Simulation of a former ice field with Parallel Ice Sheet Model – Snežnik study case

Autor: M. Depolli, M. Žebre, U. Stepišnik, G. Kosec
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2024
Předmět:
Zdroj: Climate of the Past, Vol 20, Pp 1471-1488 (2024)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1471-2024
1814-9324
1814-9332
69641145
DOI: 10.5194/cp-20-1471-2024
Popis: In this paper, we present a reconstruction of climate conditions during the Last Glacial Maximum on a karst plateau Snežnik, which lies in Dinaric Mountains (southern Slovenia) and bears evidence of glaciation. The reconstruction merges geomorphological ice limits, classified as either clear or unclear, and a computer modelling approach based on the Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM). Based on extensive numerical experiments where we studied the agreements between simulated and geomorphological ice extent, we propose using a combination of a high-resolution precipitation model that accounts for orographic precipitation combined with a simple elevation-based temperature model. The geomorphological ice extent can be simulated with climate to be around 6 °C colder than the modern day and with a lower-than-modern-day amount of precipitation, which matches other state-of-the art climate reconstructions for the era. The results indicate that an orographic precipitation model is essential for the accurate simulation of the study area, with moist southern winds from the nearby Adriatic Sea having a predominant effect on the precipitation patterns. Finally, this study shows that transforming climate conditions towards wetter and warmer or drier and colder does not significantly change the conditions for glacier formation.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals