Climatic Controls on Stream Flow in the McMurdo Dry Valleys
Poster Number:
393
Presenter/Primary Author:
Chris Jaros Large variations in meltwater generation (ave. 1.6 x 106 m3, sd = 1.5 x 106 m3) over the period of record of MCM LTER (1990 – 2012) have been observed.
This variation has importance to
- stream microbial communities: physical scouring of algal mats, nutrient availability (streams don’t always flow) and hydraulic forcing of hyporheic exchange rates
- lake microbial communities: transport of algal mats and nutrients (including water)
- glacier mass-balance measurements and interpretations of past closed-basin lake elevations Since its origination, the ozone hole has shown significant variability over the last two decades (Hassler et at., 2011).
Following the high flow season of 2001-2002, variability in meltwater generation appears to be de-coupled from temperature. Here we explore this de-coupling and propose a new driver, variations in the South Polar Ozone Hole.