Realistic representation of the surface freshwater flux in an ice–ocean general circulation model

Ocean general circulation models usually use an equivalent salt-flux in order to represent the freshwater surface inflow/outflow. This unphysical approach has numerous shortcomings, especially for climate studies. A more physical representation has been originally proposed by R.X. Huang [Journal of Physical Oceanography 23 (1993) 2428–2446] for ocean models. It consists in taking into account the vertical velocity at the sea surface. Here this formulation is introduced in a coupled ice–ocean general circulation model designed for climate studies. The treatment of the ice–ocean exchanges needs special care in order to conserve salt and freshwater masses, and to correctly represent the physics involved. This formulation allows to simulate the Goldsbrough–Stommel circulation and the meridional pathway of the freshwater at the ocean surface. Furthermore, the meridional freshwater transport diagnosed using such an approach is more directly comparable to the atmospheric water-vapor transport. Nevertheless, it produces only small changes in the ocean general circulation.     

A three-dimensional hydrostatic model for coastal and ocean modelling using a generalised topography following co-ordinate system

A three-dimensional hydrostatic model is presented that combines a generalised vertical co-ordinate system with an efficient implicit solution technique for the free surface. The model is capable of maintaining high resolution in the surface and/or bottom boundary layers as well as dealing with steep topography. Horizontal diffusion is calculated using the Smagorinsky formulation and a k–ε turbulence model is used in the vertical. In addition the model uses higher-order advection routines. An important aspect in three-dimensional models is the choice of vertical discretisation. If one is mostly interested in problems which are governed by boundary layer flows, a terrain following or sigma co-ordinate system seems attractive. This paper focuses on the development of a generalised sigma-type grid in a three-dimensional hydrostatic model. The generalised grid offers a wide range of possibilities including grid refinement toward the bed or surface, a mixed layer transformation, and a constant layer transformation where the lowermost or uppermost grid cells can be specified to have a constant height above the bed or below the surface. A number of tests are presented which show that the model is capable of simulating both shallow nearshore, estuarine flows as well as large-scale geophysical flows. These include an extreme flooding event in the shallow North Sea and the Odden ice tongue formation in the Greenland Sea.     

Modified PIC Method for Sea Ice Dynamics

The sea ice cover displays various dynamical characteristics such as breakup, rafting, and ridging under external forces. To model the ice dynamic process accurately, the effective numerical modeling method should be established. In this paper, a modified particle-in-cell （PIC） method for sea ice dynamics is developed coupling the finite difference （FD） method and smoothed particle hydrodynamics （SPH）. In this method, the ice cover is first discretized into a series of lagrangian ice particles which have their own sizes, thicknesses, concentrations and velocities. The ice thickness and concentration at Eulerian grid positions are obtained by interpolation with the Gaussian function from their surrounding ice particles. The momentum of ice cover is solved with FD approach to obtain the Eulerian cell velocity, which is used to estimate the ice particle velocity with the Gaussian function also. The thickness and concentration of ice particles are adjnsted with particle mass density and smooth length, which are adjusted with the redistribution of ice particles. With the above modified PIC method, numerical simulations for ice motion in an idealized rectangular basin and the ice dynamics in the Bohai Sea are carried out. These simulations show that this modified PIC method is applicable to sea ice dynamics simulation.     

A finite differences formulation for the linear and nonlinear dynamics of 2D catenary risers

A finite differences (FD) solution method is proposed for the numerical treatment of the dynamic equilibrium problem of 2D catenary risers. The method is based on the so-called Box approximation, which in the scope of the present contribution is applied to the complete nonlinear model as well as to the reduced linearized formulation. The application of the Box method transforms the original governing systems into convenient sets of algebraic equations, which in turn are solved efficiently by the relaxation method. Extensive numerical calculations are presented that describe the dynamic behaviour of the structure and evaluate the amplification in loading due to the dynamic components. The effect of the geometric nonlinearities is assessed through comparative calculations that concern both mathematical formulations examined in the present, i.e. the complete nonlinear, and the reduced linearized model. Special attention is paid to the heave excitations as they amplify significantly the magnitudes of the loading components.     

Water exchange of the Stockholm archipelago—a cascade framework modelling approach

The Stockholm archipelago spans roughly a semicircular area with a radius of approximately 60 km, traditionally partitioned into three parts: the inner, the middle and the outer archipelago. This subdivision coincides with differing water exchange regimes. The inner and middle archipelagos are characterised by comparatively larger basins which are interconnected by a limited number of straits. This configuration is well suited for a discrete basin (DB-) model approach by partitioning the area into a set of sub-basins that are only resolved vertically. The advantage of this approach over 3D-models is the possibility for enhanced vertical resolution and improved strait exchange formulation, outweighing the disadvantage of neglected horizontal gradients within the basins. In the inner archipelago the dominating exchange process is estuarine circulation, induced by the marked freshwater discharge and the vertical mixing. In the outer and middle archipelagos the density fluctuations due to Ekman pumping along the Baltic boundary interface produce another type of baroclinic process that clearly dominates. Measurements to adequately resolve these density variations do not exist. Missing forcing data are provided by linking the middle archipelago's boundary straits to a 3D-model of the Baltic with a grid resolution of 0.5 nautical miles (n.m.). This fine resolution model (FR-domain) is in turn driven by the atmospheric forcing and the density variation at the rectangular boundary of the FR-domain which acceptably resolves both the interfacial straits and the outer archipelago's complex hypsography. Massive computing resources would be demanded if the FR-domain were extended to comprise the entire Baltic. The FR-domain is thus interfaced with an existing coarse resolution model of the entire Baltic (CR-domain) with a grid size of 5 n.m., the open boundary of which is located in the Kattegat. This 3-fold model set-up has been run for one whole year (1992) with a one-year spin-up time to make up for the lack of initial data. The model concept is at this stage to be regarded as a framework for further development in anticipation of improved formulations, particularly for the strait exchange formulation. Therefore only primary validation experiments and a few sensitivity analyses have been performed.     

Flow regimes and long-term water exchange of the Himmerfjärden estuary

A numerical model of processes determining the water exchange encountered in Baltic coastal archipelagos is calibrated and validated against salinity and temperature field data spanning two decades with approximately bi-weekly resolution assessed in the Himmerfjärden estuary. This area is resolved into 17 basins interconnected by 38 individual straits of varying geometrical properties using GIS-based methods. All formulations of the strait exchange flows are free from parameters that need calibration and permit computations of the flow through a strait contraction with or without a coincident sill under a flow classification scheme, of which the first one (a) consists of two groups of multiple layers including aspirated layers from levels beneath the sill crest. The other regimes are as follows. (b) Pure barotropic flow; (c) rotationally controlled flow and (d) plug-flow, which serves as resort solution for flow situations that cannot be solved with (a) and also for computation of the barotropic part of the total flow. For long canals where friction effects act to reduce the flow, a fifth exchange regime is used. The vertical mixing formulation is based on energy balances between supplied wind energy and its work against buoyancy forces. The values of semi-empirical parameters involved in the mixing scheme have been established by calibration against measured data of the first decade period. A statistical evaluation is performed comparing the model results with the measurements of the second decade.     

灰度共生矩阵纹理特征对SAR海冰漂移监测的增强性能研究

海冰漂移监测对气候变化分析、船只航行、海上石油平台等海上活动安全作业具有重要意义。当前主流的SAR海冰漂移监测方法多是基于SAR灰度图开展的,其受噪声、环境等因素的影响较大,导致其在海冰漂移探测时,特征失配率高,匹配正确率低。针对这一问题,本文尝试利用SAR海冰纹理特征来增强海冰漂移探测性能。首先对比分析了8种纹理特征对海冰漂移探测中特征匹配的增强性能,筛选出能够有效增强特征匹配性能的最优纹理特征;其次进一步分析了海冰类型、入射角和分辨率对基于纹理特征的海冰漂移探测性能增强的影响。实验结果表明,均值是最优的纹理特征,与SAR强度图相比,特征匹配正确率提高了约7%。     

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.     

海冰业务化预报基础研究进展

本文概述了我国近年来在海冰预报基础研究方面的工作进展情况,着重介绍了在我国海冰的气候成因、海冰分布特征和变化规律等方面的研究成果.     

Three-dimensional interaction of waves and porous coastal structures using OpenFOAM®. Part II: Application

This paper and its companion Higuera et al. (2014--this issue) introduce the formulation of Volume-Averaged Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (VARANS) equations in OpenFOAM® to simulate two-phase flow through porous media. This new implementation, so-called IHFOAM, corrects the limitations of the original OpenFOAM® code. An innovative hybrid methodology (2D–3D) is presented to optimize the simulation time needed to assess the three-dimensional effects of wave interaction with coastal structures. The combined use of a 2D and a 3D model enables the practical application of the 3D VARANS code to simulate real cases, contributing to a significant speed-up. This is highly convenient and especially suitable for non-conventional structures, as it overcomes the limitations inherent to applying semi-empirical formulations out of their range or 2D simulations only. A detailed study of stability and overtopping for a 3D porous high-mound breakwater at prototype scale subjected to oblique irregular (random) waves is carried out. Pressure around the caissons, overtopping discharge rate and turbulent magnitudes are presented in three dimensions. The mean pressure laws present a high degree of accordance with the formulation provided by Goda–Takahashi. Furthermore, local effects due to three-dimensional processes play a significant role, especially close to the breakwater head.     

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.     

Bacteria and Viruses in Arctic Sea Ice

Oceanology - We studied vertical distribution of bacteria and viruses in different layers of the Arctic sea ice drilled at the North Pole. The sampled multi-year ice was characterized by uneven...     

Atmospheric water species budget in mesoscale simulations of lee cyclones over the Mackenzie River Basin

A moisture budget over the Mackenzie River Basin (MRB) was computed using a high‐resolution mesoscale model with explicit microphysics for 3 lee cyclogenesis events. A unique feature of the calculation is that all the budget terms are calculated from the model and no residual terms are required. It was found that during the initial formative period of the lee cyclones, a large influx of moisture occurs at the western boundary. However, as the cyclone moves further east, a significant amount of moisture is withdrawn through the eastern and southern boundaries of the basin. Surface evaporation was found to be relatively large during the local day time and plays a vital ròle in initiating convection in the presence of frontal lifting south of 60°N within the basin. In 2 of the 3 cases, the total water in the basin increases over the history of the simulation as a result of substantial lateral flux convergence of total water content even though the total precipitation in these two events was nearly 1.4× the surface evaporation. For the 3rd cyclone, the total water in the basin decreases substantially because of precipitation and large outward moisture flux at the boundary. The dominant microphysical processes governing the transformation of various water species were condensation, deposition, autoconversion and accretion of cloud water by rain, accretion of cloud water by ice, melting of ice to rain water and evaporation of cloud and rain water. In the net horizontal flux convergence of water species, the largest was water vapor, followed by ice and cloud water. The net flux convergence of rainwater into the basin was small and the effect of the graupel processes is negligible.     

海冰与直立结构相互作用的破坏模式研究

海冰在结构前的破坏模式以及产生的冰载荷与结构尺度和海冰厚度密切相关。采用海冰离散元方法（DEM）模拟平整冰与直立结构相互作用过程中的海冰破坏模式及整体冰载荷。该离散元方法的计算参数通过与Norstr?msgrund灯塔的现场实测数据对比进行了可靠性验证。在此基础上,对不同宽厚比（结构宽度与海冰厚度的比值）工况下平整冰与直立结构作用过程中的海冰破坏模式和整体冰压力进行了离散元分析。模拟结果表明：当宽厚比＜10时,海冰破坏模式主要为挤压破坏;当10≤宽厚比＜30时,海冰混合破坏发生;当宽厚比≥30时,海冰屈曲破坏发生。从海冰断裂长度与平均冰压力两个方面进一步说明了海冰破坏模式的转变过程。最后,构建了直立结构极值冰压力计算公式。研究成果可为寒区直立结构的整体设计提供参考。     

Sea ice–ocean coupling using a rescaled vertical coordinate z

Realistic representation of sea ice in ocean models involves the use of a non-linear free-surface, a real freshwater flux and observance of requisite conservation laws. We show here that these properties can be achieved in practice through use of a rescaled vertical coordinate “z^*” in z-coordinate models that allows one to follow undulations in the free-surface under sea ice loading. In particular, the adoption of “z^*” avoids the difficult issue of vanishing levels under thick ice.Details of the implementation within MITgcm are provided. A high resolution global ocean sea ice simulation illustrates the robustness of the z^* formulation and reveals a source of oceanic variability associated with sea ice dynamics and ice-loading effects. The use of the z^* coordinate allows one to achieve perfect conservation of fresh water, heat and salt, as shown in extended integration of coupled ocean sea ice atmospheric model.     

Optimal ice routing of a ship with icebreaker assistance

Offshore development and growing prospects of commercial shipping in the Arctic pose the challenge of optimal ship routing in ice. Route selection in spatially distributed ice conditions significantly affects the voyage time and determines the efficiency of shipping. Most of the applied methods of ice routing solve the problem of a single vessel route selection without considering icebreaker support. At the same time, the real practice of ice navigation is closely connected with icebreaker assistance. It allows reducing the voyage time and fuel consumption, while having additional costs for icebreaker services. Such opposite trends set an optimization task that has not been studied in detail before. In this article, we presented the formulation of a Single Vessel and Icebreaker Assisted Ice Routing optimization problem in non-stationary ice conditions. We considered the icebreaker assistance as an integral part of the overall route optimization problem, and used the economic criterion to optimize both ship route and amount of icebreaker involvement. The article contains the adapted mathematical formulations of classical graph-based and wave-based routing problems in order to consider icebreaker assistance. To prove the practical applicability of these formulations, we developed special subject-oriented research software and implemented there both graph-based (Dijkstra, A*) and the wave-based ice routing methods. Using this developments, we conducted several case studies and made the analysis of strengthens and weaknesses of the alternative routing methods in case of ice operation. The results of the study may serve an additional step to the practical implementation of ice routing technologies and planning of icebreaker resources.     

Behavior of unbonded flexible risers subject to axial tension

Owing to nonlinear contact problems with slip and friction, a lot of limiting assumptions are made when developing analytical models to simulate the behavior of an unbonded flexible riser. Meanwhile, in order to avoid convergence problems and excessive calculating time associated with running the detailed finite element （FE） model of an unbonded flexible riser, interlocked carcass and zeta layers with complicated cross section shapes are replaced by simple geometrical shapes （e.g. hollow cylindrical shell） with equivalent orthotropic materials. But the simplified model does not imply the stresses equivalence of these two layers. To solve these problems, based on ABAQUS/Explicit, a numerical method that is suitable for the detailed FE model is proposed. In consideration of interaction among all component layers, the axial stiffness of an eight-layer unbonded flexible riser subjected to axial tension is predicted. Compared with analytical and experimental results, it is shown that the proposed numerical method not only has high accuracy but also can substantially reduce the calculating time. In addition, the impact of the lay angle of helical tendons on axial stiffness is discussed.     

高分3号星载合成孔径雷达极地海冰自动检测方法研究

随着全球变暖等一系列气候变化的发生,极地海冰成为人们日益关注的焦点。由于不受光线和云雨影响,合成孔径雷达（SAR）可以进行全天时全天候的观测。高分3号是我国高分系列卫星中的一颗星载合成孔径雷达成像卫星,具有多种成像模式,可以在全球获取SAR数据。全天时全天候的工作特性和高空间分辨率的优势,使得高分3号星载SAR在极地海冰遥感监测中发挥重要的作用。本文基于高分3号水平-垂直（Horizontal-Vertical,HV）极化数据,提出了一种基于支持向量机的无需人工干预的海冰检测方法,实现海水和海冰的自动分离。利用该方法得到的海冰和海水分离结果同辅以人工解译的半监督分类结果相比较为吻合,为高分3号服务于极区海冰监测奠定了良好的基础。     

Modeling of nonlinear wave propagation over fringing reefs

The applicability of existing nonlinear (triad) spectral models for steep slopes (0.1–0.2) characteristic of reef environments was investigated, using both deterministic (phase-resolving) and stochastic (phased-averaged) formulations. Model performance was tested using laboratory observations of unidirectional wave transformation over steep and smooth bathymetry profiles. The models, developed for mild slopes, were implemented with minimal modifications (the inclusion of breaking parametrizations and linear steep-slope corrections) required by laboratory data. The deterministic model produced typically more accurate predictions than the stochastic one, but the phase averaged formulation proved fast enough to allow for an inverse modeling search for the optimal breaking parametrization. The effects of the additional assumptions of the stochastic approach resulted in a slower than observed evolution of the infragravity band. Despite the challenge posed by the fast wave evolution and energetic breaking characteristic to the steep reef slopes, both formulations performed overall well, and should be considered as good provisional candidates for use in numerical investigation of wave–current interaction processes on steep reefs.     

Infrared atmospheric sounding interferometer data information content; instrument characterization and the impact of a priori information

The use of linear estimation for the study of the information content of a given satellite radiance data set for temperature and humidity profile retrievals is first reviewed. A particular formulation of the retrieval approach is then used to obtain an intrinsic characterisation of the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) data set, in terms of accuracy versus vertical resolution of retrieved profiles. The performance of the IASI instrument alone is analysed and compared to that of the currently‐used HIRS‐TOVS. The problem is then regularized by addition of a priori independent information to the initial data set. The potential use of IASI data for some particular choices of the a priori information associated with practical problems such as profile inversion or data assimilation for weather forecasting is analysed. The approach is finally used to derive an "empirical" objective framework to define the vertical discretization adapted to these problems.