Elevation-Dependent Climate Change

The MRI began working on elevation-dependent climate change in 2012, assessing if, where, to what extent, and why, mountains and other high elevation regions of the world are warming more rapidly than lowlands. The Elevation-Dependent Climate Change (EDCC) Working Group initially concentrated on elevation-dependent warming (EDW)  but has since expanded its interest beyond temperature to include additional climate processes specific to mountains and high elevation regions. Such processes include, but are not limited to, precipitation and cryospheric processes (snow cover, snow albedo, snowline), vertical aerosol distribution, and changes in ecological zonation. 

The EDCC Working Group works in close collaboration with the MRI Mountain Observatories Working Group and its work provides information for the objectives and tasks of the current GEO Mountains Implementation Plan (2023-2025). 

Key Details

  • Creation Date: 2012
  • Current Phase: Second Phase

Objectives

  • Objective 1: To increase our understanding of how elevation influences patterns of climate change, including the physical processes and drivers responsible 
  • Objective 2: To improve mountain climate observations across elevation gradients through implementing a standardised approach 
  • Objective 3: To communicate the complexity of mountain climate change and its impacts to a broad audience and wide variety of stakeholders 

Research Questions

  • Research Question 1: We wish to understand the physical processes and drivers which can explain variable rates of observed warming at contrasting elevations, including those which account for spatial and temporal contrasts in this elevation-dependent warming. 
  • Research Question 2: We wish to understand how other essential mountain climate variables (EMCVs) are changing across the elevation gradient, including (but not limited to) precipitation, variables related to snow and ice, vegetation, cloud patterns, aerosols and radiation fluxes. 
  • Research Question 3: We wish to improve our modelling of such drivers of elevation-dependent climate change, so we can make future predictions about scenarios of mountain climate change 
  • Research Question 4: We seek to apply our understanding of past, present and future elevation dependent climate change, to understand broader impacts in the physical and human environments of mountain regions, and where appropriate downstream. 

Working Group Leads and Members

Working Group Lead

Members

Click here to see the most updated list of members. 

Scope / Topics

List of the primary topics and themes the working group focuses on. 

  • Topic 1: Understanding physical processes which can explain differential climate trends along the elevation gradient 
  • Topic 2: Use of in situ observations, remotely sensed datasets, and model simulations to understand changes in mountain climate at different elevations 
  • Topic 3: Application of our understanding of elevation-dependent climate change to understand impacts (e.g. high impact weather events and extremes, mountain hazards, changes in cryosphere, hydrology, ecology) 

Planned Activities and Outputs for 2024-2026 

Events: Future workshops/events are planned for 2025/2026. Dates are tbc but some may take place immediately before or after EGU 2025 (late April/early May) or IMC 2025 (September). 

a) Protocols for Monitoring and Measuring (Climate) Change Along Elevational Gradients: Discussion of How to Use Data and Sampling to Quantify EDCC (lead: Nick Pepin)

b) Data Handling and Analysis (leads: James Thornton, Scott Williamson): How to Curate, Share and Analyse Data for the Purposes of EDCC research

c) Workshop to bring together the practitioners to test Unified High Elevation Observation Platforms (UHOPs) and tie down detailed specifications and accreditation – by invitation only 

d) Summer conference in USA: 2026 (lead Joshua Benes): UHOPs in practice, understanding the applications of understanding EDCC (broad stakeholder audience)

A consultation document on the protocol for Unified High-Elevation Observation Platform is under preparation and will be released here when complete. 

Further suggestions for other community events or meetings are welcome.

Outputs, Achievements, and News

Publications

  • Pepin, N.C., Beneš, J., Masiokas, M., Steiner, J., Thornton, J.M. & Williamson, S. (2024). Proposal for the Unified High Elevation Observational Platform (UHOP). Mountain Research Initiative & GEO Mountains. doi: 10.48620/77051.
  • Elevation dependent climate change in mountain environments, Pepin, N. et al. (202?) commissioned by Nature Reviews Earth and Environment, under review
  • A Workshop on Advances in Our Understanding of Elevation Dependent Climate Change. Napoli, A., Pepin, N., Palazzi, E., & Zardi, D. (2023). Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. doi: 10.1175/BAMS-D-23-0043.1
  • Coverage Of In Situ Climatological Observations In The World’s Mountains. Thornton, J. M., Pepin, N., Shahgedanova, M., & Adler, C. (2022). Frontiers in Climate. https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2022.81418
  • Climate Changes And Their Elevational Patterns In The Mountains Of The World. Pepin, N. C., Arnone, E., Gobiet, A., Haslinger, K., Kotlarski, S., Notarnicola, C., Palazzi, E., Seibert, P., Serafin, S., Schöner, W., Terzago, S., Thornton, J.M., Vuille, M. & Adler, C. (2022). Reviews of Geophysics, 60, e2020RG000730. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020RG000730
  • Toward A Definition Of Essential Mountain Climate Variables. Thornton, J.M., Palazzi, E., Pepin, N.C., Cristofanelli, P., Essery, R., Kotlarski, S., Giuliani, G., Guigoz, Y., Kulonen, A., Pritchard, D., Li, X., Fowler, H.J., Randin, C.F., Shahgedanova, M., Steinbacher, M., Zebisch, M., and Adler, C. (2021). Toward a definition of Essential Mountain Climate Variables. One Earth, 4(6). doi: 10.1016/j.oneear.2021.05.005
  • Elevation-Dependent Warming In Mountain Regions Of The World. Mountain Research Initiative EDW Working Group. N. Pepin, R. S. Bradley, H. F. Diaz, M. Baraer, E. B. Caceres, N. Forsythe, H. Fowler, G. Greenwood, M. Z. Hashmi, X. D. Liu, J. R. Miller, L. Ning, A. Ohmura, E. Palazzi, I. Rangwala, W. Schöner, I. Severskiy, M. Shahgedanova, M. B. Wang, S. N. Williamson & D. Q. Yang. ‘Elevation-dependent warming in mountain regions of the world’ in Nature Climate Change 5, 424–430 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2563
  • (Associated Publication) Many members of the group contributed to the high mountain analysis and specific section on elevation-dependent warming in the IPCC SROCC High Mountains Chapter (2): Hock, R., G. Rasul, C. Adler, B. Cáceres, S. Gruber, Y. Hirabayashi, M. Jackson, A. Kääb, S. Kang, S. Kutuzov, Al. Milner, U. Molau, S. Morin, B. Orlove, and H. Steltzer, 2019: High Mountain Areas. In: IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, V. Masson-Delmotte, P. Zhai, M. Tignor, E. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Nicolai, A. Okem, J. Petzold, B. Rama, N.M. Weyer (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, pp. 131-202. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009157964.004.

Events and Presentations

News

  • A Workshop on the Uniform High-Elevation Observing Platform (UHOP) (25-27 June 2023) | Read more
  • Outcomes of the Uniform High-Elevation Observing Platform (UHOP) Workshop | Read more 
  • A Workshop on Advances in Our Understanding of Elevation Dependent Climate Change (15-17 September 2022) | Read more
  • GEO Mountains Inventory of In Situ Observational Infrastructure | Read more
  • Decline in Mountain Snow and Ice May Be Faster Than Anticipated (31 January 2022) | Read more
  • Toward a Definition of Essential Mountain Climate Variables (2 June 2021) | Read more
  • Updates from the MRI Working Groups (24 February 2021) | Read more
  • MRI Working Group News | From Elevation-Dependent Warming to Elevation-Dependent Climate Change (28 April 2020) | Read more
  • MRI at the AGU Fall Meeting (17 December 2019) | Read more
  • GEO-GNOME Workshop on Essential Climate Variables for Mountains (24-26 June 2019) | Read more 
  • Making Connections at the EGU General Assembly 2019 (24 May 2019) | Read more

How to Join

As community-led activities, these Working Groups are open to anyone from the MRI network to participate and contribute to the Working Group’s work plan. Early career researchers (typically up to five years after attaining a postgraduate degree), women, researchers, and practitioners from developing countries and less represented mountain regions are particularly encouraged to join and participate. Please contact the Working Group leads for information on joining: