Continuous Vis-Near IR Characterization of snow-ice surface in Ny-Ålesund (SnowIceCReM) The activity foreseen for 2015-2020 includes: continuous full-range reflectance measurements; continuous multispectral observations; ground-truth survey on snow surfaces. The first part of the activity is attempted to replicate the experiment carried out in 2014 where a VNIR spectroradiometer were deployed at the CCT. Hardware upgrades will be coupled with the addition of some position and optical reference targets. An hemispheric webcam will acquire high resolution sky and ground images to support the experiment in terms of cloud and snow cover/roughness characterization, and to provide a quality check of the rotating support position by means of the above mentioned specific targets. The availability of such accessory information will help on selecting a homogeneous spectral albedo dataset. The same quality check approach will be used also for the deployment of a second instrument that will be developed in order to obtain fixed band albedo at 860, 1240 and 1640 nm. Both measurements will be hemispheric, in the 350-2500nm wavelength range. While the first set up obtains asynchronous spectral albedo, the second one provides synchronous spectral albedo on bands selected considering sensors deployed on satellites. The final task will be persecuted with a ground-truth survey focused on calibrating the two different hemispherical receivers with bidirectional observations.

A long-term climate manipulation experiment has been ongoing since 2014 at the REMUS site (Responses of Microbes in Upper Soil Horizons to Environmental Manipulations). Twenty-four open-top chambers (OTCs) were installed to simulate warmer ground temperatures and increased precipitation. To mimic enhanced rainfall, irrigation is applied twice a year, at the end of June and August. The transparent OTCs create an average ground temperature increase of approximately 1°C in the treated plots. The site is located about 11 Km from Ny-Ålesund at Kongsfjordneset (78.96661°N 11.47576°E) on the Brøgger Peninsula. In total, 48 plots with different plant species have been selected for the study. Of these, 24 are equipped with OTCs, while the remaining 24 are irrigated, with half of the irrigated plots also containing OTCs (12 with OTCs, 12 without). The REMUS site is registered on the Research in Svalbard Portal under ID 6921. This site is part of the International Tundra Experiment (ITEX), a global research initiative aimed at understanding the responses of tundra plant species through simple manipulation and transplant experiments conducted across multiple Arctic and alpine sites.