Effects of glacier runoff and wind on surface layer dynamics and Atlantic Water exchange in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard; a model study

Sundfjord, Arild; Albretsen, Jon; Kasajima, Yoshie; Skogseth, Ragnheid; Kohler, Jack; Nuth, C.; Skarðhamar, Jofrid; Cottier, Finlo; Nilsen, Frank; Asplin, Lars; Gerland, Sebastian; Torsvik, Tomas

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2017.01.015

Cited by 65 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…We used the coupled sea ice and ocean version of the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) (Budgell, ; Haidvogel et al, ; Shchepetkin & McWilliams, ) with an 800 m × 800 m resolution domain (referred to hereafter as S800) covering Svalbard, much of Fram Strait, and the Nansen Basin north of Svalbard to 86°N, nested one‐way into a 4 km × 4 km resolution pan‐Arctic ROMS model (referred to hereafter as A4) using a mix of radiation‐nudging boundary conditions (Marchesiello et al, ) along all four open boundaries of the model. Both models have 35 terrain following vertical layers with somewhat different control parameters (Sundfjord et al, , their Table ). The initial ocean state and lateral boundary conditions for A4 were provided by monthly averaged global reanalysis (Storkey et al, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While this appears to produce unrealistic hydrography in the interior/EEB and Canadian Basin of the A4 model, S800's resolution may be fine enough to make this problem less pronounced than in the coarser, yet eddy‐permitting, A4 model (Marchesiello et al, ; Nurser & Bacon, ). For further information on model setup, which includes tides and river runoff, see Hattermann et al () and Sundfjord et al (). Model evaluation and performance are discussed in Hattermann et al (), Sundfjord et al (), and section 3.1 of this paper.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For further information on model setup, which includes tides and river runoff, see Hattermann et al () and Sundfjord et al (). Model evaluation and performance are discussed in Hattermann et al (), Sundfjord et al (), and section 3.1 of this paper.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mesoscale Eddy Activity and Transport in the Atlantic Water Inflow Region North of Svalbard

et al. 2018

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Mesoscale eddies are known to transport heat and biogeochemical properties from Arctic Ocean boundary currents to basin interiors. Previous hydrographic surveys and model results suggest that eddy formation may be common in the Atlantic Water (AW) inflow area north of Svalbard, but no quantitative eddy survey has yet been done for the region. Here vorticity and water property signatures are used to identify and track AW eddies in an eddy‐resolving sea ice‐ocean model. The boundary current sheds AW eddies along most of the length of the continental slope considered, from the western Yermak Plateau to 40°E, though eddies forming east of 20°E are likely more important for slope‐to‐basin transport. Eddy formation seasonality reflects seasonal stability properties of the boundary current in the eastern portion of the study domain, but on and immediately east of the Yermak Plateau enhanced eddy formation during summer merits further investigation. AW eddies tend to be anticyclonic, have radii close to the local deformation radius, and be centered in the halocline. They transport roughly 0.16 Sv of AW and, due to their warm cores, 1.0 TW away from the boundary current. These findings suggest eddies may be important for halocline ventilation in the Eurasian Basin, as has been shown for Pacific Water eddies in the Canadian Basin.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mesoscale Eddy Activity and Transport in the Atlantic Water Inflow Region North of Svalbard

et al. 2018

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“…This allows the AW to preserve its warm core, losing less heat to the atmosphere (Beszczynska-Möller et al, 2012). The Atlantic warm core (5°C and salinity up to 35), in the form of the West Spitsbergen Current (WSC), intrudes into Kongsfjorden, passes the threshold 5 moraine in front of glaciers close to Lovenyane, and reaches the inner part of the fjord where it comes into contact with the glacier front (Kongsvegen, Kronebreen and Kongsbreen termini) (Fig. 1b).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It results that water circulation in the innermost part of Kongsfjorden is of estuarine-like type with cold freshwater on top of warm saline water (Svendsen et al, 2002;Cottier et al, 2005;Trusel et al, 2010;Aliani et al, 2016). A high resolution numerical ocean circulation model has recently further showed a strong surface outflow of glacier runoff in summer compensated by a 20 sub-surface inflow near the glacier fronts (Sundfjord et al, 2017). This type of circulation implies that the glacially-derived sediment will spread at surface through hypopycnal sediment-rich plumes dispersed by winds over the fjord.…”

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confidence: 99%

Multi-year particle fluxes in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard

D’Angelo¹,

Giglio²,

Miserocchi³

et al. 2018

Preprint

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Abstract. High latitude regions are warming faster than other areas due to reduction of snow cover, sea ice loss, changes in atmospheric and ocean circulation. The combination of these processes, collectively known as polar amplification, provides an extraordinary opportunity to document the ongoing thermal destabilisation of the terrestrial cryosphere and the release of land-derived material into the aquatic environment. This study presents a six-year time-series (2010-2016) of physical parameters and particles fluxes collected by an oceanographic mooring in Kongsfjorden (Spitsbergen, Svalbard). In recent 5 decades, Kongsfjorden has been experiencing rapid loss of sea ice coverage and retreat of local glaciers as a result of the progressive increase of ocean and air temperatures. The overarching goal of this study was to continuous monitoring the inner fjord particle sinking and to understand to what extent the temporal evolution of particulate fluxes were linked to the progressive changes in both Atlantic and freshwater input. Our data show high peaks of settling particles during warm seasons, in terms of both organic and inorganic matter. The different sources of suspended particles were described as a mixing of 10 glacier carbonate, glacier-silicoclastic and autochthonous marine input. The glacier releasing sediments into the fjord resulted to be the predominant source, while the sediment input by rivers was reduced at the mooring site. Our time-series showed that the seasonal sunlight exerted first-order control on the particulate fluxes in the inner fjord. The marine fraction peaked when the solar radiation was maxima in May-June while the land-derived fluxes exhibited a 1-2 months lag consistent with the maximum air temperature and glacier melting. The inter-annual time-weighted total mass fluxes varied two-order of magnitudes over time, 15with relatively higher values in 2011, 2013 and 2015. Our results suggest that the land-derived input will remarkably increase over time in a warming scenario. Further studies are therefore needed to understand the future response of the Kongsfjorden ecosystem alterations in respect to the enhanced release of glacier-derived material.

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Wind‐Driven Cross‐Shelf Exchange—West Spitsbergen Current as a Source of Heat and Salt for the Adjacent Shelf in Arctic Winters

2018

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Cross‐shelf exchange can drive substantial hydrographic changes on shelves and along slopes. In this study, time series from moorings, profiles collected by a tagged seal, atmospheric reanalysis data, and weather regimes classification were used to investigate cross‐shelf exchange at the slope‐shelf interface south‐west of Spitsbergen during the four winters 2011–2014. Assessment of Ekman transport (ET) as a driving force and linking cross‐shelf exchange to large‐scale weather patterns were in focus. Strong positive correlations were found between zonal ET and hydrographic observations on the shelf, indicating its strong impact on cross‐shelf exchange. Strong negative correlations were found between the meridional ET and temperature and salinity measured on the shelf in winter 2012, indicating a suppressing role of westerly winds on fresher and colder outflows from the Barents Sea. The ETs in a wider area near the Svalbard Archipelago show substantial variations on short‐term, interannual and long‐term time scales due to changes in large‐scale atmospheric patterns. The regional wind speed shows a significant negative trend in winters between 1992 and 2016. At the same time, cumulative winter zonal ET increased on the north‐western Spitsbergen shelf, indicating a higher overall cross‐shelf exchange along the western Spitsbergen shelf break, while meridional ET south‐west of Spitsbergen decreased, indicating a reduced outflow of fresher and colder water from the Barents Sea. For the time period between 1980 and 2016, the winter air and sea surface temperatures (sea‐ice fraction) exhibit significant positive (negative) trends which even multiplied by factor of 2–3 in winters 2004–2016.

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Effects of glacier runoff and wind on surface layer dynamics and Atlantic Water exchange in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard; a model study

Cited by 65 publications

References 37 publications

Mesoscale Eddy Activity and Transport in the Atlantic Water Inflow Region North of Svalbard

Mesoscale Eddy Activity and Transport in the Atlantic Water Inflow Region North of Svalbard

Multi-year particle fluxes in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard

Wind‐Driven Cross‐Shelf Exchange—West Spitsbergen Current as a Source of Heat and Salt for the Adjacent Shelf in Arctic Winters

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