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Mountain permafrost in Central-Eastern Norway

2005; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 59; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/00291950510038377

1502-5292

Eva SF Heggem, H. Juliussen, Bernd Etzelmüller,

Soil Moisture and Remote Sensing

Earlier studies suggest that the altitudinal permafrost limit decreases from the west to the east in Southern Norway and that the lowermost altitudinal permafrost limit in Southern Scandinavia occurs in the eastern part of Southern Norway. Most investigations on mountain permafrost have been undertaken in Jotunheimen and Dovrefjell further west, and in order to validate this regional pattern, the distribution of permafrost has been mapped on the mountains Sølen and Elgåhogna in the Femunden region, Central-Eastern Norway. Empirical-statistical models based on BTS and logistic regression were developed for each mountain, and validated with DC resistivity measurements. Permafrost was found to be probable down to 1100–1300 m a.s.l., which validates the regional west–east gradient in the altitudinal permafrost limit. Elevation is the main controlling factor for permafrost distribution on both Sølen and Elgåhogna. In addition, potential solar radiation and the surface wetness pattern were significant in the Sølen and Elgåhogna models, respectively. Mean annual ground surface temperatures are high and generally above zero, which contradicts the results from the BTS and DC resistivity. This together with observed air ventilation funnels through the snow cover suggest thermal advection and strong thermal offsets in the openwork blockfields.