scholarly journals Deep-sea megabenthos communities of the Eurasian Central Arctic are influenced by ice-cover and sea-ice algal falls

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rybakova Elena ◽  
Kremenetskaia Antonina ◽  
Vedenin Andrey ◽  
Boetius Antje ◽  
Gebruk Andrey
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Food Supply ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The North ◽  
Composition And Structure ◽  
Porewater Nutrients ◽  
Density And Biomass

AbstractQuantitative camera surveys of benthic megafauna were carried out during the expedition ARK-XXVII/3 to the Eastern Central Arctic basins with the research icebreaker Polarstern in summer 2012 (2 August-29 September). Nine transects were performed for the first time in deep-sea areas previously fully covered by ice, four of them in the Nansen Basin (3571-4066m) and five in the Amundsen Basin (4041-4384m). At seven of these stations benthic Agassiz trawls were taken near the camera tracks for species identification. The observed Arctic deep-sea megafauna was largely endemic. Several taxa showed a substantially greater depth or geographical range than previously assumed. Variations in the composition and structure of megabenthic communities were analysed and linked to several environmental variables, including state of the sea ice and phytodetritus supply to the seafloor. Three different types of communities were identified based on species dominating the biomass. Among these species were the actiniarian Bathyphellia margaritacea and the holothurians Elpidia heckeri and Kolga hyalina. Variations in megafaunal abundance were first of all related to the proximity to the marginal ice zone. Stations located closer to this zone were characterized by relatively high densities and biomass of B. margaritacea (mean 0.2-1.7 ind m-2; 0.2-1.5 g ww.m-2). The food supply was higher at these stations, as suggested by enhanced concentrations of pigments, organic carbon, bacterial cell abundances and porewater nutrients in the sediments. The fully ice-covered stations closer to the North Pole and partially under multi-year ice were characterized by lower concentrations of the same biogeochemical indicators for food supply. These stations nevertheless hosted relatively high density and biomass of the holothurians E. heckeri (mean 0.9-1.5 ind m-2; 0.3-0.4 g ww.m-2) or K. hyalina (mean 0.004-1.7 ind m-2; 0.01-3.5 g ww.m-2), which were observed to feed on large food falls of the sea-ice colonial diatom Melosira arctica. The link between the community structure of megafauna and the extent and condition of the Central Arctic sea-ice cover suggests that future climate changes may substantially affect deep ocean biodiversity.

Erratum to: An interannual link between Arctic sea-ice cover and the North Atlantic Oscillation

2017 ◽  
Vol 50 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 443-443 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mihaela Caian ◽  
Torben Koenigk ◽  
Ralf Döscher ◽  
Abhay Devasthale
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
North Atlantic Oscillation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The North ◽  
Arctic Sea ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
The North Atlantic Oscillation

scholarly journals Impact of a Reduced Arctic Sea Ice Cover on Ocean and Atmospheric Properties

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 307-319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Sedláček ◽  
Reto Knutti ◽  
Olivia Martius ◽  
Urs Beyerle
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Arctic Basin ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
Storm Tracks ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
The North ◽  
Arctic Sea ◽  
The North Atlantic

Abstract The Arctic sea ice cover declined over the last few decades and reached a record minimum in 2007, with a slight recovery thereafter. Inspired by this the authors investigate the response of atmospheric and oceanic properties to a 1-yr period of reduced sea ice cover. Two ensembles of equilibrium and transient simulations are produced with the Community Climate System Model. A sea ice change is induced through an albedo change of 1 yr. The sea ice area and thickness recover in both ensembles after 3 and 5 yr, respectively. The sea ice anomaly leads to changes in ocean temperature and salinity to a depth of about 200 m in the Arctic Basin. Further, the salinity and temperature changes in the surface layer trigger a “Great Salinity Anomaly” in the North Atlantic that takes roughly 8 yr to travel across the North Atlantic back to high latitudes. In the atmosphere the changes induced by the sea ice anomaly do not last as long as in the ocean. The response in the transient and equilibrium simulations, while similar overall, differs in specific regional and temporal details. The surface air temperature increases over the Arctic Basin and the anomaly extends through the whole atmospheric column, changing the geopotential height fields and thus the storm tracks. The patterns of warming and thus the position of the geopotential height changes vary in the two ensembles. While the equilibrium simulation shifts the storm tracks to the south over the eastern North Atlantic and Europe, the transient simulation shifts the storm tracks south over the western North Atlantic and North America. The authors propose that the overall reduction in sea ice cover is important for producing ocean anomalies; however, for atmospheric anomalies the regional location of the sea ice anomalies is more important. While observed trends in Arctic sea ice are large and exceed those simulated by comprehensive climate models, there is little evidence based on this particular model that the seasonal loss of sea ice (e.g., as occurred in 2007) would constitute a threshold after which the Arctic would exhibit nonlinear, irreversible, or strongly accelerated sea ice loss. Caution should be exerted when extrapolating short-term trends to future sea ice behavior.

scholarly journals An interannual link between Arctic sea-ice cover and the North Atlantic Oscillation

2017 ◽  
Vol 50 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 423-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mihaela Caian ◽  
Torben Koenigk ◽  
Ralf Döscher ◽  
Abhay Devasthale
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
North Atlantic Oscillation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The North ◽  
Arctic Sea ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
The North Atlantic Oscillation

scholarly journals Recent changes in pan-Arctic sea ice, lake ice, and snow-on/off timing

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 4781-4805
Author(s):  
Alicia A. Dauginis ◽  
Laura C. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Climatic Change ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Regional Variability ◽  
Lake Ice ◽  
The North ◽  
Snow And Ice

Abstract. Arctic snow and ice cover are vital indicators of climate variability and change, yet while the Arctic shows overall warming and dramatic changes in snow and ice cover, the response of these high-latitude regions to recent climatic change varies regionally. Although previous studies have examined changing snow and ice separately, examining phenology changes across multiple components of the cryosphere together is important for understanding how these components and their response to climate forcing are interconnected. In this work, we examine recent changes in sea ice, lake ice, and snow together at the pan-Arctic scale using the Interactive Multisensor Snow and Ice Mapping System 24 km product from 1997–2019, with a more detailed regional examination from 2004–2019 using the 4 km product. We show overall that for sea ice, trends toward earlier open water (−7.7 d per decade, p<0.05) and later final freeze (10.6 d per decade, p<0.05) are evident. Trends toward earlier first snow-off (−4.9 d per decade, p<0.05), combined with trends toward earlier first snow-on (−2.8 d per decade, p<0.05), lead to almost no change in the length of the snow-free season, despite shifting earlier in the year. Sea ice-off, lake ice-off, and snow-off parameters were significantly correlated, with stronger correlations during the snow-off and ice-off season compared to the snow-on and ice-on season. Regionally, the Bering and Chukchi seas show the most pronounced response to warming, with the strongest trends identified toward earlier ice-off and later ice-on. This is consistent with earlier snow-off and lake ice-off and later snow-on and lake ice-on in west and southwest Alaska. In contrast to this, significant clustering between sea ice, lake ice, and snow-on trends in the eastern portion of the North American Arctic shows an earlier return of snow and ice. The marked regional variability in snow and ice phenology across the pan-Arctic highlights the complex relationships between snow and ice, as well as their response to climatic change, and warrants detailed monitoring to understand how different regions of the Arctic are responding to ongoing changes.

scholarly journals A 21 year record of Arctic sea-ice extents and their regional, seasonal and monthly variability and trends

2002 ◽  
Vol 34 ◽  
pp. 441-446 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire L. Parkinson ◽  
Donald J. Cavalieri
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Arctic Ocean ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Monthly Basis ◽  
The North ◽  
Yearly Average ◽  
The Arctic Ocean ◽  
North Polar

AbstractSatellite passive-microwave data have been used to calculate sea-ice extents over the period 1979–99 for the north polar sea-ice cover as a whole and for each of nine regions. Over this 21 year time period, the trend in yearly-average ice extents for the ice cover as a whole is –32 900±6100 km2 a–1 (–2.7 ±0.5% per decade), indicating a statistically significant reduction in sea-ice coverage. Regionally, the reductions are greatest in the Arctic Ocean, the Kara and Barents Seas and the Seas of Okhotsk and Japan; and seasonally, the reductions are greatest in summer, for which season the 1979–99 trend in ice extents is –41600±12 900 km2 a–1 (–4.9±1.5% per decade). On a monthly basis, the reductions are greatest in July and September for the north polar ice cover as a whole, in September for the Arctic Ocean, in June and July for the Kara and Barents Seas, and in April for the Seas of Okhotsk and Japan. Of the nine regions, only the Bering Sea and the Gulf of St Lawrence show positive ice-extent trends on a yearly-average basis. However, the increases in these two regions are not statistically significant. For the north polar region as a whole, and for the Arctic Ocean, the Seas of Okhotsk and Japan, and Hudson Bay, the negative trends in the yearly averages are statistically significant at a 99% confidence level.

scholarly journals Ice mass-balance buoys: a tool for measuring and attributing changes in the thickness of the Arctic sea-ice cover

2006 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 205-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline A. Richter-Menge ◽  
Donald K. Perovich ◽  
Bruce C. Elder ◽  
Keran Claffey ◽  
Ignatius Rigor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
North Pole ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Central Basin ◽  
The North ◽  
Arctic Sea ◽  
Ice Mass Balance

AbstractRecent observational and modeling studies indicate that the Arctic sea-ice cover is undergoing significant climate-induced changes, affecting both its extent and thickness. The thickness or, more precisely, the mass balance of the ice cover is a key climate-change indicator since it is an integrator of both the surface heat budget and the ocean heat flux. Accordingly, efforts are underway to develop and deploy in situ observing systems which, when combined with satellite remote-sensing information and numerical models, can effectively monitor and attribute changes in the mass balance of the Arctic sea-ice cover. As part of this effort, we have developed an autonomous ice mass-balance buoy (IMB), which is equipped with sensors to measure snow accumulation and ablation, ice growth and melt, and internal ice temperature, plus a satellite transmitter. The IMB is unique in its ability to determine whether changes in the thickness of the ice cover occur at the top or bottom of the ice cover, and hence provide insight into the driving forces behind the change. Since 2000, IMBs have been deployed each spring from the North Pole Environmental Observatory and in several other areas, including a few in the Beaufort Sea and Central Basin. At this point, the collective time series is too short to draw significant and specific conclusions regarding interannual and regional variability in ice mass balance. Comparisons of available data indicate that ice surface ablation is greater in the Beaufort region (67–80 cm), relative to the North Pole (0–30 cm), consistent with a longer period of melt in the more southerly location. Ablation at the bottom of the ice (22 cm), maximum ice thickness (235 cm) and maximum snow depth (28 cm) were comparable in the two regions.

Sunlight, Sea Ice, and the Ice Albedo Feedback in a Changing Arctic Sea Ice Cover

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Don Perovich ◽  
Bonnie Light
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
Albedo Feedback ◽  
Arctic Sea

scholarly journals Thinner Sea Ice Contribution to the Remarkable Polynya Formation North of Greenland in August 2018

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyi Shen ◽  
Chang-Qing Ke ◽  
Bin Cheng ◽  
Wentao Xia ◽  
Mengmeng Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Reanalysis Data ◽  
Mean Value ◽  
Ocean Model ◽  
North Coast ◽  
Average Value ◽  
The North ◽  
Wind Sea ◽  
The One

AbstractIn August 2018, a remarkable polynya was observed off the north coast of Greenland, a perennial ice zone where thick sea ice cover persists. In order to investigate the formation process of this polynya, satellite observations, a coupled ice-ocean model, ocean profiling data, and atmosphere reanalysis data were applied. We found that the thinnest sea ice cover in August since 1978 (mean value of 1.1 m, compared to the average value of 2.8 m during 1978–2017) and the modest southerly wind caused by a positive North Atlantic Oscillation (mean value of 0.82, compared to the climatological value of −0.02) were responsible for the formation and maintenance of this polynya. The opening mechanism of this polynya differs from the one formed in February 2018 in the same area caused by persistent anomalously high wind. Sea ice drift patterns have become more responsive to the atmospheric forcing due to thinning of sea ice cover in this region.

scholarly journals Polar cod in jeopardy under the retreating Arctic sea ice

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mats Brockstedt Olsen Huserbråten ◽  
Elena Eriksen ◽  
Harald Gjøsæter ◽  
Frode Vikebø
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Barents Sea ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
Biophysical Model ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Polar Cod ◽  
Arctic Sea ◽  
Shelf Sea

Abstract The Arctic amplification of global warming is causing the Arctic-Atlantic ice edge to retreat at unprecedented rates. Here we show how variability and change in sea ice cover in the Barents Sea, the largest shelf sea of the Arctic, affect the population dynamics of a keystone species of the ice-associated food web, the polar cod (Boreogadus saida). The data-driven biophysical model of polar cod early life stages assembled here predicts a strong mechanistic link between survival and variation in ice cover and temperature, suggesting imminent recruitment collapse should the observed ice-reduction and heating continue. Backtracking of drifting eggs and larvae from observations also demonstrates a northward retreat of one of two clearly defined spawning assemblages, possibly in response to warming. With annual to decadal ice-predictions under development the mechanistic physical-biological links presented here represent a powerful tool for making long-term predictions for the propagation of polar cod stocks.

scholarly journals Low-frequency bursts of horizontally polarized waves in the Arctic sea-ice cover

2011 ◽  
Vol 57 (202) ◽  
pp. 231-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Marsan ◽  
Jérôme Weiss ◽  
Jean-Philippe Métaxian ◽  
Jacques Grangeon ◽  
Pierre-François Roux ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Strong Activity ◽  
Temporal Sampling ◽  
Polarized Waves ◽  
Arctic Sea

AbstractWe report the detection of bursts of low-frequency waves, typically f = 0.025 Hz, on horizontal channels of broadband seismometers deployed on the Arctic sea-ice cover during the DAMOCLES (Developing Arctic Modeling and Observing Capabilities for Long-term Environmental Studies) experiment in spring 2007. These bursts have amplitudes well above the ambient ice swell and a lower frequency content. Their typical duration is of the order of minutes. They occur at irregular times, with periods of relative quietness alternating with periods of strong activity. A significant correlation between the rate of burst occurrences and the ice-cover deformation at the ∼400 km scale centered on the seismic network suggests that these bursts are caused by remote, episodic deformation involving shearing across regional-scale leads. This observation opens the possibility of complementing satellite measurements of ice-cover deformation, by providing a much more precise temporal sampling, hence a better characterization of the processes involved during these deformation events.

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