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Remote Sensing for Natural Resources    2024, Vol. 36 Issue (1) : 110-117     DOI: 10.6046/zrzyyg.2022438
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Remote sensing observation of surface meltwater on the Greenland Ice Sheet
ZHANG Wensong1,2,3(), ZHU Yuxin1, QIU Yubao4,5, WANG Yuhan1, LIU Jinyu1, YANG Kang1,2,3()
1. School of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
2. Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Geographic Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210023, China
3. Collaborative Innovation Center of South China Sea Studies, Nanjing 210023, China
4. Laboratory of Digital Earth Science, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100094, China
5. Joint Research Center for Arctic Observations, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Arctic Space Center, Finnish Meteorological Institute (JRC-AO), Sodankyä l999018, Finland
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Abstract  

Every summer, the surface melting on the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) results in a large amount of surface meltwater, which is transported via supraglacial rivers and stored supraglacial lakes and water-filled crevasses, forming a large-scale and complex hydrologic system. However, there is a lack of studies on the spatial distribution of surface meltwater on the GrIS. This study extracted the surface meltwater information of the GrIS during the peak melting period in 2019 using 134 scenes of 10-m-resolution Sentinel-2 satellite images. Furthermore, we compared the surface meltwater distribution derived from the remote sensing observation and the surface meltwater runoff simulated by the regional atmospheric climate model (RACMO). The results show that: ① During the peak melting period in 2019, the GrIS exhibited a surface meltwater area of 9 900.9 km2 and a surface meltwater volume of 6.8 km3; ② The GrIS surface meltwater exhibited a significantly varying spatial distribution characterized by high volumes in the western and northern basins and low volumes in the eastern and southern basins; ③ The surface meltwater on the GrIS was primarily composed of supraglacial rivers, which accounted for 57.1% of the overall surface meltwater volume, followed by water-filled crevasses (25.6%) and supraglacial lakes (17.3%); ④ RACMO accurately simulated the surface meltwater runoff regions in most GrIS basins. This study enhanced the understanding of key hydrologic processes such as surface meltwater routing and storage, demonstrating the high application potential of high-resolution remote sensing images in the hydrologic research of the GrIS.
Keywords supraglacial river      supraglacial lake      water-filled crevasse      Sentinel-2      Greenland Ice Sheet     
ZTFLH:  TP79  
Issue Date: 13 March 2024
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Wensong ZHANG
Yuxin ZHU
Yubao QIU
Yuhan WANG
Jinyu LIU
Kang YANG
Cite this article:   
Wensong ZHANG,Yuxin ZHU,Yubao QIU, et al. Remote sensing observation of surface meltwater on the Greenland Ice Sheet[J]. Remote Sensing for Natural Resources, 2024, 36(1): 110-117.
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https://www.gtzyyg.com/EN/10.6046/zrzyyg.2022438     OR     https://www.gtzyyg.com/EN/Y2024/V36/I1/110
Fig.1  RACMO-simulated surface meltwater runoff of Greenland Ice Sheet in 2019 and primary acquisition time period of Sentinel-2 satellite images
Fig.2  Flowchart for Greenland Ice Sheet surface meltwater information extraction from satellite imagery
Fig.3  Surface meltwater volume in basins of Greenland Ice Sheet in 2019 melt peak time period
Fig.4  Spatial distribution of surface meltwater on Greenland Ice Sheet in 2019 melt peak time period
Fig.5  Surface meltwater runoff and elevational limit of Greenland Ice Sheet in 2019 melt peak time period
Fig.6  Surface meltwater volume and daily averaged runoff in eight major basins of Greenland Ice Sheet in 2019 melt peak time period
Fig.7  Ratio of surface meltwater volume to cumulative surface meltwater runoff of Greenland Ice Sheet in 2019 melt peak time period
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