We use surface radiation measurements and other climatological data to validate the representation of the surface energy balance over the East Antarctic Ice Sheet in the UK Meteorological Office Unified Climate Model. Model calculations of incident and reflected short-wave radiation are in good agreement with observations, but the downward component of long-wave radiation at the surface appears to be underestimated by up to 20 Wm-2 in the model. Over much of the interior of Antarctica this error appears to be compensated for by an overestimate in turbulent transport of heat to the surface while, over the steep coastal slopes, the heat flux is in good agreement with observations but the surface temperature is too low. The excessive heat flux over the interior results largely from the use of an inappropriately large bulk transfer coefficient under very stable conditions, suggesting that the surface heat flux scheme in the model is not ideally formulated for the conditions which prevail in the Antarctic boundary layer.
Missing data is represented by "999" (if only a few values are absent) or blank columns (if all is absent for that station).
Please refer to the paper for references to original data source, details of calculation, instrumentation, reliability etc.
Month SD SU LD LU NET G
South Pole, 86-88
1 364.8 295.5 165 216.1 16 -3.7866
2 204.2 169.9 137.8 166.7 5.4 2.49186
3 999 999 124 136.9 999 4.710503
4 0 0 118.6 125.2 -6.6 2.864951
5 0 0 105.3 116.7 -11.4 2.386077
6 0 0 105.7 119.2 -13.6 2.162766
7 0 0 103.4 117 -13.6 2.355712
8 0 0 90.1 101.7 -11.6 2.940476
9 4.8 4.2 96 111.4 -14.9 -0.18882
10 999 999 106.5 133.4 999 -4.11703
11 351.9 284.8 122.2 172.3 17 -5.43865
12 442.7 359.6 141.9 210.7 14.3 -6.35647
Plateau, 67
1 381.3 313.5 12.7 -2.80261
2 239.4 205.5 -1.6 2.214167
3 81.3 69.8 -11.4 4.220657
4 6.7 5.9 -16.6 4.087195
5 0 0 -15.9 3.348644
6 0 0 -13.2 2.478905
7 0 0 -15.7 2.272454
8 1.1 0.9 -15.3 1.651972
9 37.5 31.1 -15.2 -0.58941
10 166.4 147.3 -14.6 -3.58091
11 348 301.9 0.7 -6.43659
12 453.7 372.2 13 -6.84171
Mizuho, 79-80
1 336.8 272.7 190 249.5 5.4 -1.82123
2 229.9 187.7 176.6 223.2 -4.9 0.769657
3 118.9 96.2 158.4 193.9 -12.7 2.120278
4 30 22.6 157.8 184.4 -19 2.323716
5 1.9 1.2 141.7 167.8 -25.5 2.632645
6 0 0 138.1 164 -25.9 2.446738
7 0.2 0.2 133.7 167.2 -33.4 1.300578
8 14.3 11.3 132.6 165 -29.8 0.732774
9 79.1 63.6 131.9 174.2 -26.8 0.110968
10 194.5 157 132.4 185 -15.1 -2.20201
11 327 257.5 155.8 223 2.5 -4.35194
12 419.4 318.2 169 244.1 26.1 -4.07259
Syowa, 87
1 283 201 259 310 31 -1.82021
2 163 122 255 299 -3 -0.36042
3 86 63 246 277 -8 0.439788
4 24 21 249 277 -25 0.875639
5 3 3 210 250 -40 1.358873
6 0 0 218 265 -42 1.507134
7 1 1 178 224 -46 2.2216
8 17 15 173 215 -40 2.6235
9 73 63 181 222 -31 0.546544
10 159 141 215 252 -19 -2.0229
11 272 234 241 289 -11 -2.80041
12 345 264 245 307 19 -2.67836
Neumayer, 82-92
1 284 234 262 291 21 -1.9285
2 194 160 238 276 -4 0.089088
3 81 70 237 257 -9 1.211999
4 24 20 220 239 -15 1.699413
5 2 2 211 229 -17 2.185583
6 0 0 198 218 -20 2.128742
7 0 0 194 214 -20 1.848079
8 12 9 188 205 -14 1.549024
9 63 52 191 214 -12 0.078134
10 157 131 201 231 -4 -2.11968
11 255 217 234 264 8 -3.42967
12 328 269 249 286 22 -3.3812
Halley, 63-82
1 282.5 230.4 11.8 -1.98091
2 168.6 140.1 -1.7 0.431492
3 72.7 59.7 -15.3 1.840244
4 10.9 9 -17.4 2.067441
5 0.1 0 -20 2.28444
6 0 0 -20.8 2.583611
7 0 0 -23 2.141057
8 3.8 3.1 -20.8 1.081467
9 45.1 36.7 -18.6 -0.39405
10 145.6 120.3 -9.6 -2.37236
11 273.3 224.6 4.6 -3.91528
12 336.1 272.6 16.1 -3.81558