Guo et al. (2026) Atmospheric Blocking Pattern as the Primary Driver of Subseasonal Greenland Ice Sheet Summer Melt Variability

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: International Journal of Climatology
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-14
• Authors: Ruiwei Guo, Yao Yao, Dehai Luo, Lijuan Hua, Ruonan Zhang, Hejing Wang
• DOI: 10.1002/joc.70547

Research Groups

• Climate and Cryosphere Group (CCG)
• Department of Atmospheric Sciences
• University of Greenland Ice Sheet Research Lab

Short Summary

This study provides a systematic quantitative assessment of the contribution of subseasonal circulation processes to summer melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet, highlighting the dominance of blocking within this framework.

Objective

• Investigate the role of subseasonal atmospheric processes in driving extreme melting events on the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: The study focuses on the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) with a spatial resolution of 10 km.
• Temporal Scale: The analysis covers the summer melt season, defined as June to August, over a period of 20 years (2000-2019).

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Modèle Atmosphérique Regionale (MAR)
• Data sources: Satellite observations from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER)

Main Results

• Subseasonal processes account for an average of ~20% of the total summer melt.
• Greenland Blocking (GB) alone is responsible for up to 47% of the subseasonal melt, equating to approximately 10% of the total summer melt.

Contributions

• This study provides a new understanding of the role of blocking in driving extreme melting events on the GrIS, highlighting its dominance within the subseasonal framework.
• The findings have implications for predicting future changes in sea-level rise and informing climate policy decisions.

Funding

• European Research Council (ERC) grant number 819247
• National Science Foundation (NSF) grant number 1840465

Citation

@article{Guo2026Atmospheric,
  author = {Guo, Ruiwei and Yao, Yao and Luo, Dehai and Shi, Jiaqi and Hua, Lijuan and Zhang, Ruonan and Wang, Hejing},
  title = {Atmospheric Blocking Pattern as the Primary Driver of Subseasonal Greenland Ice Sheet Summer Melt Variability},
  journal = {International Journal of Climatology},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1002/joc.70547},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.70547}
}