In Arctic landscapes, watershed processes are tightly linked to cold temperatures, permafrost, snow, and strong seasonality in precipitation, storage, and runoff. Thus, a rapidly changing Arctic climate will affect watershed function and result in changes to the transport of water, sediment, and nutrients to downstream aquatic and marine ecosystems. There is increasing evidence of hydrologic intensification of the Arctic terrestrial water cycle, fueling inquiry into the hydrologic responses that integrate the varying climate and landscape units. Key to understanding these complex watershed processes is long-term hydrologic monitoring in Arctic Alaska. The goal of this study is to operate and maintain hydroclimate observation stations in the Kuparuk River basin to obtain continuous datasets for the community of Arctic stakeholders.
Imnavait Creek is a small (2.2 square kilometers) watershed located in the northern foothills region of Brooks Range and the headwaters of the Kuparuk River. The Kuparuk River flows north through the foothills and coastal plain of Alaska, before discharging into the Beaufort Sea. The gauging station at Imnavait Creek is approximately 3 kilometers south of the Dalton Highway, near MP (milepost) 291. Imnavait Creek parallels the Upper Kuparuk River and enters the Kuparuk River 12 kilometers north of the Water and Environmental Research Center (WERC) Upper Kuparuk gauging station. Streamflow at Imnavait Creek persists throughout the summer months, but during the winter months flow is non-existent. Streamflow in Imnavait Creek has been measured by researchers at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) WERC from 1985 to 2023. This data package contains continuous streamflow data collected by researchers from University of Alaska Fairbanks from 2018-2023. For UAF-WERC historical discharge data for Imnavait Creek (1985-2017) see the data package at https://arcticdata.io/catalog/view/doi%3A10.18739%2FA2K649S9D.
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Snow Water Equivalent Measurements in Remote Arctic Alaska Watersheds
Snow surveys in two Arctic watersheds located in Alaska, USA, provide 32 years of spatially distributed snow water equivalent (SWE) and snow depth observations. Annual snow surveys from the Imnavait Creek (20,036 measurements from 1985 to 2017) and Upper Kuparuk River (5,804 measurements from 1997 to 2017) watersheds were conducted to capture end‐of‐winter snow accumulation. The average end‐of‐winter SWE in the Upper Kuparuk River watershed (102 ± 29 mm) is consistently less than the Imnavait Creek watershed (130 ± 34 mm) during the common period of record (1997–2017). The average end‐of‐winter SWE in both watersheds indicates a positive trend. Comparison of SWE records with cumulative solid precipitation measured at the Imnaviat [sic] SNOTEL site highlights the undercatch of gauge precipitation and difference in long‐term trends. In this paper, we present a historic overview of data collection, discuss data accuracy, and point out advantages and limitations associated with ground‐based snow measurements in remote Arctic locations. As new methods and techniques of measuring SWE and solid precipitation become available, the presented data set will provide a historic perspective for new observations and will quantitatively relate current or future snow conditions to those that have occurred since the late twentieth century.
more » « less- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10446045
- Publisher / Repository:
- DOI PREFIX: 10.1029
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Water Resources Research
- Volume:
- 56
- Issue:
- 4
- ISSN:
- 0043-1397
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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