TRENDS AND VARIABILITY OF SNOW COVER IN SLAVSKO DURING 1948–2020 UNDER CLIMATE CHANGE

I. Khomenko; R. Marchyshyn

doi:10.32782/uhj.34-35.2025.03

I. Khomenko Odesa I. I. Mechnikov National University, 2 Vsevoloda Zmiienka Street, Odesa 65082, Ukraine http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8982-5417
R. Marchyshyn Odesa I. I. Mechnikov National University, 2 Vsevoloda Zmiienka Street, Odesa 65082, Ukraine

DOI: https://doi.org/10.32782/uhj.34-35.2025.03

Keywords: snow cover, snowiness coefficient, winter types, climate variability, Ukrainian Carpathians, Slavsko

Abstract

Snow plays a significant role in the climate system by altering soil properties, land–atmosphere heat and moisture exchange, the surface radiation balance, and key components of the hydrological cycle. As a major element of the cryosphere, snow cover shapes local meteorological conditions while simultaneously influencing atmospheric processes across broader spatial and temporal scales, including general circulation anomalies, Rossby wave modifications, the dynamics of sudden stratospheric warmings, and features of the East Asian summer monsoon. Given the high sensitivity of snow cover to changes in temperature, analysing its long-term dynamics is critically important, particularly in the context of the strong positive air-temperature trends observed during the winter and winter–spring transition periods.

The paper presents a comprehensive analysis of long-term snow-cover dynamics at the Slavsko meteorological station (Ukrainian Carpathians) for the period 1948/49–2019/20, one of the longest continuous observational records in the high-mountain regions of Ukraine. Using daily meteorological data, a physico-statistical and climatic assessment was performed of the duration of the snow season, the period of stable snow cover, the timing of snow formation and melt, maximum and mean snow depth, and integral indicators of snow accumulation. For the first time for the Slavsko station, a classification of winter seasons was conducted using snowiness and winter-severity index, which allowed the identification and systematisation of 22 winter types and helped trace their evolution in response to climatic perturbations.

These results provide a detailed understanding of snow-cover dynamics in the Ukrainian Carpathians, capturing long-term trends and the rising variability of recent decades. Such evidence is vital for strengthening climate-adaptation strategies in winter tourism, hydrology, transportation infrastructure, and the broader mountain economy.

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