scholarly journals THE IMPACT OF HIGH LATITUDE CLIMATE MODES ON ANTARCTIC SEA ICE

2004 ◽  
Vol 68 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaojun Yuan
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
High Latitude ◽  
Climate Modes ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals Low-Frequency Climate Modes and Antarctic Sea Ice Variations, 1982–2013

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Cerrone ◽  
G. Fusco
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Southern Annular Mode ◽  
Meridional Wind ◽  
Climate Indices ◽  
Sea Ice Concentration ◽  
Climate Modes ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
Zonal Wavenumber ◽  
The Impact

Abstract The NCEP–NCAR composite dataset (comprising sea level pressure, 500-hPa geopotential height, 500-hPa temperature, and meridional wind stress at 10 m above the surface) is used for compiling a set of climate indices describing the most important physical modes of variability in the Southern Hemisphere (SH): the southern annular mode (SAM), semiannual oscillation (SAO), Pacific–South American (PSA), and quasi-stationary zonal wavenumber 3 (ZW3) patterns. Compelling evidence indicates that the large increase in the SH sea ice, recorded over recent years, arises from the impact of climate modes and their long-term trends. The examination of variability ranging from seasonal to interdecadal scales, and of trends within the climate patterns and total Antarctic sea ice concentration (SIC) for the 32-yr period (1982–2013), is the key focus of this paper. The results herein indicate that a progressive cooling has affected the year-to-year climate of the sub-Antarctic since the 1990s. This feature is found in association with increased positive SAM and SAO phases detected in terms of upward annual and seasonal trends (in autumn and summer) and upward decadal trends. In addition, the SIC shows upward annual, spring, and summer trends, indicating the insulation of Antarctica from the warmer flows in the midlatitudes. This picture of variations is also found to be consistent with the upward trends detected for the PSA and ZW3 patterns on the annual scale and during the last two decades. Evidence of a more frequent occurrence of the PSA–ZW3 combination could explain, in part, the significant increase of the regional and total Antarctic sea ice coverages.

scholarly journals Brief communication: lack of agreement in remote sensing detection of cyclonic drift caused by Atlantic weather in Antarctic sea ice

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wayne de Jager ◽  
Marcello Vichi
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Sea Ice Concentration ◽  
Sea Ice Extent ◽  
Ice Dynamics ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
Ice Drift ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Sea-ice extent variability, a measure based on satellite-derived sea ice concentration measurements, has traditionally been used as an essential climate variable to evaluate the impact of climate change on polar regions. However, concentration- based measurements of ice variability do not allow to discriminate the relative contributions made by thermodynamic and dynamic processes, prompting the need to use sea-ice drift products and develop alternative methods to quantify changes in sea ice dynamics that would indicate trends in Antarctic ice characteristics. Here, we present a new method to automate the detection of rotational drift features in Antarctic sea ice at daily timescales using currently available remote sensing ice motion products from EUMETSAT OSI SAF. Results show that there is a large discrepancy in the detection of cyclonic drift features between products, both in terms of intensity and year-to-year distributions, thus diminishing the confidence at which ice drift variability can be further analysed. Product comparisons showed that there was good agreement in detecting anticyclonic drift, and cyclonic drift features were measured to be 1.5–2.2 times more intense than anticyclonic features. The most intense features were detected by the merged product, suggesting that the processing chain used for this product could be injecting additional rotational momentum into the resultant drift vectors. We conclude that it is therefore necessary to better understand why the products lack agreement before further trend analysis of these drift features and their climatic significance can be assessed.

A circumpolar coupled ocean – Antarctic ice sheet configuration for investigating recent changes in Southern Ocean heat content

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Pelletier ◽  
Lars Zipf ◽  
Konstanze Haubner ◽  
Hugues Goosse ◽  
Frank Pattyn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Heat Content ◽  
Ice Shelf ◽  
Sea Ice Extent ◽  
Antarctic Ice Sheet ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
Physical Phenomena ◽  
The Impact

<p>From 2016 on, observed tendencies of Southern Ocean sea surface temperatures and Antarctic sea ice extent (SIE) have shifted from cooling down (with SIE increase) to warming up (SIE decrease). This change of Southern Ocean surface thermal properties has been sustained since, which indicates that it is not solely due to the interannual variability of the atmosphere, but also to modifications in the ocean itself. Among other physical phenomena, the acceleration of continental ice shelf melt, through its subsequent impact on the Southern Ocean stratification, has been proposed as one of the potential meaningful drivers of the sea ice changes. Reciprocally, recent studies suggest that besides atmosphere forcings, the upper ocean thermal content bears significant impact on ice shelf melt rates and dynamics. Here we present a new circumpolar coupled Southern Ocean – Antarctic ice sheet configuration aiming at investigating the impact of this ocean – continental ice feedback, developed within the framework of the PARAMOUR project. Our setting relies on the ocean and sea ice model NEMO3.6-LIM3 sending ice shelf melt rates to the Antarctic ice sheet model f.ETISh v1.5, who in turn responds to it and provides updated ice shelf cavity geometry. Both technical aspects and first coupled results are presented.</p>

Antarctic Sea Ice Response to Weather and Climate Modes of Variability*

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 721-741 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tsubasa Kohyama ◽  
Dennis L. Hartmann
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Time Scale ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Sea Ice Extent ◽  
Climate Modes ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Indian Ocean

Abstract The relationship between climate modes and Antarctic sea ice is explored by separating the variability into intraseasonal, interannual, and decadal time scales. Cross-spectral analysis shows that geopotential height and Antarctic sea ice extent are most coherent at periods between about 20 and 40 days (the intraseasonal time scale). In this period range, where the atmospheric circulation and the sea ice extent are most tightly coupled, sea ice variability responds strongly to Rossby waves with the structure of the Pacific–South American (PSA) pattern. The PSA pattern in this time scale is not directly related to El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) or the southern annular mode (SAM), which have received much attention for explaining Antarctic sea ice variability. On the interannual time scale, ENSO and SAM are important, but a large fraction of sea ice variance can also be explained by Rossby wave–like structures in the Drake Passage region. After regressing out the sea ice extent variability associated with ENSO, the observed positive sea ice trends in Ross Sea and Indian Ocean during the satellite era become statistically insignificant. Regressing out SAM makes the sea ice trend in the Indian Ocean insignificant. Thus, the positive trends in sea ice in the Ross Sea and the Indian Ocean sectors may be explained by the variability and decadal trends of known interannual climate modes.

ENSO-related impacts on Antarctic sea ice: a synthesis of phenomenon and mechanisms

2004 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 415-425 ◽  
Author(s):  
XIAOJUN YUAN
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
High Latitude ◽  
Positive Feedback ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Hadley Cell ◽  
Jet Stream ◽  
Enso Events ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Antarctic

Many remote and local climate variabilities influence Antarctic sea ice at different time scales. The strongest sea ice teleconnection at the interannual time scale was found between El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events and a high latitude climate mode named the Antarctic Dipole. The Antarctic Dipole is characterized by an out-of-phase relationship between sea ice and surface temperature anomalies in the South Pacific and South Atlantic, manifesting itself and persisting 3–4 seasons after being triggered by the ENSO forcing. This study examines the life cycles of ENSO warm and cold events in the tropics and associated evolution of the ADP in high latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere. In evaluating the mechanisms that form the ADP, the study suggests a synthesized scheme that links these high latitude processes with ENSO teleconnection in both the Pacific and Atlantic basins. The synthesized scheme suggests that the two main mechanisms responsible for the formation/maintenance of the Antarctic Dipole are the heat flux due to the mean meridional circulation of the regional Ferrel Cell and regional anomalous circulation generated by stationary eddies. The changes in the Hadley Cell, the jet stream in the subtropics, and the Rossby Wave train associated with ENSO link the tropical forcing to these high latitude processes. Moreover, these two mechanisms operate in phase and are comparable in magnitude. The positive feedback between the jet stream and stationary eddies in the atmosphere, the positive feedback within the air-sea-ice system, and the seasonality all reinforce the anomalies, resulting in persistent Antarctic Dipole anomalies.

scholarly journals Different mechanisms of Arctic and Antarctic sea ice response to ocean heat transport

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jake Aylmer ◽  
David Ferreira ◽  
Daniel Feltham
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Heat Transport ◽  
Climate Models ◽  
Heat Fluxes ◽  
Substantial Contribution ◽  
Climate Projections ◽  
Ocean Heat Transport ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Energy Convergence

AbstractUnderstanding drivers of Arctic and Antarctic sea ice on multidecadal timescales is key to reducing uncertainties in long-term climate projections. Here we investigate the impact of ocean heat transport (OHT) on sea ice, using pre-industrial control simulations of 20 models participating in the latest Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6). In all models and in both hemispheres, sea ice extent is negatively correlated with poleward OHT. However, the similarity of the correlations in both hemispheres hides radically different underlying mechanisms. In the northern hemisphere, positive OHT anomalies primarily result in increased ocean heat convergence along the Atlantic sea ice edge, where most of the ice loss occurs. Such strong, localised heat fluxes ($$\sim {}100~\text {W}~\text {m}^{-2}$$ ∼ 100 W m - 2 ) also drive increased atmospheric moist-static energy convergence at higher latitudes, resulting in a pan-Arctic reduction in sea ice thickness. In the southern hemisphere, increased OHT is released relatively uniformly under the Antarctic ice pack, so that associated sea ice loss is driven by basal melt with no direct atmospheric role. These results are qualitatively robust across models and strengthen the case for a substantial contribution of ocean forcing to sea ice uncertainty, and biases relative to observations, in climate models.

Arctic and Antarctic Sea Ice Change: Contrasts, Commonalities, and Causes

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 187-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ted Maksym
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Climate Models ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Natural Variability ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
Regional Variability ◽  
Antarctic Sea Ice ◽  
Induced Changes ◽  
Natural Climate ◽  
The Impact

Arctic sea ice has declined precipitously in both extent and thickness over the past four decades; by contrast, Antarctic sea ice has shown little overall change, but this masks large regional variability. Climate models have not captured these changes. But these differences do not represent a paradox. The processes governing, and impacts of, natural variability and human-induced changes differ markedly at the poles largely because of the ways in which differences in geography control the properties of and interactions among the atmosphere, ice, and ocean. The impact of natural variability on the ice cover is large at both poles, so modeled ice trends are not entirely inconsistent with contributions from both natural variability and anthropogenic forcing. Despite this concurrence, the coupling of natural climate variability, climate feedbacks, and sea ice is not well understood, and significant biases remain in model representations of the ice cover and the processes that drive it.

scholarly journals Impact of Ural Blocking on Winter Warm Arctic–Cold Eurasian Anomalies. Part I: Blocking-Induced Amplification

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (11) ◽  
pp. 3925-3947 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dehai Luo ◽  
Yiqing Xiao ◽  
Yao Yao ◽  
Aiguo Dai ◽  
Ian Simmonds ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
High Latitude ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Height Anomaly ◽  
Arctic Sea ◽  
Cold Anomaly ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice Loss ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Sea Ice Reduction

Abstract In Part I of this study, the impact of Ural blocking (UB) on the warm Arctic–cold Eurasian (WACE) pattern associated with the winter (DJF) arctic sea ice loss during 1979–2013 is examined by dividing the arctic sea ice reduction region into two dominant subregions: the Barents and Kara Seas (BKS) and the North American high-latitude (NAH) region (Baffin and Hudson Bay, Davis Strait, and Labrador Sea). It is found that atmospheric response to arctic sea ice loss resembles a negative Arctic response oscillation with a dominant positive height anomaly over the Eurasian subarctic region. Regression analyses of the two subregions further show that the sea ice loss over the BKS corresponds to the UB pattern together with a positive North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO+) and is followed by a WACE anomaly, while the sea ice reduction in the NAH region corresponds to a negative NAO (NAO−) pattern with a cold anomaly over northern Eurasia. Further analyses reveal that the UB pattern is more persistent during the period 2000–13 (P2) than 1979–99 (P1) because of the reduced middle-to-high-latitude mean westerly winds over Eurasia associated with the intense BKS warming. During P2 the establishment of the UB becomes a slow process because of the role of the BKS warming, while its decay is slightly rapid. In the presence of the long-lived UB that often occurs with the NAO+, the BKS-warming-induced DJF-mean anticyclonic anomaly is intensified and widened and then expands southward during P2 to amplify the WACE pattern and induce the southward displacement of its cold anomaly and the further loss of the BKS sea ice. Thus, midlatitude Eurasian cold events should be more frequent as the sea ice loss continues over the BKS.

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