Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa, 2019, Vol. 16, No. 5, pp. 351-355
Anomalous snow regime in 2019 and long-term trends in snow depth in Kazakhstan
A.G. Terekhov
1, 2 , N.N. Abayev
2, 3 , N.R. Unicheva
1 1 Institute of Information and Computing Technology MES, Almaty, Kazakhstan
2 RSE Kazhydromet, Almaty, Kazakhstan
3 al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Accepted: 04.09.2019
DOI: 10.21046/2070-7401-2019-16-5-351-355
On the basis on Snow Depth (FEWS NET), the product of USGS/EROS, the daily dynamics of snow depth in Kazakhstan from January 1 to April 30, 2001–2019, was constructed and analyzed. The last four years (2015–2018) turned out to be the warmest for the Earth over the entire period of instrumental observations. Comparison of the snow regime of the territory of Kazakhstan averaged over the last five years (2015–2019) with the previous years (2001–2014) showed that the high temperature on the Earth is accompanied by a decrease of the snow cover depth in Kazakhstan. The beginning of the snowmelt period has shifted to earlier periods. The shift was about 6 days (from 23 to 17 February). The snow cover regime of 2019 was characterized by low snowfall and exceptional variability. The snow depth in Kazakhstan for close calendar dates varied, from a long-term minimum (April 1–14) to a long-term maximum (April 19–20). Thus, the current direction of global climatic changes leads to a decrease in the snow depth in Kazakhstan and a shift of the beginning of snowmelt period to earlier periods. Satellite diagnostics of snow cover dynamics in Kazakhstan has a particular significance. Frequent and strong winds in the steppe and semi-desert zones of Kazakhstan interfere with ground-based measurements of solid precipitation. In this regard, climatic trends for Kazakhstan related to the amount of solid precipitation, built on the basis of ground-based information, should preferably be supplemented with independent data sources including satellite ones.
Keywords: remote sensing, snow cover, snow depth, territory of Kazakhstan, long-term trends, climate change
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