An Assessment of the river ice break-up season in Canada
| dc.contributor.author | Von de Wall, Simon Julius | |
| dc.contributor.supervisor | Prowse, Terry Donald | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2011-12-20T19:37:26Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2011-12-20T19:37:26Z | |
| dc.date.copyright | 2011 | en_US |
| dc.date.issued | 2011-12-20 | |
| dc.degree.department | Department of Geography | |
| dc.degree.level | Master of Science M.Sc. | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | A return-period analysis of annual peak spring break-up and open-water levels for 136 Water Survey of Canada hydrometric stations was used to classify rivers across Canada and to assess the physical controls on peak break-up water-levels. According to the peak water-level river-regime classification and subsequent analysis, 32% of rivers were classified as spring break-up dominated, characterized by low elevations and slopes and large basin sizes while 45% were open-water dominated and associated with alpine environments of high elevations and channel slopes, and smaller basin sizes. The remaining 23% of rivers were classified as a mixed regime. A spatial and temporal analysis (1969-2006) of the river ice break-up season using hydrometric variables of timing and water levels, never before assessed at the northern Canada-wide scale, revealed significant declines in break-up water levels and significant trends towards earlier and prolonged break-up in western and central Canada. The spatial and temporal influence of air temperature on break-up timing was assessed using the spring 0°C isotherm, which revealed a significant positive relationship but no spatial patterns. In the case of major ocean/atmosphere oscillations, significant negative (positive) correlations indicate that break-up occurs earlier (later) during the positive phases of the Pacific North American Pattern (El Niño Southern Oscillation) over most of western Canada. Fewer significant positive correlations show that break-up occurs later during the positive phases of the Arctic Oscillation and North Atlantic Oscillation in eastern Canada. | en_US |
| dc.description.scholarlevel | Graduate | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/1828/3752 | |
| dc.language | English | eng |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.rights.temp | Available to the World Wide Web | en_US |
| dc.subject | Cold regions hydrology | en_US |
| dc.subject | river ice break-up | en_US |
| dc.subject | flood levels | en_US |
| dc.subject | return-period analysis | en_US |
| dc.subject | river regimes | en_US |
| dc.subject | teleconnections | en_US |
| dc.subject | spring 0°C isotherm | en_US |
| dc.subject | variability | en_US |
| dc.title | An Assessment of the river ice break-up season in Canada | en_US |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_US |