LIQUIDICE

LIQUIDICE - LinkIng and quantifying the Impacts of climate change on inland ice, snow cover, and permafrost on water resources and society in vulnerable regions

How melting ice affects climate

Rising temperatures are causing rapid changes to snow, ice and permafrost. These elements play a vital role in regulating the Earth’s climate. These changes threaten ecosystems and water resources in many regions, including Arctic, the Alps and High Mountain Asia. Melting glaciers and ice sheets contribute to rising sea levels, impacting communities worldwide. Understanding these changes is crucial for managing their effects. With this in mind, the EU-funded LIQUIDICE project brings together experts to study the impact of climate change on snow and ice in vulnerable areas. By using satellite data and ground observations, the project improves models and helps predict future changes. It also aims to inform strategies for managing water resources, hydropower and adapting to climate challenges.

Objective

Recognising the central role played by snow, ice and permafrost in the global climate system, the LIQUIDICE project joins expert cryospheric observers and modellers to:

1. comprehensively re-assess the past and future century-plus of climate-induced high impact changes to the Greenland ice sheet and climate vulnerable locations across the Alps, Norway, High Mountain Asia (HMA) and Svalbard, including permafrost areas and their ecosystems;
2. develop new, expanded and harmonised data from satellite Earth Observation (EO) and ground stations;
3. use these data to improve and test a hierarchy of ice sheet and glacier models with Earth System Models (ESMs);
4. through these steps, yield new process understanding, and ultimately
5. inform water resource, hydropower, and socio-economic strategies through clear and transparent communication of results and uncertainties.

The project's strengths lie in new multidisciplinary collaborations across 18 research institutions, from eight European countries (Poland, Italy, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Norway, United Kingdom) and India, encompassing expertise in field observations, satellite EO techniques, ESM development and application, and socio-economic analysis.

Key deliverables include

1. FAIR-principled new multi-decade data catalogues of multi-regional snow water equivalent and a 44-year EO-derived albedo record;
2. assessments of impact of model resolution and degree of coupling on results;
3. refined past and future glacier, ice cap and Greenland ice sheet freshwater fluxes to oceans and global sea level rise with indirect constraint on Antarctica;
4. new hydrological simulations for HMA;
5. a new framework for a Water Discharge Impact Assessments;
6. socio-economic integrated risk and adaptation assessments;
7. all with comprehensive dissemination and communication outputs.

Ultimately, by advancing snow and ice climate assessment, LIQUIDICE advances EU efforts toward resilience to high impact climate changes.