Basin have increased winter ventilation in the ocean interior, making this region 46 structurally similar to that of the western Eurasian Basin. The associated enhanced 47 release of oceanic heat has reduced winter sea-ice formation at a rate now comparable to 48 losses from atmospheric thermodynamic forcing, thus explaining the recent reduction in 49 sea-ice cover in the eastern Eurasian Basin. This encroaching "atlantification" of the 50Eurasian Basin represents an essential step toward a new Arctic climate state, with a 51 substantially greater role for Atlantic inflows. 52 53 3 Over the last decade, the Arctic Ocean has experienced dramatic losses of sea-ice loss in 54 the summers, with record-breaking years in 2007 and 2012 for both the Amerasian Basin 55 and the Eurasian Basin (EB). More remarkably, the eastern EB has been nearly ice-free 56 (<10 % ice coverage) at the end of summer since 2011 (Fig. 1). Most sea ice-mass loss 57 results from summer solar heating of the surface mixed layer (SML) through cracks in the 58 ice and open water, and consequent melting of the lower surface of the ice (1-3). Heat 59 advected into the EB interior by Atlantic water (AW) generally has not been considered 60 an important contributor to sea-ice reduction, due to effective insulation of the overlying 61 cold halocline layer (CHL) (4) that separates the cold and fresh SML and pack ice from 62 heat carried by the warm and saline AW. 63There are, however, reasons to believe the role of AW heat in sea-ice reduction is not 64 negligible, and may be increasingly important (5). Nansen (6) warming has slowed slightly since 2008 (Fig. 2c). 74Strong stratification, which is found in most of the Arctic Ocean, prevents vigorous 75 ventilation of the AW. One notable exception is the western Nansen Basin, north and 76 4 northeast of Svalbard, where proximity to the sources of inflowing AW makes possible 77 significant interactions between the SML and the ocean interior (5). Specifically, weakly 78 stratified AW entering the Nansen Basin through Fram Strait is subject to direct 79 ventilation in winter, caused by cooling and haline convection associated with sea ice 80 formation (15). This ventilation leads to the reduction of sea-ice thickness along the 81 continental slope off Svalbard (16, 17). In the past, these conditions have been limited to 82 the western EB, since winter ventilation of AW in the eastern EB was constrained by 83 stronger stratification there. However, newly acquired data show that conditions 84 previously only identified in the western Nansen Basin now can be observed in the 85 eastern EB as well. We call this eastward progression of the western EB conditions the 86 "atlantification" of the EB of the Arctic Ocean. 87 Overview of sea ice state 88The progressive decline in sea ice coverage of the Arctic Ocean during the satellite era, at 89 13.4 % per decade during September (18), has been accompanied by decreases in average 90 sea ice thickness of at least 1.7 m in the central Arctic (19, 20). In the region of t...

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shelf-and river-derived elements to the central Arctic Ocean • The TPD is rich in dissolved organic matter (DOM), which facilitates long-range transport of trace metals that form complexes with DOM • Margin trace element fluxes may increase with future Arctic warming due to DOM release from permafrost thaw and increasing river discharge

A 15-year duration record of mooring observations from the eastern (&gt;70°E) Eurasian Basin (EB) of the Arctic Ocean is used to show and quantify the recently increased oceanic heat flux from intermediate-depth (∼150-900 m) warm Atlantic Water (AW) to the surface mixed layer (SML) and sea ice. The upward release of AW heat is regulated by the stability of the overlying halocline, which we show has weakened substantially in recent years. Shoaling of the AW has also contributed, with observations in winter 2017-2018 showing AW at only 80 m depth, just below the wintertime surface mixed layer (SML), the shallowest in our mooring records. The weakening of the halocline for several months at this time implies that AW heat was linked to winter convection associated with brine rejection during sea ice formation. This resulted in a substantial increase of upward oceanic heat flux during the winter season, from an average of 3-4 W/m2 in 2007-2008 to &gt;10 W/m2 in 2016-2018. This seasonal AW heat loss in the eastern EB is equivalent to a more than a two-fold reduction of winter ice growth. These changes imply a positive feedback as reduced sea ice cover permits increased mixing, augmenting the summer-dominated ice-albedo feedback.

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[1] Observational and modeling studies in the Bering Sea indicate that changes in the seasonal ice cover and time of ice retreat influence open-water productivity. In particular, the timing of the spring bloom and its phytoplankton community composition are affected. Dissolved iron (DFe) data in the water column and ice cores collected during the 2007-Bering Ecosystem Study (BEST) cruise indicate that the melting ice provided substantial DFe to the water column. The additional DFe input from melting sea ice could be biologically important along the outer shelf and shelf break where in ice-free areas insufficient DFe (<1 nM) existed for the complete assimilation of available nitrate (>20 mM). Variability in sea ice dynamics are likely to result in a varying supply of DFe to the outer shelf and shelf break in early spring, and to contribute to the observed changes in the timing and community composition of the spring phytoplankton bloom. Citation: Aguilar-Islas, A. M., R. D.Rember, C. W. Mordy, and J. Wu (2008), Sea ice-derived dissolved iron and its potential influence on the spring algal bloom in the

A yearlong time series from mooring-based high-resolution profiles of water temperature and salinity from the Laptev Sea slope (2003–04; 2686-m depth; 78°26′N, 125°37′E) shows six remarkably persistent staircase layers in the depth range of ~140–350 m encompassing the upper Atlantic Water (AW) and lower halocline. Despite frequent displacement of isopycnal surfaces by internal waves and eddies and two strong AW warming pulses that passed through the mooring location in February and late August 2004, the layers preserved their properties. Using laboratory-derived flux laws for diffusive convection, the authors estimate the time-averaged diapycnal heat fluxes across the four shallower layers overlying the AW core to be ~8 W m−2. Temporal variability of these fluxes is strong, with standard deviations of ~3–7 W m−2. These fluxes provide a means for effective transfer of AW heat upward over more than a 100-m depth range toward the upper halocline. These findings suggest that double diffusion is an important mechanism influencing the oceanic heat fluxes that help determine the state of Arctic sea ice.