CRYOWRF—Model Evaluation and the Effect of Blowing Snow on the Antarctic Surface Mass Balance

The surface mass balance (SMB) of large polar ice sheets and of snow and ice surfaces in general are incompletely understood because of the complexity of processes involved. One such process, drifting and blowing snow, has only been considered in a very simplified way in current meteorological and climatological models. To address this problem, the CRYOWRF model has been developed, a coupled model between the meteorological Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRF) and the snow model SNOWPACK, augmented by a detailed treatment of drifting and blowing snow. Applying CRYOWRF to the SMB of Antarctica, we find that the model reproduces measurements of SMB with similar errors than current models. Drifting and blowing snow and its sublimation play a particularly important role, especially in regions of strong katabatic winds. The CRYOWRF simulations are also in line with satellite estimates of blowing snow frequency. There is a need to further consolidate results by simulations with a higher grid resolution and by including more measurements of SMB contributions from snow fall to transport and sublimation.