Hydrosphere (precipitation, snow cover and soil moisture) in order to trace water mobility in winter, since soil temperatures remained positive in winter at nearly 0.3°C. The results showed that soil moisture increased after snowmelt and especially after rain-on-snow events in mid-winter 2018/2019. Rain-on-snow events were firstly buffered by fresh snow, increasing the snow water equivalent (SWE), followed by water soil infiltration once the water storage capacity of the snowpack was reached. The largest increase of soil moisture was 2.35 vol%. Early snowmelt increased soil moisture with rates between 0.02 and 0.035 vol% hr⁻¹ while, rain-on-snow events infiltrated snow and soil faster than snowmelt and resulted in rates of up to 1.06 vol% hr⁻¹. These results showed the strong connection of rain, snow and soil in winter and introduce possible hydrological scenarios in the forest ecosystems of the heavy snowfall regions of north-eastern Japan. Effects of rain-on-snow events and snowmelt on soil moisture were estimated for the period 2012–2018. Rain/snow ratio showed that only 30% of the total precipitation in the winter season 2011/2012 was rain events while it was 50% for the winter 2018/2019. Increasing climate warming and weakening of the Siberian winter monsoons will probably increase rain/snow ratio and the number of rain-on-snow events in the near future.     

A modelling framework to simulate field‐scale nitrate response and transport during snowmelt: The WINTRA model

Modelling nutrient transport during snowmelt in cold regions remains a major scientific challenge. A key limitation of existing nutrient models for application in cold regions is the inadequate representation of snowmelt, including hydrological and biogeochemical processes. This brief period can account for more than 80% of the total annual surface runoff in the Canadian Prairies and Northern Canada and processes such as atmospheric deposition, overwinter redistribution of snow, ion exclusion from snow crystals, frozen soils, and snow‐covered area depletion during melt influence the distribution and release of snow and soil nutrients, thus affecting the timing and magnitude of snowmelt runoff nutrient concentrations. Research in cold regions suggests that nitrate (NO₃) runoff at the field‐scale can be divided into 5 phases during snowmelt. In the first phase, water and ions originating from ion‐rich snow layers travel and diffuse through the snowpack. This process causes ion concentrations in runoff to gradually increase. The second phase occurs when this snow ion meltwater front has reached the bottom of the snowpack and forms runoff to the edge‐of‐the‐field. During the third and fourth phases, the main source of NO₃ transitions from the snowpack to the soil. Finally, the fifth and last phase occurs when the snow has completely melted, and the thawing soil becomes the main source of NO₃ to the stream. In this research, a process‐based model was developed to simulate hourly export based on this 5‐phase approach. Results from an application in the Red River Basin of southern Manitoba, Canada, shows that the model can adequately capture the dynamics and rapid changes of NO₃ concentrations during this period at relevant temporal resolutions. This is a significant achievement to advance the current nutrient modelling paradigm in cold climates, which is generally limited to satisfactory results at monthly or annual resolutions. The approach can inform catchment‐scale nutrient models to improve simulation of this critical snowmelt period.     

Perturbation study of climate change impacts in a snow‐fed river basin

A physically based distributed hydrological model developed at the University of Yamanashi based on block‐wise use of TOPMODEL and the Muskingum–Cunge method (YHyM/BTOPMC), integrated with a simple degree‐day–based snow accumulation/melt sub‐model, was applied to evaluate hydrological responses under changing climatic conditions in the snow‐fed Kali Gandaki River Basin (KGRB) in Western Nepal. Rainy season precipitation (June to September) in the basin takes up about 80% of the annual precipitation, and dry season runoff is largely contributed by snowmelt. Climate change is likely to increase the probability of extreme events and problems related to water availability. Therefore, the study aimed to simulate runoff pattern under changing climatic conditions, which will be helpful in the management of water resources in the basin. Public domain global data were widely used in this study. The model was calibrated and validated with an acceptable degree of accuracy. The results predicted that the annual average discharge will increase by 2.4%, 3.7%, and 5.7% when temperature increases by 1, 2, and 3 °C compared with the reference scenario. Similarly, maximum, minimum, and seasonal discharges in the monsoon and pre‐monsoon seasons will also increase with rising temperature. Snowmelt runoff is found sensitive to temperature changes in the KGRB. Increasing temperature will cause a faster snowmelt, but precipitation will increase the snowpack and also shed a positive effect on the total annual and monsoonal discharge. For the combined scenarios of increasing temperature and precipitation, the annual average discharge will increase. In contrast, discharge during the increasing temperature and decreasing precipitation will tend to decrease. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.