Notice: The Sea Ice Index is updated monthly. Funding constraints prevent us from updating or developing the other Cryospheric Climate Indicators. Soil Temperatures, Snow Cover, and Greenness are shown as prototypes.
Snow Cover: Snow Off DaySnow Off Day (SOD) gives the day of the year (to within about five to ten days) when snow last covers a location. The data are derived from satellite passive microwave data. See the documentation for more information.
SOD Anomalies (Relative to 1979-2000 Mean)
Notes: The images show that while SOD has, on average, been coming earlier (note that the image on the right has more blue than orange grid cells), there is a considerable amount of regional variability. The North Slope of Alaska, for example, is less blue than is the Russian coast. Time Series of Average Regional Values for SOD
Notes: Time series of SOD values (left) and anomalies from the 1979-2000 mean (right) for 250 square km areas of Russia, Canada, and Alaska show a general trend toward earlier snow melt, but with large temporal variability. When linear regression is used to find the trends, all three areas have a negative trend in SOD. However the trend is only significant (at a 95% confidence level) for the Canadian site, where it is minus 3.7 days per decade. (For a quick overview of linear regression see Linear Regression for Trend Analysis: Assumptions and Limitations in the Sea Ice Index indicator documentation.) |