title: Hotspots and key periods of Greenland climate change during the past six decades.
abstract: We investigated air temperature and pressure gradients and their trends for the period 1996-2014 in Greenland and compared these to other periods since 1958. Both latitudinal temperature and pressure gradients were strongest during winter. An overall temperature increase up to 0.15 °C year-1was observed for 1996-2014. The strongest warming happened during February at the West coast (up to 0.6 °C year-1), weaker but consistent and significant warming occurred during summer months (up to 0.3 °C year-1) both in West and East Greenland. Pressure trends on a monthly basis were mainly negative, but largely statistically non-significant. Compared with other time windows in the past six decades, the period 1996-2014 yielded an above-average warming trend. Northeast Greenland and the area around Zackenberg follow the general pattern but are on the lower boundary of observed significant trends in Greenland. We conclude that temperature-driven ecosystem changes as observed in Zackenberg may well be exceeded in other areas of Greenland.
authors.affiliation: Asiaq, Greenland Survey, Qatserisut 8, 3900, Nuuk, Greenland. jab@asiaq.gl.
authors.forename: Jakob
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Abermann
authors.affiliation: Center for Permafrost (CENPERM), Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 10, 1350, Copenhagen K, Denmark.
authors.forename: Birger
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioscience, Arctic Research Centre, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark.
authors.forename: Magnus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lund
authors.affiliation: Asiaq, Greenland Survey, Qatserisut 8, 3900, Nuuk, Greenland.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wacker
authors.affiliation: Center for Permafrost (CENPERM), Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 10, 1350, Copenhagen K, Denmark.
authors.forename: Mojtaba
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Karami
authors.affiliation: DMI, Lyngbyvej 100, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cappelen
mesh_terms: D000399:Air Pressure; D001110:Arctic Regions; D002980:Climate; D057231:Climate Change; D064308:Ecological Parameter Monitoring; D005843:Geography; D006116:Greenland; D013696:Temperature
keywords: Air pressure trends; Ecosystem changes; Greenland climate change; Temperature trends