Author(s)

T. V. Hromadka II^1*, H. D. McInvale¹, M. Phillips¹, B. Espinosa²

¹Department of Mathematical Sciences, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, USA.
²Hromadka & Associates, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA, USA.

In order to describe changes in ice volume in the cryosphere, a differential equation mathematical model is used in this paper. The dominating effects of freezing and thawing in the cryosphere enable simplification of the heat transport equations. This results in a mathematical model that can be solved exactly and is useful in investigating other climatic components, which in turn may be similarly analyzed for possible Global Circulation Model (GCM) validation. Data forms representing temperature and ice volume during the Pleistocene are available and can be directly compared with the exact solution of the simplified differential equation used in this paper. The model parameters may then be adjusted to approximate the effects of climate change; the adjusted model then run in reverse time, to develop an alternative history of ice volume of the cryosphere to be compared with the actual data interpretations previously published in the literature. In this fashion, an assessment may be made as to possible climate impacts in the cryosphere.

Global Climate Change, Cryosphere, Phase Change, Cumulative Departure Method

Hromadka II, T. , McInvale, H. , Phillips, M. and Espinosa, B. (2014) Assessment of Ice Volume Changes in the Cryosphere via Simplified Heat Transport Model. American Journal of Climate Change, 3, 421-428. doi: 10.4236/ajcc.2014.35037.