Simulated Arctic Ocean Freshwater Budgets in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries

Abstract The Arctic Ocean freshwater budgets in climate model integrations of the twentieth and twenty-first century are examined. An ensemble of six members of the Community Climate System Model version 3 (CCSM3) is used for the analysis, allowing the anthropogenically forced trends over the integration length to be assessed. Mechanisms driving trends in the budgets are diagnosed, and the implications of changes in the Arctic–North Atlantic exchange on the Labrador Sea and Greenland–Iceland–Norwegian (GIN) Seas properties are discussed. Over the twentieth and the twenty-first centuries, the Arctic freshens as a result of increased river runoff, net precipitation, and decreased ice growth. For many of the budget terms, the maximum 50-yr trends in the time series occur from approximately 1975 to 2025, suggesting that we are currently in the midst of large Arctic change. The total freshwater exchange between the Arctic and North Atlantic increases over the twentieth and twenty-first centuries with decreases in ice export more than compensated for by an increase in the liquid freshwater export. Changes in both the liquid and solid (ice) Fram Strait freshwater fluxes are transported southward by the East Greenland Current and partially removed from the GIN Seas. Nevertheless, reductions in GIN sea ice melt do result from the reduced Fram Strait transport and account for the largest term in the changing ocean surface freshwater fluxes in this region. This counteracts the increased ocean stability due to the warming climate and helps to maintain GIN sea deep-water formation.

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Response of the Atlantic Thermohaline Circulation to Increased Atmospheric CO2 in a Coupled Model

Journal of Climate ◽

10.1175/jcli3208.1 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 17 (21) ◽

pp. 4267-4279 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Aixue Hu ◽

Gerald A. Meehl ◽

Warren M. Washington ◽

Aiguo Dai

Keyword(s):

Sea Ice ◽

Heat Transport ◽

North Atlantic ◽

Thermohaline Circulation ◽

Climate Model ◽

Coupled Model ◽

The Arctic ◽

Labrador Sea ◽

Upper Ocean ◽

Gin Seas

Abstract Changes in the thermohaline circulation (THC) due to increased CO2 are important in future climate regimes. Using a coupled climate model, the Parallel Climate Model (PCM), regional responses of the THC in the North Atlantic to increased CO2 and the underlying physical processes are studied here. The Atlantic THC shows a 20-yr cycle in the control run, qualitatively agreeing with other modeling results. Compared with the control run, the simulated maximum of the Atlantic THC weakens by about 5 Sv (1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) or 14% in an ensemble of transient experiments with a 1% CO2 increase per year at the time of CO2 doubling. The weakening of the THC is accompanied by reduced poleward heat transport in the midlatitude North Atlantic. Analyses show that oceanic deep convective activity strengthens significantly in the Greenland–Iceland–Norway (GIN) Seas owing to a saltier (denser) upper ocean, but weakens in the Labrador Sea due to a fresher (lighter) upper ocean and in the south of the Denmark Strait region (SDSR) because of surface warming. The saltiness of the GIN Seas are mainly caused by an increased salty North Atlantic inflow, and reduced sea ice volume fluxes from the Arctic into this region. The warmer SDSR is induced by a reduced heat loss to the atmosphere, and a reduced sea ice flux into this region, resulting in less heat being used to melt ice. Thus, sea ice–related salinity effects appear to be more important in the GIN Seas, but sea ice–melt-related thermal effects seem to be more important in the SDSR region. On the other hand, the fresher Labrador Sea is mainly attributed to increased precipitation. These regional changes produce the overall weakening of the THC in the Labrador Sea and SDSR, and more vigorous ocean overturning in the GIN Seas. The northward heat transport south of 60°N is reduced with increased CO2, but increased north of 60°N due to the increased flow of North Atlantic water across this latitude.

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Export of Arctic freshwater components through the Fram Strait 1998–2010

Ocean Science Discussions ◽

10.5194/osd-9-2749-2012 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 9 (4) ◽

pp. 2749-2792

Author(s):

B. Rabe ◽

P. Dodd ◽

E. Hansen ◽

E. Falck ◽

U. Schauer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

The Arctic ◽

Ice Formation ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Pacific Water ◽

Ice Melt ◽

The North ◽

Beaufort Gyre ◽

The Pacific ◽

The Arctic Ocean

Abstract. The East Greenland Current in the Western Fram Strait is an important pathway for liquid freshwater export from the Arctic Ocean to the Nordic Seas and the North Atlantic subpolar gyre. We analysed five hydrographic surveys and data from moored current meters around 79° N in the Western Fram Strait between 1998 and 2010. To estimate the composition of southward liquid freshwater transports, inventories of liquid freshwater and components from Dodd et al. (2012) were combined with transport estimates from an inverse model between 10.6° W and 4° E. The southward liquid freshwater transports through the section averaged to 92 mSv (2900 km3 yr−1), relative to a salinity of 34.9. The transports consisted of 123 mSv water from rivers and precipitation (meteoric water), 28 mSv freshwater from the Pacific and 60 mSv freshwater deficit due to brine from ice formation. Variability in liquid freshwater and component transports appear to have been partly due to advection of these water masses to the Fram Strait and partly due to variations in the local volume transport; an exception are Pacific Water transports, which showed little co-variability with volume transports. An increase in Pacific Water transports from 2005 to 2010 suggests a release of Pacific Water from the Beaufort Gyre, in line with an observed expansion of Pacific Water towards the Eurasian Basin. The co-variability of meteoric water and brine from ice formation suggests joint processes in the main sea ice formation regions on the Arctic Ocean shelves. In addition, enhanced levels of sea ice melt observed in 2009 likely led to reduced transports of brine from ice formation. At least part of this additional ice melt appears to have been advected from the Beaufort Gyre and from north of the Bering Strait towards the Fram Strait. The observed changes in liquid freshwater component transports are much larger than known trends in the Arctic liquid freshwater inflow from rivers and the Pacific. Instead, recent observations of an increased storage of liquid freshwater in the Arctic Ocean suggest a decreased export of liquid freshwater. This raises the question how fast the accumulated liquid freshwater will be exported from the Arctic Ocean to the deep water formation regions in the North Atlantic and if an increased export will occur through the Fram Strait.

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Circulation timescales of Atlantic Waters in the Arctic Ocean determined from anthropogenic radionuclides

10.5194/os-2020-82 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Anne-Marie Wefing ◽

Núria Casacuberta ◽

Marcus Christl ◽

Nicolas Gruber ◽

John N. Smith

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

Ocean Basin ◽

The Arctic ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Anthropogenic Radionuclides ◽

Artificial Radionuclides ◽

East Greenland Current ◽

The Arctic Ocean ◽

Lateral Mixing ◽

Binary Mixing

Abstract. The inflow of Atlantic Waters to the Arctic Ocean is a crucial determinant for the future trajectory of this ocean basin with regard to warming, loss of sea-ice and ocean acidification. Yet many details of the fate and circulation of these waters within the Arctic remain unclear. Here, we use the two long-lived artificial radionuclides 129I and 236U together with two tracer age models to constrain the pathways and circulation times of Atlantic waters in the surface and in the mid-depth Atlantic layer (250–800 m depth). We thereby benefit from the unique time-dependent tagging of Atlantic waters by these two isotopes. In the surface layer, a binary mixing model yields tracer ages of Atlantic Waters between 9–16 years in the Amundsen Basin, 12–17 years in the Fram Strait (East Greenland Current) and up to 20 years in the Canada Basin, reflecting the pathways of Atlantic Waters through the Arctic and their exiting through Fram Strait. In the mid-depth Atlantic layer (250 to 800 m), the transit time distribution (TTD) model yields mean ages in the central Arctic ranging between 15 and 65 years, while the mode ages representing the most probable ages of the TTD range between 2 and 30 years. The estimated mean ages are overall in good agreement with previous studies using artificial radionuclides or ventilation tracers. Although we find the overall flow to be dominated by advection, the shift of the mode age towards a younger age compared to the mean age reflects also the presence of a substantial amount of lateral mixing. For applications interested in how fast signals are transported into the Arctic's interior, the mode age appears to be a suitable measure. The short mode ages obtained in this study suggest that changes in the properties of Atlantic Waters will quickly spread through the Arctic Ocean and can lead to relatively rapid changes throughout the upper water column in future years.

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Circulation timescales of Atlantic Water in the Arctic Ocean determined from anthropogenic radionuclides

Ocean Science ◽

10.5194/os-17-111-2021 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 111-129

Author(s):

Anne-Marie Wefing ◽

Núria Casacuberta ◽

Marcus Christl ◽

Nicolas Gruber ◽

John N. Smith

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

Atlantic Water ◽

Ocean Basin ◽

The Arctic ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Anthropogenic Radionuclides ◽

East Greenland Current ◽

The Arctic Ocean ◽

Lateral Mixing ◽

Binary Mixing

Abstract. The inflow of Atlantic Water to the Arctic Ocean is a crucial determinant for the future trajectory of this ocean basin with regard to warming, loss of sea ice, and ocean acidification. Yet many details of the fate and circulation of these waters within the Arctic remain unclear. Here, we use the two long-lived anthropogenic radionuclides 129I and 236U together with two age models to constrain the pathways and circulation times of Atlantic Water in the surface (10–35 m depth) and in the mid-depth Atlantic layer (250–800 m depth). We thereby benefit from the unique time-dependent tagging of Atlantic Water by these two isotopes. In the surface layer, a binary mixing model yields tracer ages of Atlantic Water between 9–16 years in the Amundsen Basin, 12–17 years in the Fram Strait (East Greenland Current), and up to 20 years in the Canada Basin, reflecting the pathways of Atlantic Water through the Arctic and their exiting through the Fram Strait. In the mid-depth Atlantic layer (250–800 m), the transit time distribution (TTD) model yields mean ages in the central Arctic ranging between 15 and 55 years, while the mode ages representing the most probable ages of the TTD range between 3 and 30 years. The estimated mean ages are overall in good agreement with previous studies using artificial radionuclides or ventilation tracers. Although we find the overall flow to be dominated by advection, the shift in the mode age towards a younger age compared to the mean age also reflects the presence of a substantial amount of lateral mixing. For applications interested in how fast signals are transported into the Arctic's interior, the mode age appears to be a suitable measure. The short mode ages obtained in this study suggest that changes in the properties of Atlantic Water will quickly spread through the Arctic Ocean and can lead to relatively rapid changes throughout the upper water column in future years.

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Does the East Greenland Current exist in the northern Fram Strait?

Ocean Science ◽

10.5194/os-14-1147-2018 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 14 (5) ◽

pp. 1147-1165 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Maren Elisabeth Richter ◽

Wilken-Jon von Appen ◽

Claudia Wekerle

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

Atlantic Water ◽

Shelf Break ◽

The Arctic ◽

Current Loop ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Boundary Current ◽

East Greenland ◽

East Greenland Current ◽

The Arctic Ocean

Abstract. Warm Atlantic Water (AW) flows around the Nordic Seas in a cyclonic boundary current loop. Some AW enters the Arctic Ocean where it is transformed to Arctic Atlantic Water (AAW) before exiting through the Fram Strait. There the AAW is joined by recirculating AW. Here we present the first summer synoptic study targeted at resolving this confluence in the Fram Strait which forms the East Greenland Current (EGC). Absolute geostrophic velocities and hydrography from observations in 2016, including four sections crossing the east Greenland shelf break, are compared to output from an eddy-resolving configuration of the sea ice–ocean model FESOM. Far offshore (120 km at 80.8∘ N) AW warmer than 2 ∘C is found in the northern Fram Strait. The Arctic Ocean outflow there is broad and barotropic, but gets narrower and more baroclinic toward the south as recirculating AW increases the cross-shelf-break density gradient. This barotropic to baroclinic transition appears to form the well-known EGC boundary current flowing along the shelf break farther south where it has been previously described. In this realization, between 80.2 and 76.5∘ N, the southward transport along the east Greenland shelf break increases from roughly 1 Sv to about 4 Sv and the proportion of AW to AAW also increases fourfold from 19±8 % to 80±3 %. Consequently, in the southern Fram Strait, AW can propagate into the Norske Trough on the east Greenland shelf and reach the large marine-terminating glaciers there. High instantaneous variability observed in both the synoptic data and the model output is attributed to eddies, the representation of which is crucial as they mediate the westward transport of AW in the recirculation and thus structure the confluence forming the EGC.

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Arctic Ocean and Hudson Bay Freshwater Exports: New Estimates from Seven Decades of Hydrographic Surveys on the Labrador Shelf

Journal of Climate ◽

10.1175/jcli-d-19-0083.1 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 33 (20) ◽

pp. 8849-8868 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Cristian Florindo-López ◽

Sheldon Bacon ◽

Yevgeny Aksenov ◽

Léon Chafik ◽

Eugene Colbourne ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

North Atlantic ◽

Decadal Variability ◽

The Arctic ◽

Coastal Current ◽

Hudson Bay ◽

Control Mechanisms ◽

Similar Time ◽

Freshwater Fluxes ◽

Freshwater Export

AbstractWhile reasonable knowledge of multidecadal Arctic freshwater storage variability exists, we have little knowledge of Arctic freshwater exports on similar time scales. A hydrographic time series from the Labrador Shelf, spanning seven decades at annual resolution, is here used to quantify Arctic Ocean freshwater export variability west of Greenland. Output from a high-resolution coupled ice–ocean model is used to establish the representativeness of those hydrographic sections. Clear annual to decadal variability emerges, with high freshwater transports during the 1950s and 1970s–80s, and low transports in the 1960s and from the mid-1990s to 2016, with typical amplitudes of 30 mSv (1 Sv = 106 m3 s−1). The variability in both the transports and cumulative volumes correlates well both with Arctic and North Atlantic freshwater storage changes on the same time scale. We refer to the “inshore branch” of the Labrador Current as the Labrador Coastal Current, because it is a dynamically and geographically distinct feature. It originates as the Hudson Bay outflow, and preserves variability from river runoff into the Hudson Bay catchment. We find a need for parallel, long-term freshwater transport measurements from Fram and Davis Straits to better understand Arctic freshwater export control mechanisms and partitioning of variability between routes west and east of Greenland, and a need for better knowledge and understanding of year-round (solid and liquid) freshwater fluxes on the Labrador shelf. Our results have implications for wider, coherent atmospheric control on freshwater fluxes and content across the Arctic Ocean and northern North Atlantic Ocean.

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Does the East Greenland Current exist in northern Fram Strait?

10.5194/os-2018-54 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Maren Elisabeth Richter ◽

Wilken-Jon von Appen ◽

Claudia Wekerle

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

Atlantic Water ◽

Ocean Model ◽

The Arctic ◽

Current Loop ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Boundary Current ◽

East Greenland ◽

East Greenland Current ◽

The Arctic Ocean

Abstract. Warm Atlantic Water (AW) flows around the Nordic Seas in a cyclonic boundary current loop. Some AW enters the Arctic Ocean where it is transformed to Arctic Atlantic Water (AAW) before exiting through Fram Strait. There the AAW is joined by recirculating AW. Here we present the first summer synoptic study targeted at resolving this confluence in Fram Strait which forms the East Greenland Current (EGC). Absolute geostrophic velocities and hydrography from observations in 2016, including four sections crossing the east Greenland shelfbreak, are compared to output from an eddy-resolving configuration of the sea–ice ocean model FESOM. Far offshore (120 km at 80.8° N) AW warmer than 2 °C is found in northern Fram Strait. The Arctic Ocean outflow there is broad and barotropic, but gets narrower and more baroclinic toward the south as recirculating AW increases the cross-shelfbreak density gradient. This barotropic to baroclinic transition appears to form the well-known EGC boundary current flowing along the shelfbreak further south where it has been previously described. In this realization, between 80.2° N and 76.5° N, the southward transport along the east Greenland shelfbreak increases from roughly 1 Sv to about 4 Sv and the warm water composition, defined as the fraction of AW of the sum of AW and AAW (AW/(AW + AAW)), changes from 19 ± 8 % to 80 ± 3 %. Consequently, in southern Fram Strait, AW can propagate into Norske Trough on the east Greenland shelf and reach the large marine terminating glaciers there. High instantaneous variability observed in both the synoptic data and the model output is attributed to eddies, the representation of which is crucial as they mediate the westward transport of AW in the recirculation and thus structure the confluence forming the EGC.

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Liquid export of Arctic freshwater components through the Fram Strait 1998–2011

Ocean Science ◽

10.5194/os-9-91-2013 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 91-109 ◽

Cited By ~ 34

Author(s):

B. Rabe ◽

P. A. Dodd ◽

E. Hansen ◽

E. Falck ◽

U. Schauer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sea Ice ◽

Arctic Ocean ◽

Meteoric Water ◽

The Arctic ◽

Ice Formation ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Pacific Water ◽

Ice Melt ◽

The North ◽

The Arctic Ocean

Abstract. We estimated the magnitude and composition of southward liquid freshwater transports in the East Greenland Current near 79° N in the Western Fram Strait between 1998 and 2011. Previous studies have found this region to be an important pathway for liquid freshwater export from the Arctic Ocean to the Nordic Seas and the North Atlantic subpolar gyre. Our transport estimates are based on six hydrographic surveys between June and September and concurrent data from moored current meters. We combined concentrations of liquid freshwater, meteoric water (river water and precipitation), sea ice melt and brine from sea ice formation, and Pacific Water, presented in Dodd et al. (2012), with volume transport estimates from an inverse model. The average of the monthly snapshots of southward liquid freshwater transports between 10.6° W and 4° E is 100 ± 23 mSv (3160 ± 730 km3 yr−1), relative to a salinity of 34.9. This liquid freshwater transport consists of about 130% water from rivers and precipitation (meteoric water), 30% freshwater from the Pacific, and −60% (freshwater deficit) due to a mixture of sea ice melt and brine from sea ice formation. Pacific Water transports showed the highest variation in time, effectively vanishing in some of the surveys. Comparison of our results to the literature indicates that this was due to atmospherically driven variability in the advection of Pacific Water along different pathways through the Arctic Ocean. Variations in most liquid freshwater component transports appear to have been most strongly influenced by changes in the advection of these water masses to the Fram Strait. However, the local dynamics represented by the volume transports influenced the liquid freshwater component transports in individual years, in particular those of sea ice melt and brine from sea ice formation. Our results show a similar ratio of the transports of meteoric water and net sea ice melt as previous studies. However, we observed a significant increase in this ratio between the surveys in 1998 and in 2009. This can be attributed to higher concentrations of sea ice melt in 2009 that may have been due to enhanced advection of freshwater from the Beaufort Gyre to the Fram Strait. Known trends and variability in the Arctic liquid freshwater inflow from rivers are not likely to have had a significant influence on the variation of liquid freshwater component transports between our surveys. On the other hand, known freshwater inflow variability from the Pacific could have caused some of the variation we observed in the Fram Strait. The apparent absence of a trend in southward liquid freshwater transports through the Fram Strait and recent evidence of an increase in liquid freshwater storage in the Arctic Ocean raise the question: how fast will the accumulated liquid freshwater be exported from the Arctic Ocean to the deep water formation regions in the North Atlantic and will an increased export occur through the Fram Strait.

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Recirculation in the Fram Strait and transports of water in and north of the Fram Strait derived from CTD data

Ocean Science ◽

10.5194/os-9-499-2013 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 9 (3) ◽

pp. 499-519 ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

M. Marnela ◽

B. Rudels ◽

M.-N. Houssais ◽

A. Beszczynska-Möller ◽

P. B. Eriksson

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

Atlantic Water ◽

The Arctic ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Volume Flux ◽

Heat Temperature ◽

Ice Melt ◽

Freshwater Transport ◽

The Arctic Ocean ◽

The Mean

Abstract. The volume, heat and freshwater transports in the Fram Strait are estimated from geostrophic computations based on summer hydrographic data from 1984, 1997, 2002 and 2004. In these years, in addition to the usually sampled section along 79° N, a section between Greenland and Svalbard was sampled further north. Quasi-closed boxes bounded by the two sections and Greenland and Svalbard can then be formed. Applying conservation constraints on these boxes provides barotropic reference velocities. The net volume flux is southward and varies between 2 and 4 Sv. The recirculation of Atlantic water is about 2 Sv. Heat is lost to the atmosphere and the heat loss from the area between the sections averaged over the four years is about 10 TW. The net heat (temperature) transport is 20 TW northward into the Arctic Ocean, with large interannual differences. The mean net freshwater added between the sections is 40 mSv and the mean freshwater transport southward across 79° N is less than 60 mSv, indicating that most of the liquid freshwater leaving the Arctic Ocean through Fram Strait in summer is derived from sea ice melt in the northern vicinity of the strait. In 1997, 2001 and 2003 meridional sections along 0° longitude were sampled and in 2003 two smaller boxes can be formed, and the recirculation of Atlantic water in the strait is estimated by geostrophic computations and continuity constraints. The recirculation is weaker close to 80° N than close to 78° N, indicating that the recirculation is mainly confined to the south of 80° N. This is supported by the observations in 1997 and 2001, when only the northern part of the meridional section, from 79° N to 80° N, can be computed with the constraints applied. The recirculation is found strongest close to 79° N.

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Coupled evolution of tectonic, ocean circulations, and depositional regime in the southeastern Amundsen Basin

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-5190 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Estella Weigelt ◽

Christoph Gaedicke ◽

Wilfried Jokat

Keyword(s):

Arctic Ocean ◽

Ocean Circulation ◽

North Atlantic ◽

Middle Eocene ◽

The Arctic ◽

Circulation System ◽

Time Interval ◽

Fram Strait ◽

Acoustic Basement ◽

The Arctic Ocean

The Lomonosov Ridge (LR) and Fram Strait (FR) represent prominent morphologic features in the Arctic Ocean. Their tectonic evolution control ocean circulation, sedimentation environment, glacial processes and ecosystem through time. We present findings of a 300 km long seismic transect from the Gakkel Deep through the southeastern Amundsen Basin (AB), and onto the LR. The data image an up to 3 km thick sedimentary sequence that can be subdivided into six major seismic units.The two lower units AB-1 and AB-2 consist of syn-rift sediments of Paleocene to early Eocene age likely eroded off the Barents-Kara and Laptev Sea shelves, and the subsiding LR.AB-2 includes the time interval of the &#8220;Azolla event,&#8221; which is regarded as an era of a warm Arctic Ocean punctuated by episodic incursions of fresh water. The connection to North Atlantic waters via the Fram Strait was not yet established, and anoxic conditions prevailed in the young, still isolated Eurasian Basin. Also, the LR still was above or close to sea level and posed an obstacle for water exchange between the Eurasian and Amerasian basins.The top of AB-2 onlaps the acoustic basement at magnetic anomaly C21o (&#8764;47.3 Ma). Its contact with unit AB-3 above is marked by a striking loss in reflection amplitudes. This prominent interface can be traced through the AB, indicating widespread changes in tectonic and deposition conditions in the Arctic Ocean since the middle Eocene. For younger crust the depth of acoustic basement rises significantly, as well as the deformation of the surface. Both are probably linked to a reorganization of tectonic plates accompanied by a significant decrease in spreading rates.Units AB-3 and AB-4 indicate the accumulation of sediments between the middle Eocene and the earliest Miocene. Erosional, channel-like interruptions indicate these layers to reflect the stage when Fram Strait opened and continuously deepened. Incursions of water masses from the North Atlantic probably led to first bottom currents and produced erosion, slumping, and subsequent mixing of deposits.The upper units AB-5 to AB-6 show reflection characteristics and thicknesses similar all over the Arctic Ocean indicating that basin-wide pelagic sedimentation prevailed at least since late Oligocene. Drift bodies, sediment waves, and erosional structures indicate the onset of a modern ocean circulation system and bottom current activity in the early Miocene in the Amundsen Basin. At that time, the FR was developed widely, and also the LR no longer posed an obstacle between the Amerasia and Eurasia Basins. Lastly, unit AB-6 indicates pronounced variations in the sedimentary layers, and is associated with the onset of glacio-marine deposition since the Pliocene (5.3 Ma).

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