NÉVÉFLO: Northern Environmental Variability at the Expedition Fiord Landscape Observatory

加拿大的北极地区拥有除格陵兰岛和南极洲以外最大的冰川面积，由于北极地区的变暖程度高于其他地区，它是冰川和冰盖导致海平面上升的最大原因。因此，我们必须提高快速预测冰川变化的能力。这将有助于沿海社区和保险公司为海平面上升做出计划并降低风险。气候变化既影响融水的产生，也影响冰川的径流，还影响冰流向更低、更温暖的海拔地区的速度。***基于实地的冰川气候过程及其对下游生态系统影响的研究有限，由于后勤方面的挑战，很少跨越50 - 10年。然而，纽大阿克塞尔海贝格岛的远征峡湾地区承载了50多年来持续不断的冰川研究，并收集了大量关于高北极环境的日益重要的基线数据。在这一研究成果的基础上，远征峡湾景观观测站（NÉVÉFLO）提出的北方环境变动性计划将引领该地区冰川测量的延续，同时提高我们对加拿大北极冰川变化的敏感性、稳定性和下游后果的认识。***拟议的研究将1)解决有关冰川-大气和冰川-床边界过程的知识空白，2)评估这些过程如何影响下游环境。在冰川-大气边界，未知因素包括高海拔雪原中储存的融水的数量和分布（nÉvÉ），以及这些雪原中融水的再冻结将如何影响冰川冰的内部温度和变形率。在冰川床边界，在寒冷的极地冰川底部，关于冰的变形和滑动的力学仍然有很大的未知数。这些冰川床过程控制着冰的速度、侵蚀和冰川退缩时形成的景观。这些过程共同控制着冰川释放的淡水的数量、化学成分和沉积物负荷，并最终影响下游河流、峡湾和海洋生态系统。***NÉVÉFLO将结合对冰川变化的地面和卫星观测，以及结合天气观测和未来气候情景的模式，来确定冰川释放的水和沉积物的数量。除了帮助预测海平面上升之外，拟议中的研究还将揭示冰川变化如何影响地貌、流域和生态系统的形成和改变。该项目将在五年内为19名高素质人才（HQP）提供科学和可转移技能培训，其中包括3名博士、6名硕士、5名理学士和5名北方学生。它还将促进在北达科他州格里斯峡湾北部社区开展冰川流域监测项目。

The Canadian Arctic hosts the largest area of glaciers outside of Greenland and Antarctica, and is the largest contributor to rising sea-level from glaciers and ice caps due to greater warming in the Arctic than elsewhere. It is therefore essential that we improve our ability to anticipate glacier changes quickly. This will help coastal communities and insurance companies plan for and reduce the risks of rising sea-level. Changing climate impacts both the production of meltwater and runoff from glaciers, as well as the speed at which ice flows to lower, warmer elevations where melt conditions prevail. ***Field-based studies into the glacier-climate processes and the impact on downstream ecosystems are limited and rarely span >10 years due to logistical challenges. However, the region of Expedition Fiord on Axel Heiberg Island, NU, hosts more than 50 years of continuous glacier research and a large collection of increasingly critical baseline data about the high-Arctic environment. Building upon this legacy of research, the proposed Northern Environmental Variability at the Expedition Fiord Landscape Observatory (NÉVÉFLO) program will lead the continuation of the glacier measurements in the region, while advancing our knowledge of the sensitivity, stability, and downstream consequences of glacier change in the Canadian Arctic. ***The proposed research will 1) address knowledge-gaps concerning processes at the glacier-atmosphere and glacier-bed boundaries, and 2) assess how these processes impact downstream environments. At the glacier-atmosphere boundary, unknowns include the amount and distribution of meltwater stored in high-elevation snowfields (nÉvÉ), and how the refreezing of meltwater in these snowfields will impact the internal temperature and deformation-rate of glacier ice. At the glacier-bed boundary, there are still large unknowns concerning the mechanics of ice deformation and sliding at the base of cold, polar glaciers. These glacier-bed processes control ice velocities, erosion, and the landscapes formed as glaciers retreat. Together, these processes control the quantity, chemistry, and sediment load of freshwater released from glaciers, and will ultimately impact the downstream river, fiord, and ocean ecosystems. ***NÉVÉFLO will use a combination of ground- and satellite-based observations of glacier change, along with models incorporating weather observations and future climate scenarios, to determine the amount of water and sediment released by glaciers. In addition to helping predict sea-level rise, the proposed research will reveal how changing glaciers impact the creation and alteration of landforms, watersheds, and ecosystems. Over five-years, this program will support scientific and transferable skills training for 19 highly-qualified personnel (HQP), including 3 PhD, 6 MSc, 5 BSc, and 5 northern students. It will also foster the development of a glacier watershed monitoring program in the northern community of Grise Fiord, NU.