Massive amounts of freshwater rests atop the world's mountains in the form of ice, snow, permafrost, and glaciers. Many areas of the world rely upon the melting of snow and ice to recharge their rivers and reservoirs. But not all of that ice and snow actually melts. Some percentage of a snowpack will phase change directly into water vapor (sublimation).
How much potential mountain run off is lost to sublimation anually? How can we measure this loss?
What sort of insight do researchers have on the impacts of sublimation on the local microclimate?