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Atmospheric rivers supply ~13% of Antarctic snow

Rare atmospheric rivers deliver about 13% of Antarctic precipitation and explain more than a third of its year-to-year swings.

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What reanalysis and years are used?

MERRA-2 from 1980–2020.

How is an Antarctic AR defined?

vIVT above the 98th percentile in a filament spanning at least 20° of latitude.

What precipitation is counted as AR snowfall?

Rain/snow in the AR footprint plus 24±6 hours after passage.

What AIS-integrated AR precipitation is found?

374 ± 90 Gt yr−1, 13% ± 3% of total precipitation.

Where is the relative AR contribution highest and lowest?

Highest in much of East Antarctica (>20% locally); lowest on big ice shelves and the high plateau.

East versus West Antarctica AR share?

About 16% versus 9%.

How does AR frequency compare with their snowfall share?

ARs occur at most 1–1.5% of the time but supply ~13% of snow.

How much interannual snowfall variability do ARs explain?

More than a third (R² = 0.35), about three times their mean share.

What 1980–2020 trends are reported?

AR precipitation rises significantly; total AIS precipitation does not.

Why was MERRA-2 chosen?

Its Antarctic accumulation matches ice cores better than other reanalyses.

What mass-loss context opens the paper?

AIS mass loss tripled to 200 Gt yr−1 in 2012–2017 versus the early 1990s.