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Research article - Peer-reviewed, 2004

Nonlinear temperature response of lake ice breakup

Gesa A. Weyhenmeyer, Markus Meili, and David M. Livingstone

Abstract

A uniquely comprehensive set of four decades of ice breakup data from 196 Swedish lakes covering 13degrees of latitude (55.7degrees N to 68.4degrees N) shows the relationship between the timing of lake ice breakup and air temperature to be an arc cosine function. The nonlinearity inherent in this relationship results in marked differences in the response of the timing of lake ice breakup to changes in air temperature between colder and warmer geographical regions, and between colder and warmer time periods. The spatial and temporal patterns are mutually consistent, suggesting that climate change impacts on the timing of lake ice breakup will vary along a temperature gradient. This has potentially important ramifications for the employment of lake ice phenologies as climate indicators and for the future behavior of lacustrine ecosystems

Published in

Geophysical Research Letters
2004, Volume: 31, number: 7, article number: L07203
Publisher: AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION

      SLU Authors

    • Weyhenmeyer, Gesa

      • Department of Environmental Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

      UKÄ Subject classification

      Environmental Sciences related to Agriculture and Land-use
      Fish and Aquacultural Science

      Publication identifier

      DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2004GL019530

      Permanent link to this page (URI)

      https://res.slu.se/id/publ/4923