Warm and moist air intrusions drive black carbon deposition and accelerate central Arctic snowmelt

Warm and moist air intrusions drive black carbon deposition and accelerate central Arctic snowmelt | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Warm and moist air intrusions drive black carbon deposition and accelerate central Arctic snowmelt Helene Angot, Marion REVEILLET, Lubna Dada, Hans-Werner Jacobi, and 29 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5197651/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract In the central Arctic, warm and moist air intrusions (WAMIs) are increasingly prevalent during winter and spring, significantly impacting the near-surface energy budget. This study investigates WAMI-induced transport and wet deposition of black carbon (BC) and its subsequent influence on snow properties and melting. Using a modeling approach combined with extensive observational data from the 2019–2020 Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition, we document several episodes of elevated BC wet deposition during winter and spring (Nov–Apr). These events, driven by WAMI-transported pollution and moisture, result in an average 41% increase in BC wet deposition compared to typical winter/spring conditions. Furthermore, this enhanced BC deposition contributes to increased solar energy absorption (+3.4–4.6 W/m2 on average) and accelerated snowpack melt rate (+24–36%) during the subsequent summer. Despite their episodic occurrence (only 15% of the time), this study underscores the critical role of WAMIs in shaping the central Arctic environment and emphasizes the importance of the BC snow albedo effect. Our findings highlight the need for further investigation into the broader climatic impacts of WAMI-induced pollution transport in the Arctic. Earth and environmental sciences/Climate sciences/Cryospheric science Earth and environmental sciences/Climate sciences/Atmospheric science/Atmospheric dynamics Earth and environmental sciences/Climate sciences/Atmospheric science/Atmospheric chemistry Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files submittedsupplement.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5197651","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":372341934,"identity":"8c0b5528-6946-4544-bd2f-eb76117768a5","order_by":0,"name":"Helene Angot","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4673-8249","institution":"Univ. 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