Experiences of Scott's Northern Party: evidence for a relationship between winter katabatic winds and the Terra Nova Bay polynya

Polar Record ◽  
1982 ◽  
Vol 21 (131) ◽  
pp. 137-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
David H. Bromwich ◽  
Dennis D. Kurtz
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Surface Wind ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Katabatic Winds ◽  
Adverse Conditions ◽  
Terra Nova Bay ◽  
Ice Conditions ◽  
Limited Supply ◽  
Terra Nova

The six men of Captain Robert Falcon Scott's Northern Party were stranded on Inexpressible Island (Fig 1) from late February to September 1912. During that period their lives were profoundly influenced by prevailing surface wind and sea ice conditions in Terra Nova Bay. Members of the party lived under the most primitive conditions, enduring more than seven months of strong, persistent winds. The western part of Terra Nova Bay remained largely free of ice in 1912, thus preventing the group from leaving until there was sufficient daylight to cross the Drygalski Ice Tongue. This open water, however, may also have assured their survival for it attracted enough seals and penguins to provide them with a continual though limited supply of food. Despite these adverse conditions some of the men, Raymond Priestley in particular, kept detailed journals which provide the only in situwintertime observations for this area. Analysis of Priestley's wind and ice record provides strong confirmation of our model for the wintertime persistence of open water (a polynya) in Terra Nova Bay.

scholarly journals The Atmospheric Boundary Layer and Surface Conditions during Katabatic Wind Events over the Terra Nova Bay Polynya

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (24) ◽  
pp. 4160
Author(s):  
Marta Wenta ◽  
John J. Cassano
Keyword(s):  
Open Water ◽  
Unmanned Aircraft ◽  
Katabatic Wind ◽  
Katabatic Winds ◽  
Surface Conditions ◽  
Terra Nova Bay ◽  
Coastal Polynya ◽  
Terra Nova ◽  
Wind Events ◽  
Aircraft System

Off the coast of Victoria Land, Antarctica an area of open water—the Terra Nova Bay Polynya (TNBP)—persists throughout the austral winter. The development of this coastal polynya is driven by extreme katabatic winds blowing down the slopes of Transantarctic Mountains. The surface-atmosphere coupling and ABL transformation during the katabatic wind events between 18 and 25 September 2012 in Terra Nova Bay are studied, using observations from Aerosonde unmanned aircraft system (UAS), numerical modeling results and Antarctic Weather Station (AWS) measurements. First, we analyze how the persistence and strength of the katabatic winds relate to sea level pressure (SLP) changes in the region throughout the studied period. Secondly, the polynya extent variations are analysed in relation to wind speed changes. We conclude that the intensity of the flow, surface conditions in the bay and regional SLP fluctuations are all interconnected and contribute to polynya development. We also analyse the Antarctic Mesoscale Prediction System (AMPS) forecast for the studied period and find out that incorrect representation of vertical ABL properties over the TNBP might be caused by overestimated sea ice concentrations (SIC) used as model input. Altogether, this research provides a unique description of TNBP development and its interactions with the atmosphere and katabatic winds.

Particulate organic matter release below melting sea ice (Terra Nova Bay, Ross Sea, Antarctica): Possible relationships with zooplankton

2021 ◽  
pp. 103510
Author(s):  
Alessandro Cau ◽  
Claudia Ennas ◽  
Davide Moccia ◽  
Olga Mangoni ◽  
Francesco Bolinesi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Particulate Organic Matter ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Terra Nova Bay ◽  
Terra Nova

scholarly journals A comparison between polynya area and associated ice production with mooring-based measurements of temperature, salinity and currents in the southwestern Ross Sea, Antarctica

2011 ◽  
Vol 52 (57) ◽  
pp. 291-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Kern ◽  
Stefano Aliani
Keyword(s):  
Ross Sea ◽  
Time Lag ◽  
Ice Formation ◽  
Terra Nova Bay ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Satellite Microwave ◽  
Terra Nova ◽  
Ice Production ◽  
The Impact

AbstractWintertime (April–September) area estimates of the Terra Nova Bay polynya (TNBP), Antarctica, based on satellite microwave radiometry are compared with in situ observations of water salinity, temperature and currents at a mooring in Terra Nova Bay in 1996 and 1997. In 1996, polynya area anomalies and associated anomalies in polynya ice production are significantly correlated with salinity anomalies at the mooring. Salinity anomalies lag area and/or ice production anomalies by about 3 days. Up to 50% of the variability in the salinity at the mooring position can be explained by area and/or ice production anomalies in the TNBP for April–September 1996. This value increases to about 70% when considering shorter periods like April–June or May–July, but reduces to 30% later, for example July–September, together with a slight increase in time lag. In 1997, correlations are smaller, less significant and occur at a different time lag. Analysis of ocean currents at the mooring suggests that in 1996 conditions were more favourable than in 1997 for observing the impact of descending plumes of salt-enriched water formed in the polynya during ice formation on the water masses at the mooring depth.

scholarly journals An analytical model for wind-driven Arctic summer sea ice drift

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 227-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.-S. Park ◽  
A. L. Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Analytical Model ◽  
Surface Wind ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Sea Ice Concentration ◽  
Efficient Calculation ◽  
Sea Ice Drift ◽  
Wind Input ◽  
Ice Floes ◽  
Arctic Summer

Abstract. The authors present an analytical model for wind-driven free drift of sea ice that allows for an arbitrary mixture of ice and open water. The model includes an ice–ocean boundary layer with an Ekman spiral, forced by transfers of wind-input momentum both through the sea ice and directly into the open water between the ice floes. The analytical tractability of this model allows efficient calculation of the ice velocity provided that the surface wind field is known and that the ocean geostrophic velocity is relatively weak. The model predicts that variations in the ice thickness or concentration should substantially modify the rotation of the velocity between the 10 m winds, the sea ice, and the ocean. Compared to recent observational data from the first ice-tethered profiler with a velocity sensor (ITP-V), the model is able to capture the dependencies of the ice speed and the wind/ice/ocean turning angles on the wind speed. The model is used to derive responses to intensified southerlies on Arctic summer sea ice concentration, and the results are shown to compare closely with satellite observations.

scholarly journals Long-distance swimming by polar bears (Ursus maritimus) of the southern Beaufort Sea during years of extensive open water

2012 ◽  
Vol 90 (5) ◽  
pp. 663-676 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.M. Pagano ◽  
G.M. Durner ◽  
S.C. Amstrup ◽  
K.S. Simac ◽  
G.S. York
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Adult Female ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Ursus Maritimus ◽  
Polar Bears ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Gps Collars ◽  
Movement Data ◽  
Global Positioning ◽  
Ice Conditions

Polar bears ( Ursus maritimus Phipps, 1774) depend on sea ice for catching marine mammal prey. Recent sea-ice declines have been linked to reductions in body condition, survival, and population size. Reduced foraging opportunity is hypothesized to be the primary cause of sea-ice-linked declines, but the costs of travel through a deteriorated sea-ice environment also may be a factor. We used movement data from 52 adult female polar bears wearing Global Positioning System (GPS) collars, including some with dependent young, to document long-distance swimming (>50 km) by polar bears in the southern Beaufort and Chukchi seas. During 6 years (2004–2009), we identified 50 long-distance swims by 20 bears. Swim duration and distance ranged from 0.7 to 9.7 days (mean = 3.4 days) and 53.7 to 687.1 km (mean = 154.2 km), respectively. Frequency of swimming appeared to increase over the course of the study. We show that adult female polar bears and their cubs are capable of swimming long distances during periods when extensive areas of open water are present. However, long-distance swimming appears to have higher energetic demands than moving over sea ice. Our observations suggest long-distance swimming is a behavioral response to declining summer sea-ice conditions.

Copepods in spring annual sea ice at Terra Nova Bay (Ross Sea, Antarctica)

Polar Biology ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 747-758 ◽  
Author(s):  
Letterio Guglielmo ◽  
Giacomo Zagami ◽  
Vincenzo Saggiomo ◽  
Giulio Catalano ◽  
Antonia Granata
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Terra Nova Bay ◽  
Terra Nova

HERDING AGENTS THICKEN OIL SPILLS IN DRIFT ICE TO FACILITATE IN SITU BURNING: A NEW TRICK FOR AN OLD DOG1

2008 ◽  
Vol 2008 (1) ◽  
pp. 673-679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Buist ◽  
Tim Nedwed ◽  
Joe Mullin
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spills ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Us Army ◽  
Ice Coverage ◽  
Air Temperatures ◽  
Oil Spill Response ◽  
Ice Conditions

ABSTRACT In situ burning is an oil spill response option particularly suited to remote ice-covered waters. The key to effective in situ burning is thick oil slicks. In loose drift ice conditions oil spills can rapidly spread to become too thin to ignite. Fire booms can collect and keep slicks thick in open water; however, even light ice conditions make using booms challenging. A multi-year joint industry project was initiated to study oil-herding agents as an alternative to booms for thickening slicks in light ice conditions for in situ burning. Small-scale laboratory experiments were completed in 2004 and 2005 to examine the concept of using herding agents to thicken oil slicks among loose pack ice for the purpose of in situ burning. Encouraging results prompted further mid-scale testing at the US Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL), the Ohmsett facility, and the Fire Training Grounds in Prudhoe Bay, AK. The non-proprietary cold-water herder formulation used in these experiments proved effective in significantly contracting oil slicks in brash and slush ice concentrations of up to 70% ice coverage. Slicks in excess of 3 mm thick, the minimum required for ignition of weathered crude oil on water, were routinely achieved. Herded slicks were ignited, and burned equally well in both brash and slush ice conditions at air temperatures as low as −17°C. The burn efficiencies measured for the herded slicks were only slightly less than the theoretical maximums achievable for equivalent-sized, mechanically contained slicks on open water.

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