Glaciological observations in 2012 and 2013 at SIGMA-A site, Northwest Greenland

Glaciological observations were conducted in 2012 and 2013 at the SIGMA-A site on the northwest Greenland ice sheet (78° 03'06"N, 67° 37'42"W, 1490 m a.s.l.) as part of the Snow Impurity and Glacial Microbe effects on abrupt warming in the Arctic (SIGMA) project. The meteorological conditions during the two observations were quite different. The meteorological condition during the 2012 observation period was warm, and heavy rainfall occurred during the observation period, thus the snow was very wet. In contrast, the meteorological condition during the observation period in 2013 was cold, with a blowing snow event, thus the snow was quite dry. The glaciological observations in 2012 consisted of 1) snow-stake measurements, 2) snow pit observations, 3) grain size observations for validation of satellite-derived snow products, 4) snow specific surface area measurements using a near-infrared camera, 5) snow sampling for chemical analyses, and 6) drilling of firn cores with a hand auger. The glaciological observations in 2013 consisted of 1) snow-stake measurements, 2) snow pit observations, and 3) snow sampling for chemical analyses.