top of page
This site was designed with the
.com
website builder. Create your website today.Start Now

REMOTE SENSING

Functional lake-to-channel connectivity in Arctic Deltas

ConnectivityImage-01.png

What is functional lake-to-channel connectivity in the context of Arctic deltas? Functional lake-to-channel connectivity is defined by the movement of high sediment river water in to lakes, either via channel or overland flow. 

Why is functional lake-to-channel connectivity important? Arctic lakes are strong emitters and absorbers of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases such as methane. Functional connectivity increases the amount of light-blocking sediment within the water column of a lake, which impacts the ability of plants and organisms to do photosynthesis. Additionally, lakes with high connectivity act as sediment traps, hindering the transport of terrestrial sediment to the coastal ocean.

Sentinel-2 composite image of the Mackenzie River Delta, Canada in late summer 2020

Research questions:

  1. How does functional lake-to-channel connectivity in arctic deltas vary over time and over space?

  2. How does functional lake-to-channel connectivity impact lake ice processes?

  3. How does functional lake-to-channel connectivity impact photochemical processes in deltaic lakes?

Figure 6 temporalResultsAlt.png

Changes in functional connectivity in the Colville River Delta, Alaska between 2000-2019. (Dolan et al., 2021)

Figure 10 iceDayLength.png

This graph shows the relationship between day of year and both sunlight (black line) and climatological ice cover fraction for Colville Delta lakes. Conneced lakes (blue line) have earlier ice off than poorly connected lakes (green line). Dolan et al. (2021)

What have we learned so far? Our published work thus far focuses on the Colville River Delta on the North Slope of Alaska. Within this system, we have learned that:

  • Functional lake-to-channel connectivity is relatively consistent over time. Variation in functional connectivity most commonly occurs in lakes with long or indirect connections to the delta channel network.

  • Ice on deltaic lakes breaks up an average of three weeks earlier on highly connected lakes compared to poorly connected lakes, which may impact photochemistry within the water column.

​

Works in progress:

  • Analyzing connectivity and lake ice patterns within the Mackenzie Delta, Canada

  • Investigating the relationship between connectivity and photochemistry in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Canada

Collaborators

​

Related publications:​

Dolan, W., Pavelsky, T., & Yang, X. (2021). Functional Lake-to-Channel Connectivity Impacts Lake Ice in the Colville Delta, Alaska. JGR Earth Surface, 126, e2021JF006362. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JF006362 

bottom of page