Seasonal variability in Atlantic Water off Spitsbergen

Ivanov, Vladimir; Polyakov, Igor V.; Dmitrenko, Igor; Hansen, Edmond; Репина, И. А.; Kirillov, Sergey; Mauritzen, C.; Simmons, Harper L.; Timokhov, Leonid

doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2008.07.013

Cited by 62 publications

(96 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…This analysis is based on the assumption that the OL in the Eurasian Basin travels in the same direction as the AW core. This assumption is confirmed by mooring-based observations of currents at the continental slope off Svalbard, ;308E (Ivanov et al 2009); at the Laptev Sea slope, ;1258E (Dmitrenko et al 2008b); and at the junction of the Lomonosov Ridge and the continental slope, ;1338-1508E (Woodgate et al 2001).…”

Section: B Description Of Modelssupporting

confidence: 59%

“…Observations from the 2000s documented another large-scale warming of the AW layer of the Eurasian Basin (Polyakov et al 2005;Dmitrenko et al 2008b). Most notably, data collected in 2006 in the vicinity of Svalbard at ;308E show AW temperatures with a magnitude unprecedented in the history of regional instrumental observations (Ivanov et al 2009). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Arctic Ocean Warming Contributes to Reduced Polar Ice Cap

Polyakov

Timokhov

Alexeev

et al. 2010

Journal of Physical Oceanography

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300

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Analysis of modern and historical observations demonstrates that the temperature of the intermediatedepth (150-900 m) Atlantic water (AW) of the Arctic Ocean has increased in recent decades. The AW warming has been uneven in time; a local ;18C maximum was observed in the mid-1990s, followed by an intervening minimum and an additional warming that culminated in 2007 with temperatures higher than in the 1990s by 0.248C. Relative to climatology from all data prior to 1999, the most extreme 2007 temperature anomalies of up to 18C and higher were observed in the Eurasian and Makarov Basins. The AW warming was associated with a substantial (up to 75-90 m) shoaling of the upper AW boundary in the central Arctic Ocean and weakening of the Eurasian Basin upper-ocean stratification. Taken together, these observations suggest that the changes in the Eurasian Basin facilitated greater upward transfer of AW heat to the ocean surface layer. Available limited observations and results from a 1D ocean column model support this surmised upward spread of AW heat through the Eurasian Basin halocline. Experiments with a 3D coupled ice-ocean model in turn suggest a loss of 28-35 cm of ice thickness after ;50 yr in response to the 0.5 W m 22 increase in AW ocean heat flux suggested by the 1D model. This amount of thinning is comparable to the 29 cm of ice thickness loss due to local atmospheric thermodynamic forcing estimated from observations of fast-ice thickness decline. The implication is that AW warming helped precondition the polar ice cap for the extreme ice loss observed in recent years.

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Section: B Description Of Modelssupporting

confidence: 59%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Arctic Ocean Warming Contributes to Reduced Polar Ice Cap

Polyakov

Timokhov

Alexeev

et al. 2010

Journal of Physical Oceanography

Self Cite

300

236

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The local front separates this AW flow from the Barents Sea waters located on the south. Due to intensive heat loss to the atmosphere and to freshening through mixing with the melted ice water, the AW upper portion cools and freshens, which leads to the isolation of the AW warm core from the ocean surface (Ivanov et al, 2009). The water mass configuration becomes complicated near the St. Anna Trough where the Svalbard Branch meets the AW Barents Branch (Rudels et al, 2013).…”

Section: The Af and Pf In Fram Strait And Northwardmentioning

confidence: 99%

Frontal structures in the West Spitsbergen Current margins

Walczowski

2013

Ocean Sci.

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Abstract. The structures of the hydrographic fronts separating the Atlantic-origin waters from ambient waters in the northern Nordic Seas are discussed. Flows of the western and eastern branches of the West Spitsbergen Current create the Atlantic domain borders and maintain these fronts. This work is based on previous research and on investigations carried out in the project DAMOCLES (Developing Arctic Modelling and Observational Capabilities for Long-term Environmental Studies). Most of the observational data were collected during the R/V Oceania cruises. The main focus of the paper is the western border of the Atlantic domain – the Arctic Front, alongfrontal and transfrontal transports, and the front instability and variability. The alongfrontal baroclinic jet streams were described as a significant source of the Atlantic Water and heat in the Nordic Seas. The baroclinic instability and advection of baroclinic eddies which occurs due to this instability were found to be the main transfrontal transport processes. Most of the Atlantic Water transported by the western branch recirculates west and southward. The eastern branch of the West Spitsbergen Current provides most of the Atlantic Water entering the Arctic Ocean. Both processes are very important for the Arctic and global thermohaline circulation.

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“…Even a seasonal cycle, originating from the Arctic water inflow at the Fram Strait, has been found to survive mixing processes and transformation into Arctic intermediate water (Ivanov et al, 2009). Integrated views based on mooring observations and high-resolution ocean models (Lique and Steele, 2012) show that the Arctic water seasonal cycle signal undergoes advection from the Fram Strait up to the St Anna Trough, and is then re-energized by the Barents Sea branch.…”

Section: Northward Heat Transportmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent advances in understanding the Arctic climate system state and change from a sea ice perspective: a review

2014

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Abstract. Sea ice is the central component and most sensitive indicator of the Arctic climate system. Both the depletion and areal decline of the Arctic sea ice cover, observed since the 1970s, have accelerated since the millennium. While the relationship of global warming to sea ice reduction is evident and underpinned statistically, it is the connecting mechanisms that are explored in detail in this review.Sea ice erodes both from the top and the bottom. Atmospheric, oceanic and sea ice processes interact in nonlinear ways on various scales. Feedback mechanisms lead to an Arctic amplification of the global warming system: the amplification is both supported by the ice depletion and, at the same time, accelerates ice reduction. Knowledge of the mechanisms of sea ice decline grew during the 1990s and This article reviews recent progress in understanding the sea ice decline. Processes are revisited from atmospheric, oceanic and sea ice perspectives. There is strong evidence that decisive atmospheric changes are the major driver of sea ice change. Feedbacks due to reduced ice concentration, surface albedo, and ice thickness allow for additional local atmospheric and oceanic influences and self-supporting feedbacks. Large-scale ocean influences on Arctic Ocean hydrology and circulation are highly evident. Northward heat fluxes in the ocean are clearly impacting the ice margins, especially in the Atlantic sector of the Arctic. There is little indication of a direct and decisive influence of the warming ocean on the overall sea ice cover, due to an isolating layer of cold and fresh water underneath the sea ice.

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Seasonal variability in Atlantic Water off Spitsbergen

Cited by 62 publications

References 16 publications

Arctic Ocean Warming Contributes to Reduced Polar Ice Cap

Arctic Ocean Warming Contributes to Reduced Polar Ice Cap

Frontal structures in the West Spitsbergen Current margins

Recent advances in understanding the Arctic climate system state and change from a sea ice perspective: a review

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