Ninth International Conference on Permafrost ... - IARC Research

Ni n t h In t e r n at i o n a l Co n f e r e n c e o n Pe r m a f r o s tstation where observations were started in the 1870s. At theUpernavik station (central coast), significant warming beganin the 1920s which reached -13° in 1940 (the long-termaverage is -19°С). This warming apparently is related to theproximity to the warm Gulf Stream, which had the greatestinfluence on the stations of Western Europe.Summer temperature variations are within the range of±1–1.5°С. Mean annual temperatures varied within ±2°С.Jodhab station records show variations similar toUpernavik, with significant cooling from the 1970s to theearly 20th century, and significant warming from the 1920sto the end of the 20th century.Summer temperatures were highest in the 1930s and in the1960s (-6° to -5.5°, the long-term average = -8.6°С). Warmerwinter and summer temperatures resulted in higher meanannual temperatures. In the 1930s and 1960s, they exceededthe “norm” (-1.4°С) by 1–1.5°С and frequently approached0°С; that is, unstable permafrost conditions occurred nowand then.ConclusionsThe coldest years in North America during the period ofinstrumental observations occurred from the late 19th centuryto the 1910s–1920s. Arctic warming was not reflected inAlaska and Canada records, and some locations experiencedcooling. But the stations in Greenland responded well tothe Arctic warming. Recent climate warming occurredin Alaska in the 1980s, in Canada in the 1970s and inGreenland in the 1960s. In the end of the 20th century, meanannual temperatures at many stations increased by 1–1.5°Сcompared to the long-term average (Gavrilova 1998, 2003).AcknowledgmentsThe author thanks her assistant, Tamara Sofroneeva, forhelping.ReferencesGavrilova, M.K. 1998, 2003. Climates of Earth’s ColdRegions. Yakutsk: 2008 pp.82