The effect of tides on the volume of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean

Tides are believed to drive vertical mixing in the Arctic Ocean, thereby helping heat to reach the bottom of the sea ice layer, especially in regions with thick ice covers. However, tides are usually not included in ocean models. We investigated the effect of tides on sea ice in the Arctic Ocean using an ice-coupled ocean model that includes tides simultaneously. We found that with tidal forcing, the volume of sea ice increased by 8.5% in Baffin Bay, whereas it decreased by 17.8% in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The increase in sea ice volume in Baffin Bay results from the convergence of sea ice, driven by tidal residual currents. In contrast, the decrease in ice volume in the Canadian Archipelago is due to the suppression of ice formation in winter, especially in areas with steep topography, where the vertical mixing of temperature is enhanced by tides. Our results imply that tides should be directly included into the oceanic general circulation model (OGCM) to realistically reproduce the distribution of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean.     

Arctic salinity anomalies and their link to the North Atlantic during a positive phase of the Arctic Oscillation

Many of the changes observed during the last two decades in the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas have been linked to the concomitant abrupt decrease of the sea level pressure in the central Arctic at the end of the 1980s. The decrease was associated with a shift of the Arctic Oscillation (AO) to a positive phase, which persisted throughout the mid 1990s. The Arctic salinity distribution is expected to respond to these dramatic changes via modifications in the ocean circulation and in the fresh water storage and transport by sea ice. The present study investigates these different contributions in the context of idealized ice-ocean experiments forced by atmospheric surface wind-stress or temperature anomalies representative of a positive AO index.Wind stress anomalies representative of a positive AO index generate a decrease of the fresh water content of the upper Arctic Ocean, which is mainly concentrated in the eastern Arctic with almost no compensation from the western Arctic. Sea ice contributes to about two-third of this salinification, another third being provided by an increased supply of salt by the Atlantic inflow and increased fresh water export through the Canadian Archipelago and Fram Strait. The signature of a saltier Atlantic Current in the Norwegian Sea is not found further north in both the Barents Sea and the Fram Strait branches of the Atlantic inflow where instead a widespread freshening is observed. The latter is the result of import of fresh anomalies from the subpolar North Atlantic through the Iceland-Scotland Passage and enhanced advection of low salinity waters via the East Icelandic Current. The volume of ice exported through Fram Strait increases by 20% primarily due to thicker ice advected into the strait from the northern Greenland sector, the increase of ice drift velocities having comparatively less influence. The export anomaly is comparable to those observed during events of Great Salinity Anomalies and induces substantial freshening in the Greenland Sea, which in turn contributes to increasing the fresh water export to the North Atlantic via Denmark Strait. With a fresh water export anomaly of 7 mSv, the latter is the main fresh water supplier to the subpolar North Atlantic, the Canadian Archipelago contributing to 4.4 mSv.The removal of fresh water by sea ice under a positive winter AO index mainly occurs through enhanced thin ice growth in the eastern Arctic. Winter SAT anomalies have little impact on the thermodynamic sea ice response, which is rather dictated by wind driven ice deformation changes. The global sea ice mass balance of the western Arctic indicates almost no net sea ice melt due to competing seasonal thermodynamic processes. The surface freshening and likely enhanced sea ice melt observed in the western Arctic during the 1990s should therefore be attributed to extra-winter atmospheric effects, such as the noticeable recent spring-summer warming in the Canada-Alaska sector, or to other modes of atmospheric circulations than the AO, especially in relation to the North Pacific variability.     

1979-2012年北极海冰运动学特征初步分析

利用美国冰雪数据中心(NSIDC)发布的海冰速度和范围数据,本文分析了1979—2012年间北极海冰的运动学特征,以及北极海冰运动与分布范围演变之间的关系。结合欧洲中期天气预报中心(ECMWF)发布的2007和2012年高分辨率的气压场、风场数据,探讨了北极风场和气压场与海冰运动、辐散辐合和海冰面积的关系。结果表明,在1979-2012年间北极海冰平均运动速度呈显著增强的趋势,冬季海冰平均运动速度增加趋势明显强于夏季;北极、波弗特-楚科奇海域和弗拉姆海峡的冬、夏季海冰平均运动速度的增加率分别为2.1%/a和1.7%/a、2.0%/a和1.6%/a以及4.9%/a和2.2%/a。1979-2012年北极海冰平均运动速度和范围的相关性为-0.77,二者存在显著的负相关关系。北极冬季和夏季风场的长期变化趋势与海冰平均运动速度的变化趋势一致,冬季和夏季的相关系数分别为0.50和0.48。风场和气压场对海冰的运动、辐散及重新分布发挥着重要作用。2007年夏季,第234~273天波弗特海域一直被高压系统控制,波弗特涡旋加强,使得波弗特海域海冰聚集在北极中央区;顺时针的风场促使海冰向格陵兰岛和加拿大北极群岛以北聚合。2012年,白令海峡和楚科奇海域处于低压和高压系统的交界处,盛行偏北风,海冰从北极东部往西部输运,加拿大海盆的多年海冰因离岸运动而辐散,向楚科奇海域的海冰输运增加,受太平洋入流暖水影响,移入此区域的海冰加速融化,从而加剧海冰的减少。     

Spatiotemporal characteristics of sea ice transport in the Baffin Bay and its association with atmospheric variability

Sea ice export through the Baffin Bay plays a vital role in modulating the sea ice cover variability in the Labrador Sea.In this study,satellite-derived sea ice products are used to obtain the sea ice area flux (SIAF) through the three passages in the Baffin Bay (referred to as A,B,and C for the north,middle,and south passages,respectively).The spatial variability of the monthly sea ice drift in the Baffin Bay is presented.The interannual variability and trends in SIAF via the three passages are outlined.The connection to several large-scale atmospheric circulation modes is assessed.Over the period of 1988–2015,the average annual (October to the following September) SIAF amounts to 555×10~3 km~2,642×10~3 km~2,and 551×10~3 km~2 through Passages A,B,and C,respectively.These quantities are less than that observed through the Fram Strait (FS,707×10~3 km~2) of the corresponding period.The positive trends in annual SIAF,on the order of 53.1×10~3 km~2/(10 a) and 43.2×10~3 km~2/(10 a)(significant at the 95%confidence level),are identified at Passages A and B,respectively.The trend of the south passage (C),however,is slightly negative (–13.3×10~3 km~2/(10 a),not statistically significant).The positive trends in annual SIAF through the Passages A and B are primarily attributable to the significant increases after 2000.The connection between the Baffin Bay sea ice export and the North Atlantic Oscillation is not significant over the studied period.By contrast,the association with the cross-gate sea level pressure difference is robust in the Baffin Bay (R equals 0.69 to 0.71,depending on the passages considered),but relatively weaker than that over FS (R=0.74).     

1982—2001年与2002—2021年北极秋季海冰的时空变化及原因

基于北极海冰密集度、海冰范围、大气环流和海温数据,研究了1982—2001年与2002—2021年两阶段各20 a间北极秋季海冰的时空变化特征及其原因。结果表明,近20 a（2002—2021年）北极海冰密集度的下降中心由过去（1982—2001年）的楚科奇海及白令海峡一带,转移至亚欧大陆海岸的巴伦支海附近,且海冰范围每10 a减少量由0.44×10⁶ km²增长至0.72×10⁶ km²,减少速度加快约64%。秋季北极海冰范围与海水表面温度（Sea Surface Temperature,SST）、表面气温（Surface Air Temperature,SAT）及比湿（Specific Humidity）均呈显著负相关。2002—2021年的相关系数较1982—2001年有所提高,且与温度相关系数最高的月份提前了一个月。通过对海水表面温度、表面气温、比湿、气压场和风场的经验正交分解（Empirical Orthogonal Function,EOF）可知,1982—2001年间,北极地区的温度及比湿的上升中心集中在楚科奇海及白令海峡一带;2002—2021年间,上升中心则转移至巴伦支海一带。气压场和风场在前后两阶段也出现了中心转移的分布变化。北极地区大气与海洋环流各因素的协同变化影响着北极海冰的消融。     

巴芬湾西部和格陵兰岛东部大气经向热量输送协同变化对夏季北极海冰的影响

利用欧洲中心气候再分析资料和美国国家冰雪数据中心北极海冰面积资料，分析了夏季北极海冰面积与前期大气经向热量输送年际变化的联系。结果表明：6月北半球中高纬大气的经向热量输送以瞬变热量形式为主，其中巴芬湾西部（B区）和格陵兰岛东部（G区）是瞬变热量向极区传输的两个通道，二者之间存在反位相的协同变化，且这种协同变化与夏季北极海冰面积变化密切相关。可能的机制为：6月，AD、AO和NAO三种北极大气环流型能够引起巴芬湾西部和格陵兰岛东部瞬变热量输送的协同变化，这种协同变化通过涡旋动力作用激发夏季极区大气表现为AD异常，同时影响途经区域的气温，从而通过热动力作用影响夏季北极海冰。将向极区输送的热量称为暖输送，从极区输出的热量为冷输送，则上述两个区域的瞬变热量协同输送可分为三种情况：B暖G冷、B冷G暖、B和G均冷，而B和G均暖的情况十分罕见。当B区向极区输入、G区输出热量时，有利于太平洋扇区和喀拉海的海冰偏少；当G区输入、B区输出热量时，利于喀拉海和拉普捷夫海海冰偏少；当B区和G区均输出热量时，利于波佛特海南部、喀拉海和拉普捷夫海海冰偏多，反之则相反。     

2016?2017年北极内尔斯海峡北部海冰运动及其影响因素研究

内尔斯海峡位于加拿大埃尔斯米尔岛与格陵兰岛之间,是北极海冰输出的重要通道之一,这些海冰融化后带来的表层淡水对巴芬湾、拉布拉多海的深层水形成具有重要影响。但由于该海峡较为狭窄,缺乏对此区域海冰运动情况的精细研究。本研究利用每日的哨兵1号影像提取了2016年9月至2017年8月的内尔斯海峡北部区域海冰运动信息,展示了海峡中浮冰的运动过程,并结合风速、海流速度等数据分析浮冰运动特征及影响因素。结果表明风和海流二者共同主导了海冰的运动过程,相关系数分别达到了0.767和0.709,由风速、海流速度、海冰密集度3个自变量与浮冰速度建立的多元线性回归模型复决定系数也达到了0.727。进一步分析发现,风和海流在速度相对稳定时对浮冰速度的影响都会减小。本研究关于风和海流等要素对海冰运动过程影响的研究结果,可以为海洋–大气动力学模型的研究提供参考。     

Arctic summer sea ice phenology including ponding from 1982 to 2017

Information on the Arctic sea ice climate indicators is crucial to business strategic planning and climate monitoring. Data on the evolvement of the Arctic sea ice and decadal trends of phenology factors during melt season are necessary for climate prediction under global warming. Previous studies on Arctic sea ice phenology did not involve melt ponds that dramatically lower the ice surface albedo and tremendously affect the process of sea ice surface melt. Temporal means and trends of the Arctic sea ice phenology from 1982 to 2017 were examined based on satellite-derived sea ice concentration and albedo measurements. Moreover, the timing of ice ponding and two periods corresponding to it were newly proposed as key stages in the melt season. Therefore, four timings, i.e., date of snow and ice surface melt onset (MO), date of pond onset (PO), date of sea ice opening (DOO), and date of sea ice retreat (DOR); and three durations, i.e., melt pond formation period (MPFP, i.e., MO–PO), melt pond extension period (MPEP, i.e., PO–DOR), and seasonal loss of ice period (SLIP, i.e., DOO–DOR), were used. PO ranged from late April in the peripheral seas to late June in the central Arctic Ocean in Bootstrap results, whereas the pan-Arctic was observed nearly 4 days later in NASA Team results. Significant negative trends were presented in the MPEP in the Hudson Bay, the Baffin Bay, the Greenland Sea, the Kara and Barents seas in both results, indicating that the Arctic sea ice undergoes a quick transition from ice to open water, thereby extending the melt season year to year. The high correlation coefficient between MO and PO, MPFP illustrated that MO predominates the process of pond formation.     

Geophysics of sea ice in the Baltic Sea: A review

With improved observation methods, increased winter navigation, and increased awareness of the climate and environmental changes, research on the Baltic Sea ice conditions has become increasingly active. Sea ice has been recognized as a sensitive indicator for changes in climate. Although the inter-annual variability in the ice conditions is large, a change towards milder ice winters has been detected from the time series of the maximum annual extent of sea ice and the length of the ice season. On the basis of the ice extent, the shift towards a warmer climate took place in the latter half of the 19th century. On the other hand, data on the ice thickness, which are mostly limited to the land-fast ice zone, basically do not show clear trends during the 20th century, except that during the last 20 years the thickness of land-fast ice has decreased. Due to difficulties in measuring the pack-ice thickness, the total mass of sea ice in the Baltic Sea is, however, still poorly known. The ice extent and length of the ice season depend on the indices of the Arctic Oscillation and North Atlantic Oscillation. Sea ice dynamics, thermodynamics, structure, and properties strongly interact with each other, as well as with the atmosphere and the sea. The surface conditions over the ice-covered Baltic Sea show high spatial variability, which cannot be described by two surface types (such as ice and open water) only. The variability is strongly reflected to the radiative and turbulent surface fluxes. The Baltic Sea has served as a testbed for several developments in the theory of sea ice dynamics. Experiences with advanced models have increased our understanding on sea ice dynamics, which depends on the ice thickness distribution, and in turn redistributes the ice thickness. During the latest decade, advance has been made in studies on sea ice structure, surface albedo, penetration of solar radiation, sub-surface melting, and formation of superimposed ice and snow ice. A high vertical resolution has been found as a prerequisite to successfully model thermodynamic processes during the spring melt period. A few observations have demonstrated how the river discharge and ice melt affect the stratification of the oceanic boundary layer below the ice and the oceanic heat flux to the ice bottom. In general, process studies on ice–ocean interaction have been rare. In the future, increasingly multidisciplinary studies are needed with close links between sea ice physics, geochemistry and biology.     

Numerical modeling of the Arctic Ocean ice system response to variations in the atmospheric circulation from 1948 to 2007

The results of model calculations aimed at reproducing climate changes in the Arctic Ocean due to variations in the atmospheric circulation are presented. The combined ocean-ice numerical model is based on NCAR/NCEP reanalysis data and its modified version of CIAF on the state of the lower atmosphere, radiative fluxes, and precipitation from 1948 to the present. The numerical experiments reveal the effect of the ice cover, water circulation, and thermohaline structure of the Arctic Ocean on variations in the state of the atmosphere. We found the heating and cooling periods in the Atlantic water layer, as well as the freshwater accumulation regimes in the Canadian Basin and freshwater flow through the Fram Strait and Canadian Archipelago straits. The numerical model reproduces a reconfiguration of the water circulation of the surface and intermediate layers of the ocean, a shift in the boundary between Atlantic and Pacific waters, and a significant reduction of the ice area.     

Sediment transport by sea ice in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas: Increasing importance due to changing ice conditions?

Sediment-laden sea ice is widespread over the shallow, wide Siberian Arctic shelves, with off-shelf export from the Laptev and East Siberian Seas contributing substantially to the Arctic Ocean's sediment budget. By contrast, the North American shelves, owing to their narrow width and greater water depths, have not been deemed as important for basin-wide sediment transport by sea ice. Observations over the Chukchi and Beaufort shelves in 2001/02 revealed the widespread occurrence of sediment-laden ice over an area of more than 100,000 km² between 68 and 74°N and 155 and 170°W. Ice stratigraphic studies indicate that sediment inclusions were associated with entrainment of frazil ice into deformed, multiple layers of rafted nilas, indicative of a flaw-lead environment adjacent to the landfast ice of the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. This is corroborated by buoy trajectories and satellite imagery indicating entrainment in a coastal polynya in the eastern Chukchi Sea in February of 2002 as well as formation of sediment-laden ice along the Beaufort Sea coast as far eastward as the Mackenzie shelf. Moored upward-looking sonar on the Mackenzie shelf provides further insight into the ice growth and deformation regime governing sediment entrainment. Analysis of Radarsat Synthetic Aperture (SAR) imagery in conjunction with bathymetric data help constrain the water depth of sediment resuspension and subsequent ice entrainment (>20 m for the Chukchi Sea). Sediment loads averaged at 128 t km^–2, with sediment occurring in layers of roughly 0.5 m thickness, mostly in the lower ice layers. The total amount of sediment transported by sea ice (mostly out of the narrow zone between the landfast ice edge and waters too deep for resuspension and entrainment) is at minimum 4×10⁶ t in the sampling area and is estimated at 5–8×10⁶ t over the entire Chukchi and Beaufort shelves in 2001/02, representing a significant term in the sediment budget of the western Arctic Ocean. Recent changes in the Chukchi and Beaufort Sea ice regimes (reduced summer minimum ice extent, ice thinning, reduction in multi-year ice extent, altered drift paths and mid-winter landfast ice break-out events) have likely resulted in an increase of sediment-laden ice in the area. Apart from contributing substantially to along- and across-shelf particulate flow, an increase in the amount of dirty ice significantly impacts (sub-)ice algal production and may enhance the dispersal of pollutants.     

基于CryoSat-2卫星测高数据的北极海冰体积估算方法

近30年来,北极海冰正发生着剧烈的变化。海冰体积是量化海冰变化的重要指标之一。本文以2015年CryoSat-2卫星测高数据和OSI SAF海冰类型产品为基础。提取了浮冰出水高度、积雪深度、海冰密集度、海冰类型等属性信息,通过数据内插、投影变换、栅格转换、空间重采样等工作将海冰属性信息统一为25 km×25 km分辨率的栅格数据集。根据流体静力学平衡原理,逐个估算栅格像元对应的海冰厚度值,将其与对应的海冰面积相乘,估算了北极海冰密集度大于75%海域的海冰体积,并分析了海冰厚度和体积的月变化和季节变化特征。用NASA IceBridge海冰厚度产品对反演的海冰厚度进行验证。结果表明二者相关系数为0.72,有较高的一致性。北极海冰平均厚度春季最大,夏季最小,分别约为2.99 m和1.77 m,最厚的海冰集中在格陵兰沿岸北部和埃尔斯米尔半岛以北海域。多年冰平均厚度大于一年冰。冬季海冰体积最大,约为23.30×103 km3,经过夏季的融化,减少了近70%。一年冰体积季节波动较大,而多年冰体积相对稳定,季节变化不明显。     

北极海冰的年代际转型与中国冻雨年代际变化的关系

基于1961-2013年HadISST海冰密集度资料,定义了北极海冰的季节性融冰指数,结果显示近几十年来北极季节性融冰范围呈显著的上升趋势,并分别在20世纪70年代末和90年代中期存在显著的年代际转型,相应地,中国冻雨发生频数总体上呈现出显著的减少趋势,但也存在显著的年代际转型。在20世纪70年代末之前,北极季节性融冰范围较小但显著增长,中国冻雨频数年际变化振幅较大,且主要受巴伦支海、喀拉海海冰的影响;20世纪70年代末至90年代中期北极季节性融冰范围维持振荡特征,没有显著的线性趋势,中国冻雨频数变化振幅减小,与北极海冰相关较弱,主要相关因子为北大西洋及北太平洋海表温度变化;而90年代中期以后,北极海冰融化加快,特别是2007年以后,季节性融冰范围大大增加,而中国冻雨频数处于低发时段,其变化与太平洋扇区海冰及堪察加半岛附近海温呈显著负相关,季节性融冰的显著区域也从东西伯利亚海逆时针旋转向波弗特海-加拿大群岛北部扩张,同时向北极中央区扩张。不同年代影响冻雨的海温或海冰关键海区不同,产生特定的大气环流异常响应,进而影响到我国冻雨。     

渤海海冰数值模式中计算参数的确定

在渤海海冰数值模拟和预报中,针对该海域的气象和水文特点,对模式中的计算参数进行了确定是必要的。本文通过对辽东湾ＪＺ２０－２海域的气象、水文和海冰要素的定点观测,对同太阳辐射、海洋热通量以及拖曳系数等参数进行了计算,对其特点以及对海冰生消和运移的影响进行了分析和讨论。这对提高渤海海冰数值模拟和预报的精度有很大促进,也是建立和发展局地工程海冰数值模式的重要内容。     

A Coupled Ice-Ocean Model in the Pan-Arctic and North Atlantic Ocean: Simulation of Seasonal Cycles

A coupled ice-ocean model is configured for the pan-Arctic and northern North Atlantic Ocean with a 27.5 km resolution. The model is driven by the daily atmospheric climatology averaged from the 40-year NCEP reanalysis (1958–1997). The ocean model is the Princeton Ocean Model (POM), while the sea ice model is based on a full thermodynamical and dynamical model with plastic-viscous rheology. A sea ice model with multiple categories of thickness is utilized. A systematic model-data comparison was conducted. This model reasonably reproduces seasonal cycles of both the sea ice and the ocean. Climatological sea ice areas derived from historical data are used to validate the ice model performance. The simulated sea ice cover reaches a maximum of 14 × 10⁶ km² in winter and a minimum of 6.7 × 10⁶ km² in summer. This is close to the 95-year climatology with a maximum of 13.3 × 10⁶ km² in winter and a minimum of 7 × 10⁶ km² in summer. The simulated general circulation in the Arctic Ocean, the GIN (Greenland, Iceland, and Norwegian) seas, and northern North Atlantic Ocean are qualitatively consistent with historical mapping. It is found that the low winter salinity or freshwater in the Canada Basin tends to converge due to the strong anticyclonic atmospheric circulation that drives the anticyclonic ocean surface current, while low summer salinity or freshwater tends to spread inside the Arctic and exports out of the Arctic due to the relaxing wind field. It is also found that the warm, saline Atlantic Water has little seasonal variation, based on both simulation and observations. Seasonal cycles of temperature and salinity at several representative locations reveals regional features that characterize different water mass properties.     

北极中央区经向水汽输送的主要通道

Atmospheric moisture transport plays an important role in latent heat release and hydrologic interactions in the Arctic. In recent years, with the rapid decline in sea ice, this transport has changed. Here, we calculated the vertically integrated atmospheric moisture meridional transport(AMTv) from two global reanalysis datasets, from1979–2015, and found moisture pathways into the central Arctic. Four stable pathways showed an occurrence frequency greater than 70%, and these pathways exhibited a perennial seasonal pattern in the atmosphere above the Laptev Sea Pathway(LSP), Canadian Arctic Archipelago Pathway(CAAP), both sides of the Greenland plateau. Another seasonal pathway appeared above the east of the Chukchi Sea(CSP) during the melting/freezing months(March to September). Through these pathways, AMTv contributed a total moisture exchange of60%–80%—averaged over a 75°N circle—and focused on the low troposphere. Transports across the LSP, CSP and CAAP pathways likely create an enclosed moisture route. Meridional moisture fluxes are intensified in the Pacific sector of Arctic(PSA), especially during melting/freezing months. AMTv interannual variabilities are illustrated mainly in the Laptev Sea and the east Greenland pathway. Results indicate that accompanying a tendency for a stronger Beaufort Sea High in this sea level pressure field, AMTv through PSA pathways, switched from output to input, and approximately 960 km~3 of equivalent liquid water was transferred into the central Arctic during each decade. The detrended AMTv increment is highly correlated with the rapid decline of old ice areas(correlation coefficient is –0.78) for their synchronous fluctuations in the 1980 s and the last decade.     

The Transarctic Acoustic Propagation Experiment and climatemonitoring in the Arctic

In April 1994, coherent acoustic transmissions were propagated across the entire Arctic basin for the first time. This experiment, known as the Transarctic Acoustic Propagation Experiment (TAP), was designed to determine the feasibility of using these signals to monitor changes in Arctic Ocean temperature and changes in sea ice thickness and concentration. CW and maximal length sequences (MLS) were transmitted from the source camp located north of the Svalbard Archipelago 1000 km to a vertical line array in the Lincoln Sea and 2600 km to a two-dimensional horizontal array and a vertical array in the Beaufort Sea. TAP demonstrated that the 19.6-Hz 195-dB (251-W) signals propagated with both sufficiently low loss and high phase stability to support the coherent pulse compression processing of the MLS and the phase detection of the CW signals. These yield time delay measurements an order of magnitude better than what is required to detect the estimated 80-ms/year changes in travel time caused by interannual and longer term changes in Arctic Ocean temperature. The TAP data provided propagation loss measurements to compare with the models to be used for correlating modal scattering losses with sea ice properties for ice monitoring. The travel times measured in TAP indicated a warming of the Atlantic layer in the Arctic of close to 0.4°C, which has been confirmed by direct measurement from icebreakers and submarines, demonstrating the utility of acoustic thermometry in the Arctic. The unique advantages of acoustic thermometry in the Arctic and the importance of climate monitoring in the Arctic are discussed. A four-year program, Arctic Climate Observations using Underwater Sound is underway to carry out the first installations of sources and receivers in the Arctic Ocean     

Variability in oceanographic and ecological processes in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

This paper brings together unpublished historical data sets and published literature to review the role of climatic, oceanographic and ecological processes in the marine ecosystem of the eastern Canadian Archipelago. Physical data include characteristics of the water masses, circulation patterns, sea ice conditions, and climatic records from 1950s onward. Biological data include unpublished data sets on nutrients, primary and secondary production, and sedimentation, which were collected during the 1980–1990s in the eastern Canadian Archipelago. These results show high year-to-year variability in nutrient inventories and ratios, the magnitude of the ice algae and phytoplankton bloom, the timing of ice algae sedimentation in the spring, and the composition of the zooplankton community. The significance of this high interannual variability and its effect on pelagic–benthic coupling processes is discussed in the context of climatic and oceanographic forcing, with emphasis on recent (past decade) Arctic changes. An estimate of total primary production in the Archipelago is also presented, along with published production estimates for other Arctic shelves, showing that the Archipelago may support up to 32% of the total primary production of Arctic shelves. The high year-to-year variability in production and carbon transfer pathways (e.g. pelagic versus benthic) in the Archipelago suggest that the system might be resilient to the increased variability in climatic conditions occurring in the past decade. However, this increased variability combined with directional change in climatic and oceanographic conditions might also modify the existing balance of ecological processes. For example, shifts in the timing of events appear to have already occurred in the past decade, with potential cascading effects throughout the ecosystem.     

基于卫星观测的2003-2013年北极海冰体积变化估算

北极海冰正处于快速减退时期，北极海冰体积变化是全球气候变化的重要指示因子。本文利用两种卫星高度计数据（ICESat和CryoSat-2）反演得到的海冰厚度数据，结合星载辐射计提取的海冰密集度数据以及海冰年龄数据，估算了近期的北极海冰体积以及一年冰和多年冰体积变化。CryoSat-2观测时段（2011-2013年）与ICESat观测时段（2003-2008年）相比，北极海冰体积在秋季（10-11月）和冬季（2-3月）分别减少了1 426 km3和412 km3。其中，秋季和冬季的一年冰的体积增加了702 km3和2 975 km3。相反，多年冰分别减少了2 108 km3和3 206 km3。多年冰的大量流失是造成北极海冰净储量下降的主要原因。     

Ocean circulation and exchanges through the northern Bering Sea—1979–2001 model results

We have developed and run a model with sufficiently high resolution (9 km and 45 levels) and a large enough spatial domain to allow for realistic representation of flow through the narrow and shallow straits in the northern Bering Sea. This is potentially important for quantification of long-term mean and time-dependent ocean circulation, and water mass and property exchanges between the Pacific and Arctic Oceans. Over a 23 year interval (1979–2001), mean transport through Bering Strait is estimated to be 0.65 Sv. Comparison of our model results with published observations indicates that ocean circulation is not only variable at seasonal to interdecadal scales but it is also responsive to short-term atmospheric forcing. One of such events occurred during the winter of 2000–2001 with reversed oceanic flow in some areas and much reduced sea-ice cover. Analyses of eddy kinetic energy fields identify some high biological productivity regions of the Chirikov Basin coincident with persistent high energy (up to 2700 cm² s⁻² in the surface layer and up to 2600 cm² s⁻² at mid-depth) throughout the annual cycle. Model output in the Bering Strait region is validated against several time series of moored observations of water mass properties. Comparison with shipboard observations of near-bottom salinity from late winter through autumn indicates that the model reasonably represents the major water-mass properties in the region. The modeled vertical water-column structure in the northern Bering Sea allows increased understanding of the mechanisms of water transformation and transport northward through Bering Strait into the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. We conclude that the long-term model results for the northern Bering Sea provide important insights into the ocean circulation and fluxes and they are a useful frame of reference for limited observations that are short-term and/or cover only a small geographic region.