Thermodynamic sea ice growth in the central Weddell Sea, observed in upward-looking sonar data


Contact
Axel.Behrendt [ at ] awi.de

Abstract

Upward-looking sonar (ULS) data were used to analyze thermodynamic sea ice growth. The study was carried out for an ocean region in the central Weddell Sea, for which data of sea ice thickness variability and of the oceanic heat flux through the ice are rare. In the study area the contribution of sea ice deformation to vertical ice growth is relatively small in some years. This provides the opportunity to simulate thermodynamic sea ice growth considering the influence of a snow cover and of the oceanic heat flux. To this end, a modified version of Stefan’s law was used. The resulting ice thickness variations were then compared with the ULS measurements. For the investigated cases, the best consistency between data and model results was obtained assuming a snow layer of less than 5 cm thickness and average oceanic heat fluxes between 6 and 14 W m^-2. It is demonstrated that in conjunction with ice drift data and analytical models for thermal sea ice growth, ULS ice thickness measurements are useful for studying the seasonal cycle of growth and decay and for inferring the magnitude of the average oceanic heat flux under sea ice.



Item Type
Article
Authors
Divisions
Primary Division
Programs
Primary Topic
Publication Status
Published
Eprint ID
37695
DOI 10.1002/2014JC010408

Cite as
Behrendt, A. , Dierking, W. and Witte, H. (2015): Thermodynamic sea ice growth in the central Weddell Sea, observed in upward-looking sonar data , Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 120 (3), pp. 2270-2286 . doi: 10.1002/2014JC010408


Download
[thumbnail of Behrendt_et_al_revised.pdf]
Preview
PDF
Behrendt_et_al_revised.pdf

Download (18MB) | Preview
Cite this document as:

Share
Add to AnyAdd to TwitterAdd to FacebookAdd to LinkedinAdd to PinterestAdd to Email


Citation

Geographical region

Research Platforms

Campaigns
ANT > X > 7
ANT > XIII > 4
ANT > XXIV > 3
ANT > XXVII > 2


Actions
Edit Item Edit Item