Ice Freeze‐Up and Break‐Up in Arctic Rivers Observed With Satellite L‐Band Passive Microwave Data From 2010 to 2020

Abstract

AbstractThe timing of ice freeze‐up and break‐up in the Arctic may be responding to climate change. Passive microwave remote sensing is a powerful technique for monitoring this timing. We processed low‐frequency microwave time series from the European Space Agency Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission for a set of 31 satellite gauging reaches (SGRs) above 65°N between 2010 and 2020 to determine timing of freeze‐up and break‐up and annual river ice durations. We found indication of progressive ice cover reduction over more than half of the monitored river reaches, with possibly the fastest rate occurring over northeast Russia. Some rivers in high‐latitude North America experienced a slight increase in ice cover. Across the data set, we observed an average 2.2 days shift toward later ice freeze‐up in autumn and an average 0.6 days shift toward earlier ice break‐up in spring, resulting in an average decrease of 3.4 days in ice duration between 2010 and 2020. River reaches with the longest duration of ice cover appeared to have experienced the fastest rate of decrease. A possible reduction of the time lag between air temperature rise or fall and corresponding river ice break‐up and freeze‐up was also observed. Yet results on variability are carefuly interpreted given the short length of the time series (2010–2020) and the low statistical confidence rates calculated for the decadal tendency. Still outcomes are consistent with increases in global and Arctic surface air temperature. Following these time series over the next decade using passive microwave satellite sensors can monitor ice cover duration in the Arctic and will further determine temporal and regional trends.