Study finds Alaska's North Slope snow-free season increasing

Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Scientists discover that Alaska's North Slope snow-free season is lengthening due to atmospheric dynamics and sea ice conditions.

The study, published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, found that snow is melting earlier in the spring and the snow-in date is occurring later in the fall.

Researchers from CIRES and NOAA believe atmospheric dynamics and sea ice conditions are to blame for the lengthening of the snow-free season on the North Slope leading to issues such as birds laying eggs sooner and iced-over rivers flowing earlier.

"The timing of snowmelt and length of the snow-free season significantly impacts weather, the permafrost, and wildlife-in short, the Arctic terrestrial system as a whole," Christopher Cox, a scientist with CIRES at the University of Colorado Boulder and NOAA's Physical Sciences Division in Boulder, Colorado, said in a press release.

Read more: https://www.upi.com/Science_News/2017/08/04/Study-finds-Alaskas-North-Slope-snow-free-season-increasing/4441501866005/