Snow Line
From FIS Freestyle wiki
The lowest elevation area of a perennial snow field on high terrain, such as a mountain range.
The climatic snow line is the point above which snow and ice cover the ground throughout the year. The actual snow line may seasonally be significantly lower.
The interplay of altitude and latitude affects the precise placement of the snow line at a particular location. At or near the equator, it is typically situated at approximately 4,500 meters (or about 15,000 feet) above sea level.
As one moves towards the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, the parameter at first increases: in the Himalayas the permanent snow line can be as high as 5,700 metres (18,700 feet).
Beyond the Tropics the snow line becomes progressively lower as the latitude increases, to just below 3,000 metres in the Alps and falling all the way to sea level itself at the ice caps near the poles.
In addition, the relative location to the nearest coastline can influence the altitude of the snow line. Areas near a coast might have a lower snow line than areas of the same altitude and latitude situated in a landmass interior due to more winter snowfall and because the average summer temperature of the surrounding lowlands would be warmer away from the sea. A higher altitude is therefore necessary to lower the temperature further against the surroundings and keep the snow from melting in the summer.
[edit] Levels of the climatic snow line:
| Svalbard | 78°N | 300–600 m |
| Scandinavia at the polar circle | 67°N | 1000–1500 m |
| Iceland | 65°N | 700–1100 m |
| southern Scandinavia | 62°N | 1200–2200 m |
| Alps (northern slopes) | 48°N | 2500–2800 m |
| Central Alps | 47°N | 2900–3200 m |
| Alps (southern slopes) | 46°N | 2700–2800 m |
| Pyrenees | 43°N | 2600–2900 m |
| Caucasus | 43°N | 2700–3800 m |
| Karakoram | 36°N | 5400–5800 m |
| Transhimalaya | 32°N | 6300–6500 m |
| Himalaya | 30°N | 4800–6000 m |
| Kenya | 0° | 4600–4700 m |
| New Guinea | 2°S | 4600–4700 m |
| Andes in Ecuador | 2°S | 4800–5000 m |
| Kilimanjaro | 3°S | 5500–5600 m |
| Andes in Chile | 27°S | 5800–6500 m |
| New Zealand | 43°S | 1600–2700 m |
| Tierra del Fuego | 54°S | 800–1300 m |
| Antarctica | 70°S | 0–400 m |
[edit] Also See
- Mountain
- Tree line
- Physical Features of Mountains
- Defining Mountain Regions
- Snow and Weather Glossary
- Frozen Ground
- Cryosphere
- What Affects Frozen Ground
- What is the Cryosphere
- Snow
- Clouds
- Freezing Point / Freeze
- Moisture
- Rime
- Thaw depth
[edit] Reference
- Wikipedia Snow line [1]
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