Melville Island South Ice Cap Mass Balance & Snow Pollution

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region

Tags: physical sciences, air quality, climate change, glaciology, ice cap

Principal Investigator: Burgess, David O (15)
Licence Number: 14636
Organization: Natural Resources Canada
Licensed Year(s): 2023 2022 2021 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009
Issued: Feb 04, 2010

Objective(s): The objective of this research is to measure changes in the Melville Ice Cap related to the changing climate.

Project Description: This licence is being issued for the scientific research application no.1289. The objective of this research is to measure changes in the Melville Ice Cap related to the changing climate. Weather measurements will be taken from an automatic weather station and snow sampling. These types of samples have been collected over some time and are showing an ice cap retreat. By measuring the changing volume of the ice cap and maintaining an automatic weather station the researchers are able to track how much the climate is changing. The snow sampling tells how polluted the snow and thus the air above it and whether it is changing. While at the Melville ice cap, the researchers live in a small hut by the side of the ice cap constructed in 2008. The researchers have prepared posters of the work done on the ice cap so far and the results. These were sent to the Aurora Research Institute and the communities of Sachs Harbor and Holman. This practice will continue. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted on the South Melville Ice Cap (75’27” N and 115’0” W) from April 8 to April 11, 2010.