Determination of areal surface-feature coverage in the Beaufort
                        Sea using aircraft video data

Tschudi, M. A.; Maslanik, James A

doi:10.3189/s0260305500014415

Cited by 30 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…On average, 19.7% of the MYI (max: 43.5%; min: 1.1%) and 77.0% of the FYI (max: 99.7%; min: 7.7%) is covered by melt ponds in July (Table 6). These results agree well with observations showing that melt ponds in the NH typically cover around 20–35% of MYI [ Tschudi et al , 2001; Fetterer and Untersteiner , 1998a; Tschudi et al , 1997] and 45–80% of FYI [ Yackel and Barber , 2000; Yackel et al , 2000; Barber and Yackel , 1999]. Observations show peak melt pond coverage up to almost 100% on FYI, again in correspondence with the modeled maximum coverage (Table 6).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

A new sea ice albedo scheme including melt ponds for ECHAM5 general circulation model

et al. 2009

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[1] Today we experience an accelerated melting of sea ice in the Arctic which global circulation models are inadequate to predict. We believe one of the reasons is the shortcomings in the sea ice albedo schemes for these models. This paper investigates a physically based sea ice albedo scheme for ECHAM5 GCM, which separates between snow-covered sea ice, bare sea ice, melt ponds, and open water (separately for the albedos and albedo fractions). The new albedo scheme includes important components such as albedo decay due to snow aging, bare sea ice albedo dependent on the ice thickness, and a melt pond albedo dependent on the melt pond depth. The explicit treatment of melt pond albedos has, to our knowledge, not been included in general circulation models before and represents a substantial improvement when simulating the annual cycle of sea ice albedo. The new albedo scheme overall reduces the sea ice albedo both in winter, because of snow aging, and in summer, because of melt ponds. The reduced sea ice albedo leads to overall reduced sea ice thickness, concentration, and volume, with large temporal and spatial variations. In the Northern Hemisphere in March, some areas experience increased albedo, resulting in thicker sea ice and higher ice concentration, but in August the pattern is spatially homogeneous, with reduced albedo, thickness, and concentrations for all areas where the new scheme has a significant effect.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

A new sea ice albedo scheme including melt ponds for ECHAM5 general circulation model

et al. 2009

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“…The albedo of the ice cover is strongly influenced by the pond fraction [ Fetterer and Untersteiner , 1998; Perovich et al , 2002a]. Because of this importance, pond fractions were determined by analyzing aerial photographs [ Tschudi et al , 1997, 2002; Perovich et al , 2002b]. As part of the mass balance program, we measured pond extent and depth along the 200‐m‐long albedo survey line every four days from mid‐June through mid‐August [ Perovich et al , 2002a].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thin and thinner: Sea ice mass balance measurements during SHEBA

et al. 2003

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[1] As part of a large interdisciplinary study of the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA), we installed more than 135 ice thickness gauges to determine the sea ice mass balance. While installing these gauges during the fall of 1997, we found that much of the multiyear ice cover was only 1 m thick, considerably thinner than expected. Over the course of the yearlong field experiment we monitored the mass balance for a wide variety of ice types, including first-year ice, ponded ice, unponded ice, multiyear ice, hummocks, new ridges, and old ridges. Initial ice thicknesses for these sites ranged from 0.3 to 8 m, and snow depths varied from a few centimeters to more than a meter. However, for all of their differences and variety, these thickness gauges sites shared a common trait: at every site, there was a net thinning of the ice during the SHEBA year. The thin ice found in October 1997 was even thinner in October 1998. The annual cycle of ice thickness was also similar at all sites. There was a steady increase in thickness through the winter that gradually tapered off in the spring. This was followed by a steep drop off in thickness during summer melt and another tapering in late summer and early fall as freeze-up began. Maximum surface melting was in July, while bottom ablation peaked in August. Combining results from the sites, we found an average winter growth of 0.51 m and a summer melt of 1.26 m, which consisted of 0.64 m of surface melt and 0.62 m of bottom melt. There was a weak trend for thicker ice to have less winter growth and greater net loss for the year; however, ice growth was also impacted by the snow depth. Considerable variability was observed between sites in both accretion and ablation. The total accretion during the 9-month growth season ranged from zero for thick ridged ice to more than a meter for young ice. Ponds tended to have a large amount of surface melting, while ridges had considerable bottom ablation.

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“…Level, undeformed seasonal ice can reach pond fractions greater than 0.7 [ Polashenski et al , 2012], as meltwater, unconstrained by topographic features, spreads in shallow ponds of great spatial coverage (Figure 1c). In contrast, multiyear ice, with its undulating topography, typically has peak pond fractions of only 0.3–0.4 [ Fetterer and Untersteiner , 1998; Perovich et al , 2002a; Tschudi et al , 1997] because meltwater is collected into deeper ponds with less area. This initial stage of maximum pond coverage lasts only a few days on both seasonal and multiyear ice, after which increased surface melt water drainage reduces the area covered by ponds.…”

Section: Observationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Albedo evolution of seasonal Arctic sea ice

Perovich¹,

Polashenski²

2012

Geophysical Research Letters

325

305

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[1] There is an ongoing shift in the Arctic sea ice cover from multiyear ice to seasonal ice. Here we examine the impact of this shift on sea ice albedo. Our analysis of observations from four years of field experiments indicates that seasonal ice undergoes an albedo evolution with seven phases; cold snow, melting snow, pond formation, pond drainage, pond evolution, open water, and freezeup. Once surface ice melt begins, seasonal ice albedos are consistently less than albedos for multiyear ice resulting in more solar heat absorbed in the ice and transmitted to the ocean. The shift from a multiyear to seasonal ice cover has significant implications for the heat and mass budget of the ice and for primary productivity in the upper ocean. There will be enhanced melting of the ice cover and an increase in the amount of sunlight available in the upper ocean.

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Determination of areal surface-feature coverage in the Beaufort Sea using aircraft video data

Cited by 30 publications

References 6 publications

A new sea ice albedo scheme including melt ponds for ECHAM5 general circulation model

A new sea ice albedo scheme including melt ponds for ECHAM5 general circulation model

Thin and thinner: Sea ice mass balance measurements during SHEBA

Albedo evolution of seasonal Arctic sea ice

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