Reanalysis Surface Mass Balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet along
K-transect (2000-2014)
Abstract
Accurate estimates of surface mass balance over the Greenland ice sheet
(GrIS) would contribute to understanding the cause of recent changes and
would help to better estimate the future contribution of the GrIS to
sea-level rise. Given the limitations of in-situ measurement, modeling,
and remote sensing, it is critical to explore the opportunity to merge
the available data to better characterize the spatial and temporal
variation of the GrIS SMB. This work utilizes a particle batch smoother
data assimilation technique that yields SMB estimates that benefit from
the snow/ice model Crocus and a 16-day albedo product derived from
satellite remote sensing data. Comparison of the results against in-situ
SMB measurements from a transect located nearby the town of
Kangerlussuaq shows that the assimilation of the albedo product reduces
the root mean square error (RMSE) of the posterior estimates of SMB by
51% and reduces bias by 95%.