CRYONET Site Questionnaire: Alert, NU Canada (GAW Observatory and Alert Weather Station)
Site specific metadata:
Name of site: Alert, NU Canada (GAW Observatory and Alert Weather Station)
Latitude/Longitude/Altitude: 82.5N, 62.5W
Landscape type (e.g. arctic coastal, tundra, alpine…): Arctic coastal
Onsite technical staff: 2 CRD (GAW Observatory) + 2 MSC (Weather Station )
All-year round observations y/n: Y including Aerological Ascent twice a day 365 days (00Z, 12Z)
Year established: MET in 1950, GAW 1986
Link to website if available: http://www.ec.gc.ca/scitech/default.asp?lang=En&n=52F708A1-1
Station manager (Email): andrew.platt@ec.gc.ca (The Dr. Neil Trivett Global Atmosphere Watch
Observatory); AlertWeatherStation@ec.gc.ca; john.maciver@ec.gc.ca
Organisation in charge of station: Environment Canada
Other information: Also co-located CFS Alert, DND military station.
Monitoring of the atmosphere:
Solid precipitation and Snowfall:
Snow Depth – Snow Ruler Type 4 (wooden metre stick) Manned
Snow Survey –10 Point Course - Mount Rose Snow Sampler (snow depth, weight, density) Manned
Snow Depth - Sensor – SR50 – RCS - Automated
All Weather Precipitation Gauge – Geonor Model TB200 – RCS – Automated
Ice Thickness - 2 inch Ice Auger – Manned
Trace gases: CO2, CH4, N2O, SF6, H2, O3, BrO, CFCs
Aerosols: Yes – number count, size distribution, chemistry…
UV, stratospheric ozone: Yes – total column(Brewer) & and Sonde(weekly)
Radiation (longwave, shortwave): Yes
Others: Hg(GEM/RGM), Toxics, Radionuclides, Aerological Soundings
Snow cover
Physical parameters: Depth, Weight, Density
Chemical parameters: Mercury in snow,
Others:
Glaciers and ice caps
Mass balance (measured parameters):
Ice flow (measured parameters):
Basal water pressure (measured parameters):
Others:
Sea ice
Mass balance (measured parameters): Sea ice thickness measurements from airborne electromagnetic
surveys using Polar-5 aircraft (Alfred Wegner Institute) in 2009, 2011, 2012 (Science lead: Dr. Christian
Haas, formerly University of Alberta, now York University). University of Alberta project CASIMBO
(Canadian Sea Ice Mass Balance Observatory): https://sites.google.com/a/ualberta.ca/casimbo/
Meteorology: radiation, air temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, air pressure (measured
parameters):
Snow on ice (measured parameters): Yes
Ice chemistry (measured parameters):
Others: Located on the North Coast of Ellesmere Island and the Lincoln Sea
Sea Ice measured on Parr Inlet, east of site. Fresh water ice measured south of site at Lower Dumbell
Lake
Permafrost
Borehole measurements (measured parameters): ground temperature up to 60m depth at 5 sites.
Meteorology: radiation, air temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, air pressure (measured
parameters): Ta, Ws,
Snow on ground (measured parameters): snow depth, area % coverage
Active layer thickness (measured parameters):
GST:
Others:
Ice sheet
Mass balance (measured parameters):
Meteorology: radiation, air temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, air pressure (measured
parameters):
Snow on ice (measured parameters):
Ice chemistry (measured parameters):
Others:
Other measurements (hydrological, ecological, oceanographic, etc)
Hydrology (measured parameters):
Ecology (measured parameters)
Oceanography (measured parameters): DFO tidal gauge, project Switchyard http://psc.apl.washington.edu/switchyard/index.html
Other thematic linkages:
Linkages to satellite data (describe validation programs, applications of satellite data, etc.)
CryoVEx – Validation of sea ice thickness for ESA’s CryoSat-2 mission. Aircraft and field measurements
carried out at Alert in 2011 and 2012 (aircraft only) by Alfred Wegener Institute, University of Alberta,
Danish Technical University.
Participation in international monitoring programmes such as GAW, GTN-G, GTN-P, ….
Networks and start of contribution: GAW(1986), BSRN(2005), GTN-P(1978), AMAP (1992), GUAN
http://gosic.org/gcos/GCOS-dev.htm