(Abstract) Results indicate statistically significant negative trends for melt onset and end dates as well as for the length of the melt season. On the average, over the past 30 years melt has been starting (finishing) ∼0.5 days/year (∼1 days/year) earlier and the length of the melting season is shortening by ∼0.6 days/year. Results indicate that the AO index variability can explain up to 50% of the melt onset variability over Eurasia and only 10% of that over North America, consistent with spatial patterns of surface temperature changes related to the AO.
Tedesco, et. al., Pan arctic terrestrial snowmelt trends, 1979 to 2008, from spaceborne passive microwave data(Abstract) 2008