Glaciers and climate of the upper Susitna Basin, Alaska; supporting data

Metadata also available as - [Parseable text] - [XML]

Frequently anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
Glaciers and climate of the upper Susitna Basin, Alaska; supporting data
Abstract:
As part of a study for a proposed hydropower facility, Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys staff and project collaborators from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska Energy Authority, and Colorado State University conducted extensive field observations in the Upper Susitna basin, a 13,289 km2 (5,130 mi2) glacierized catchment in central Alaska, in 2012-2014. We measured glacier mass balance and surface characteristics on the five largest glaciers in the Upper Susitna Basin to see how the glaciers have changed over recent years and estimate their contribution to the total runoff in the basin. We installed two large weather stations-one on West Fork Glacier and one adjacent to Susitna Glacier-to aid in glacier modeling. Around the rest of the basin, we installed 26 stations that measured air temperature and relative humidity, 10 of which also measured precipitation and nine of which measured soil temperature. These stations help to characterize the weather across a high elevation basin with very sparse measurements. We characterized soil profiles at nine sites to verify that they match up with mapped soil textures. This comprehensive data set includes meteorological, glacier mass balance, snow cover, and soil measurements. We also include digitized snow depth data from a set of similar observations collected in the 1980s. Users can access the complete report and digital data from the DGGS website: <http://doi.org/10.14509/30138>.
Supplemental_Information: 
Station locations:    Station locations and elevations for the weather measurements generated or utilized in this study.	
On-Ice and Off-Ice weather stations:    Instrument readings from the Susitna Glacier "Off-Ice" weather station and the West Fork Glacier "On-Ice" weather station. The West Fork Glacier On-Ice station "floats" on the ice surface and moves down as the surface ablates. Note: "NaN" values throughout this table indicate that the measurement was not taken or was not applicable.	
Ice temperatures at the On-Ice station:    Thermistor temperature measurements (degrees C) near the West Fork Glacier On-Ice weather station. Sensors are labeled with their height/depth relative to the ice surface at installation. These depths change over time as the surface ablates.	
Simple weather stations, including soil temperature:    Readings from 26 stations installed around the basin to measure air temperature and relative humidity. A subset of these stations also measured precipitation and soil temperature.	
Soil temperature measurement depths:    Soil temperature measurement depths (m) at nine simple weather stations.	
Mass balance - point:    Point mass balance data in water equivalence (w.e.) from earlier work (Clarke and others, 1985) and our work. Note that the year used here is the mass balance year and not calendar year. The mass balance year 2012 corresponds to winter of 2011/2012 through the end of the summer of 2012.	
Mass balance - radar:    Winter mass balance data from helicopter-borne snow radar. Units are meters of snow water equivalent (SWE). For each glacier, the data were binned into 50-m elevation bands and then averaged. Standard deviation within each bin is also given.	
Time lapse:    Time-lapse videos from the cameras near the On-Ice (West Fork Glacier) and Off-Ice (Susitna Glacier) weather stations. The images used in these videos were captured at 10 a.m. local time. The camera at the On-Ice weather station started April 18, 2013, and ran until September 5, 2013. The camera at the Off-Ice weather station started on July 17, 2013, and ran until September 26, 2013. 	
Snow depth:    Snow depth and density measurements between 2012 and 2014.	
Soil pits:    Observations from soil pits.
  1. How should this data set be cited?

    Bliss, A.K., Hock, Regine, Wolken, G.J., Whorton, E.N., Aubry-Wake, Caroline, Braun, Juliana, Gusmeroli, Alessio, Harrison, W.D., Hoffman, Andrew, and Liljedahl, A.K., 2019, Glaciers and climate of the upper Susitna Basin, Alaska; supporting data: Raw Data File RDF 2019-3, Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys, Fairbanks, Alaska, United States.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: 6 p.

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -150.697140
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -143.574100
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 63.994400
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 61.405330

  3. What does it look like?

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Beginning_Date: 2012
    Ending_Date: 2014
    Currentness_Reference: ground condition

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: report and digital data

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a point data set.

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.00001. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.00001. Latitude and longitude values are specified in decimal degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1983.
      The ellipsoid used is GRS 80.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257222101000025.

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

    rdf2019-3-station-locations.csv
    Station locations and elevations for the weather measurements generated or utilized in this study. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    Station
    Station name (Source: this report)

    string

    File
    The file name of the corresponding data table for the weather stations installed for this project (Source: this report)

    string

    Type
    Station type is one of the following: Automatic weather station (AWS); HOBO installed on the glacier (HOBO glacier); HOBO installed on tundra (HOBO tundra); National Climatic Data Center (NCDC); or Susitna Watana Hydrological Data Network (SWHDN). (Source: this report)

    string

    Latitude_deg
    Latitude (degrees), NAD83 datum (Source: this report)

    string

    Longitude_deg
    Longitude (degrees), NAD83 datum (Source: this report)

    string

    Northing_m
    Northing (meters  ), UTM Zone 6N (Source: this report)

    string

    Easting_m
    Easting (meters ), UTM Zone 6N (Source: this report)

    string

    Elevation_m
    Elevation (meters above sea level) (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-weather-station-susitna-glacier-off-ice-2013.csv, rdf2019-3-weather-station-west-fork-glacier-on-ice-2013.csv
    Instrument readings from the Susitna Glacier "Off-Ice" weather station and the West Fork Glacier "On-Ice" weather station. The West Fork Glacier On-Ice station "floats" on the ice surface and moves down as the surface ablates. Note: "NaN" values throughout this table indicate that the measurement was not taken or was not applicable. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    time
    Matlab date (where day 1 = 1 January of year 0) (Source: this report)

    string

    YYYY
    Year (Source: this report)

    string

    MM
    Month (Source: this report)

    string

    DD
    Day (Source: this report)

    string

    hh
    Hour (local time) (Source: this report)

    string

    mm
    Minute (Source: this report)

    string

    ss
    Second (Source: this report)

    string

    dayofyear
    Day of year (Source: this report)

    string

    AirTemp_C
    Air temperature (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    RH_pct
    Relative humidity (percent) (Source: this report)

    string

    AirTemp2_C
    Air temperature from redundant sensor (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    RH2_pct
    Relative humidity from redundant sensor (percent) (Source: this report)

    string

    SWup_W_m2
    Upward-facing (incoming) shortwave radiation (W/m2) (Source: this report)

    string

    SWdn_W_m2
    Downward-facing (reflected) shortwave radiation (W/m2) (Source: this report)

    string

    LWup_W_m2
    Upward-facing (incoming) longwave radiation (W/m2) (Source: this report)

    string

    LWdn_W_m2
    Downward-facing (outgoing) longwave radiation (W/m2) (Source: this report)

    string

    Precip_mm
    Precipitation (mm) (Source: this report)

    string

    WindDir_deg
    Wind direction (degrees from North) (Source: this report)

    string

    WindSpdMax_m_s
    Wind speed maximum averaged over a 3 second interval (m/s) (Source: this report)

    string

    WindSpd_m_s
    Average wind speed (m/s) (Source: this report)

    string

    TiltUx_deg
    Tilt of the radiation sensors in the x-direction (degrees) (Source: this report)

    string

    TiltUy_deg
    Tilt of the radiation sensors in the y-direction (degrees) (Source: this report)

    string

    BaroPr_hPa
    Barometric pressure (hPa) (Source: this report)

    string

    DistanceToSurface_m
    Distance to the ice surface measured from a pole that is fixed vertically in the ice (meters) (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-ice-temperature-west-fork-glacier-2013.csv
    Thermistor temperature measurements (degrees C) near the West Fork Glacier On-Ice weather station. Sensors are labeled with their height/depth relative to the ice surface at installation. These depths change over time as the surface ablates. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    time
    Matlab date (where day 1 = 1 January of year 0) (Source: this report)

    string

    YYYY
    Year (Source: this report)

    string

    MM
    Month (Source: this report)

    string

    DD
    Day (Source: this report)

    string

    hh
    Hour (local time) (Source: this report)

    string

    mm
    Minute (Source: this report)

    string

    ss
    Second (Source: this report)

    string

    dayofyear
    Day of the year (Source: this report)

    string

    Snow 0.65 m
    Temperature of the snowpack (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Snow 1.15 m
    Temperature of the snowpack (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Snow 1.65 m
    Temperature of the snowpack (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 0.1 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 0.5 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 1.0 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 1.5 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 2.0 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 2.5 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 3 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 5 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 6 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 7 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 8 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    Ice 10 m
    Temperature of the ice (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-simple-weather-stations.zip
    Readings from 26 stations installed around the basin to measure air temperature and relative humidity. A subset of these stations also measured precipitation and soil temperature. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    time
    Matlab date (where day 1 = 1 January of year 0) (Source: this report)

    string

    YYYY
    Year (Source: this report)

    string

    MM
    Month (Source: this report)

    string

    DD
    Day (Source: this report)

    string

    hh
    Hour (local time) (Source: this report)

    string

    mm
    Minute (Source: this report)

    string

    ss
    Second (Source: this report)

    string

    dayofyear
    Day of the year (Source: this report)

    string

    AirTemp_C
    Air temperature (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    RH_pct
    Relative humidity (percent) (Source: this report)

    string

    Precip_mm
    Precipitation (mm) (Source: this report)

    string

    SoilTempShallow_C
    Shallow soil temperature (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    SoilTempDeep_C
    Deep soil temperature (degrees C) (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-soil-temperature-measurement-depths.csv
    Soil temperature measurement depths (m) at nine simple weather stations. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    Station
    Station (Source: this report)

    string

    Shallow_Depth_m
    Depth (m) of shallow soil temperature sensor (Source: this report)

    string

    Deep_Depth_m
    Depth (m) of deep soil temperature sensor (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-mass-balance-point.csv
    Point mass balance data in water equivalence (w.e.) from earlier work (Clarke and others, 1985) and our work. Note that the year used here is the mass balance year and not calendar year. The mass balance year 2012 corresponds to winter of 2011/2012 through the end of the summer of 2012. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang (this report) and Clarke and others, 1985)

    Station
    Station (Source: this report)

    string

    Data_Source
    originator of data incorporated from historic observations (Source: this report)

    string

    Latitude_deg
    Latitude (degrees), NAD83 datum (Source: this report)

    string

    Longitude_deg
    Longitude (degrees), NAD83 datum (Source: this report)

    string

    Elevation_m
    Elevation (meters above sea level) (Source: this report)

    string

    Year
    Year (Source: this report)

    string

    AnnualMB_mmwe
    Annual mass balance (mm w.e.) (Source: this report)

    string

    WinterMB_mmwe
    Winter mass balance (mm w.e.) (Source: this report)

    string

    SummerMB_mmwe
    Summer mass balance (mm w.e.) (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-mass-balance-radar.csv
    Winter mass balance data from helicopter-borne snow radar. Units are meters of snow water equivalent (SWE). For each glacier, the data were binned into 50-m elevation bands and then averaged. Standard deviation within each bin is also given. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    time
    Matlab date (where day 1 = 1 January of year 0) (Source: this report)

    string

    YYYY
    Year (Source: this report)

    string

    MM
    Month (Source: this report)

    string

    DD
    Day (Source: this report)

    string

    Zone
    Zone 1: West Fork Glacier; 2: Susitna Glacier; 3: East Fork Glacier; 4: Maclaren Glacier; 5: Eureka Glacier; 6: any area off the glaciers. (Source: this report)

    string

    Elevation_m
    Elevation of the bottom of the 50 m bin (meters above sea level) (Source: this report)

    string

    SWE_m
    Mean SWE in the bin (meters) (Source: this report)

    string

    SWE_std_m
    Standard deviation of SWE in the bin (meters) (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-time-lapse-susitna-glacier-off-ice-2013.mov, rdf2019-3-time-lapse-west-fork-glacier-on-ice-2013.mov
    Time-lapse videos from the cameras near the On-Ice (West Fork Glacier) and Off-Ice (Susitna Glacier) weather stations. The images used in these videos were captured at 10 a.m. local time. The camera at the On-Ice weather station started April 18, 2013, and ran until September 5, 2013. The camera at the Off-Ice weather station started on July 17, 2013, and ran until September 26, 2013. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    rdf2019-3-snow-depth.csv
    Snow depth and density measurements between 2012 and 2014. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    Site
    Site name (Source: this report)

    string

    Latitude_deg
    Latitude (degrees), NAD83 datum (Source: this report)

    string

    Longitude_deg
    Longitude (degrees), NAD83 datum (Source: this report)

    string

    Elevation_m
    Elevation (meters above sea level) (Source: this report)

    string

    Year
    Year (Source: this report)

    string

    Month
    Month (Source: this report)

    string

    Day
    Day (Source: this report)

    string

    VegClass
    Vegetation class: spruce forest (SPRUCE); shrub (SHRUB); rock (ROCK) (Source: this report)

    string

    SnowDepth_mm
    Snow depth (mm) (Source: this report)

    string

    DepthSTD_mm
    Standard deviation of snow depth (mm) (Source: this report)

    string

    Density_kg_m3
    Snow density (kg/m3) (Source: this report)

    string

    SWE_mmwe
    Snow Water Equivalent (mm w.e.) (Source: this report)

    string

    rdf2019-3-soil-pits.csv
    Observations from soil pits. (Source: Andrew K. Bliss, Regine Hock, Gabriel J. Wolken, Erin N. Whorton, Caroline Aubry-Wake, Juliana Braun, Alessio Gusmeroli, William D. Harrison, Andrew Hoffman, Anna K. Liljedahl, and Jing Zhang)

    Site
    Site name (Source: this report)

    string

    Depth_cm
    Depth or depth interval of observations (cm), with a depth of 0 at the transition from living plant material above (negative depths) to soil and roots below (positive depths) (Source: this report)

    string

    SoilHorizon
    Soil horizon observed (Source: this report)

    string

    Description
    Description of the soil (Source: this report)

    string

    Comments
    Any additional comments recorded in the field (Source: this report)

    string

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

    The authors appreciate support and funding from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys, Alaska Energy Authority, and Colorado State University.

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys
    Metadata Manager
    3354 College Road
    Fairbanks, AK 99709-3707
    USA

    (907)451-5020 (voice)
    (907)451-5050 (FAX)
    dggspubs@alaska.gov

    Hours_of_Service: 8 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday, except State holidays

Why was the data set created?

As part of a study for a proposed hydropower facility, the authors conducted extensive field observations in the Upper Susitna basin, a 13,289 km2 (5,130 mi2) glacierized catchment in central Alaska, in 2012-2014. This dataset is a companion to a paper submitted to the journal Earth Systems Science Data (Bliss and others, unpub. data). The data will be useful for hydrological and glaciological studies, including modeling efforts.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

    Clarke, T.S. and others, 1985 (source 1 of 1)
    Clarke, T.S., Johnson, D., and Harrison, W.D., 1985, Glacier mass balances and runoff in the upper Susitna and Maclaren River basins, 1981-1983: null, Fairbanks.

    Online Links:

    • null

    Type_of_Source_Media: digital data
    Source_Contribution: data collection and compilation

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    Date: 2014 (process 1 of 1)
    Data collection and compilation - Around the rest of the basin, we installed 26 stations that measured air temperature and relative humidity, 10 of which also measured precipitation and nine of which measured soil temperature. These stations help to characterize the weather across a high elevation basin with very sparse measurements. We used weather stations from Campbell Scientific and Onset to collect meteorological data; ablation stakes, snow pits, and helicopter-borne radar to measure glacier mass balance; an Adirondack snow tube to measure snow depth; a Wingscapes time-lapse camera; and photos and field observations to establish soil types in the soil pits. We characterized soil profiles at nine sites to verify that they match up with mapped soil textures. The methods used to collect the data are described with additional detail in a paper submitted to the journal Earth Systems Science Data (Bliss and others, unpub. data).

    Data sources used in this process:

    • Clarke, T.S. and others, 1985

  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

    This comprehensive data set includes meteorological, glacier mass balance, snow cover, and soil measurements. We also include digitized snow depth data from a set of similar observations collected in the 1980s. This data set is being released into the DGGS Raw Data File series. The information has been examined by several geologists familiar with the study area, but the data and accompanying report have not been formally reviewed for technical content or for conformity to the editorial standards of DGGS.

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

    Locations described in these files were measured with GPS and should be considered accurate to within a few meters. Higher precision is not needed for any of the position data we present here.

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

    This data release is complete.

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

    not applicable

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints:
This report, map, and/or dataset is available directly from the State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (see contact information below).
Use_Constraints:
Any hard copies or published datasets utilizing these datasets shall clearly indicate their source. If the user has modified the data in any way, the user is obligated to describe the types of modifications the user has made. The user specifically agrees not to misrepresent these datasets, nor to imply that changes made by the user were approved by the State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys. The State of Alaska makes no express or implied warranties (including warranties for merchantability and fitness) with respect to the character, functions, or capabilities of the electronic data or products or their appropriateness for any user's purposes. In no event will the State of Alaska be liable for any incidental, indirect, special, consequential, or other damages suffered by the user or any other person or entity whether from the use of the electronic services or products or any failure thereof or otherwise. In no event will the State of Alaska's liability to the Requestor or anyone else exceed the fee paid for the electronic service or product.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)

    Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys
    Metadata Manager
    3354 College Road
    Fairbanks, AK 99709-3707
    USA

    (907)451-5020 (voice)
    (907)451-5050 (FAX)
    dggspubs@alaska.gov

    Hours_of_Service: 8 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday, except State holidays
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    RDF 2019-3

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    The State of Alaska makes no expressed or implied warranties (including warranties for merchantability and fitness) with respect to the character, functions, or capabilities of the electronic data or products or their appropriateness for any user's purposes. In no event will the State of Alaska be liable for any incidental, indirect, special, consequential, or other damages suffered by the user or any other person or entity whether from the use of the electronic services or products or any failure thereof or otherwise. In no event will the State of Alaska's liability to the Requestor or anyone else exceed the fee paid for the electronic service or product.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 30-Apr-2019
Metadata author:
Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys
Attn: Simone Montayne
Metadata Manager
3354 College Road
Fairbanks, AK 99709-3707
USA

(907)451-5020 (voice)
(907)451-5050 (FAX)
dggspubs@alaska.gov

Hours_of_Service: 8 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday, except State holidays
Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
Metadata extensions used:

Generated by mp version 2.9.21 on Tue Apr 30 11:59:50 2019