Assessment of the Snow Cover Effect on Soil Surface Temperature from Observational Data

A. B. Sherstiukov and O. A. Anisimov

A method is proposed for calculating the effective thermal conductivity of snow cover based on the data on snow surface temperature and soil temperature measured at weather stations. The quanti- tative estimates of the snow cover effect on soil temperature are presented. The spatial differences in this effect are described. The results obtained significantly enhance the opportunities of applying simple models to forecast permafrost conditions under the climate change.