edu.ucar.opensky::articles:18132 UCAR/NCAR - Library OpenSky Support PO Box 3000 Boulder CO 80307-3000 opensky@ucar.edu http://opensky.ucar.edu/ homepage pointOfContact 2025-12-26T14:10:38.820799 ISO 19115-2 Geographic Information - Metadata - Part 2: Extensions for Imagery and Gridded Data ISO 19115-2:2009(E) https://n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7f76f41 Snow in the McMurdo dry valleys, Antarctica 2010-10-30T00:00:00Z publication https://n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7f76f41 Fountain, A. author Nylen, T. author Monaghan, Andrew J. author Basagic, H. author Bromwich, D. author UCAR/NCAR - Library publisher Snowfall was measured at 11 sites in the McMurdo Dry Valleys to determine its magnitude, its temporal changes, and spatial patterns. Annual values ranged from 3 to 50 mm water equivalent with the highest values nearest the coast and decreasing inland. A particularly strong spatial gradient exists in Taylor Valley, probably resulting from local uplift conditions at the coastal margin and valley topography that limits migration inland. More snow occurs in winter near the coast, whereas inland no seasonal pattern is discernable. This may be due, again, to local uplift conditions, which are common in winter. We find no influence of the distance to the sea ice edge. Katabatic winds play an important role in transporting snow to the valley bottoms and essentially double the precipitation. That much of the snow accumulation sublimates prior to making a hydrologic contribution underscores the notion that the McMurdo Dry Valleys are indeed an extreme polar desert. UCAR/NCAR - Library OpenSky Support PO Box 3000 Boulder CO 80307-3000 opensky@ucar.edu http://opensky.ucar.edu/ homepage pointOfContact PDF Text theme Resource Type 2016-01-01T00:00:00Z publication This is a preprint of an article published in Fountain, A. G., Nylen, T. H., Monaghan, A., Basagic, H. J. and Bromwich, D. (2010), Snow in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Int. J. Climatol., 30: 633–642. doi: 10.1002/joc.1933 None eng geoscientificInformation