Firn Properties Affecting Gas Exchange at Summit, Greenland: Ventilation Possibilities

Abstract

The processes by which chemical species in the atmosphere become incorporated in the firn depend both upon the nature of the forcing from the atmosphere and upon the properties of the firn itself. These processes include both diffusion and advection (the transport of heat, vapor, and chemical species by air flow within the snow and firn). In this paper we present recent field measurements of firn properties relevant to the transport processes, and use simplified model calculations to investigate the possibility of advection at Summit.