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Analysis of stable snowpack distribution pattern and influencing factors
  • Zihan Zhang,
  • Lumin Nie,
  • Heng Lu
Zihan Zhang
Sichuan Normal University
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Lumin Nie
Sichuan Normal University
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Heng Lu
Sichuan Normal University

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Abstract

Under the background of climate warming, the distribution pattern of snowpack in mountainous areas is naturally under the focus of attention, and the changes in the snowpack pattern in mountainous areas have important impacts on hydrological processes such as downstream river runoff, water supply, and so on. In this study, based on the MODIS day-by-day cloud-free snowpack area dataset, we analysed the process of stable snowpack formation and the final pattern of snowpack in spring and winter in two typical topographic regions, the hilly plateau and the alpine valley region, in the eastern part of the Tibetan Plateau, and constructed a model based on the Maximum Entropy Model (MEM) method for predicting the influencing factors of the stable snowpack. A model was constructed based on the maximum entropy model method to predict the factors influencing the stable snowpack, and the dominant factors of the stable snowpack in spring and winter in the watersheds of the two topographic regions were analysed. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) The snow ablation rate on the western Sichuan Plateau is different in winter and spring, and is greater in spring than in winter; there is also a difference in the snow ablation rate in different topographic regions, with a greater difference in the hilly plateau than in the high mountain valleys. (2) The distribution pattern of stable snow in the two major terrain areas of the Western Sichuan Plateau varies in seasons, and the spatial distribution area is relatively small, mostly showing a rising trend with increasing altitude. (3) The influence factors of stable snowpack in different terrain areas in different seasons are different, and elevation is the main factor influencing the distribution pattern of stable snowpack. The results of this paper have some reference value for the study of snow hydrology in the climatic context of the Western Sichuan Plateau.