The Cryosphere and Global Environmental Change

About this book

The cryosphere is an essential member of the globe's environmental systems, with a unique sensitivity to climate change at all spatial and temporal scales. This is the first textbook to consider all aspects of the cryosphere system (ice sheets, sea ice, snow, river and lake ice, glaciers, and permafrost) in the context of global environmental change driven by human activity and climate. As well as clearly describing the present state of our understanding of the complex interactions between the cryosphere and environmental change, the book provides a wealth of data to inform the global change debate. Some key aspects of the book include: a new concept of cryosphere transience and landscape transitions which links the topics of climate, hydrology, ecology and geomorphology a synthesis of anthropogenic and climatic factors on global environmental change a detailed description of how modern and historical remote sensing measurements have been used to significantly advance our understanding of the state of the cryosphere.

"The Cryosphere and Global Environmental Change" is written for upper level undergraduate and graduate students in geography, environmental science and earth science, but it will also appeal to all scientists engaged with global change issues.

Contents

Preface 1. The Evidence for Cryospheric Change 2. The Monitoring of Cryospheric Change 3. Processes of Cryospheric Change 4. Patterns of the Contemporary Cryosphere at Local to Global Scales 5. The Evidence for Past Cryospheric Changes 6. The Transience of the Cryosphere and Transitional Landscapes 7. Cryospheric Change and Vulnerability at Quaternary, Holocene, and Anthropocene Timescales References Index

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Biography

Professor Slaymaker's research has four foci: mountain hydrogeomorphology, land use impacts, sustainable development and global environmental change. From 1994-2002 he was a Governor of the International Development Research Centre in Ottawa. Professor Kelly's research focuses on the use of measurements from remote sensing ground, aircraft and satellite instruments coupled with environmental models to better understand the cryosphere, especially snow and ice environments. He is also interested in the development of new technologies for improved direct in situ and remote sensing measurements of the cryosphere.