Ice production and brine formation in Storfjorden, Svalbard

Haarpaintner, Jörg; Gascard, Jean‐Claude; Haugan, Peter M.

doi:10.1029/1999jc000133

Cited by 100 publications

(134 citation statements)

References 32 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

129

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…11). Such a frac value is also close to 0.62 which corresponds to the observed ∼62% of the salt flux rapidly released by sea ice formation that is released out of the fjord in the Norwegian Sea (Haarpaintner et al, 2001). Yet, though the simulated CO 2 drop is important it is still not enough indicating the need for other processes.…”

Section: Glacial-interglacial Carbon Cycle Changesmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…The rejection of salt by sea ice formation plays an important role in the formation of deep water, as it is the case for the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) which has been studied for a few decades (Foster and Carmack, 1976;Whitworth and Nowlin, 1987;Foldvik et al, 2004;Nicholls et al, 2009). The brine mechanism has been mostly observed in details in the Northern Hemisphere oceans (Haarpaintner et al, 2001;Shcherbina et al, 2003;Skogseth et al, 2004Skogseth et al, , 2008, where measures are easier than in the Southern Ocean. For instance, measures in the Arctic fjords indicate that approximately 78% of the brine-enriched shelf water was released out of the fjord in the Norwegian Sea (Haarpaintner et al, 2001), i.e.…”

Section: Implementation Of Brines In the Climber-2 Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The brine mechanism has been mostly observed in details in the Northern Hemisphere oceans (Haarpaintner et al, 2001;Shcherbina et al, 2003;Skogseth et al, 2004Skogseth et al, , 2008, where measures are easier than in the Southern Ocean. For instance, measures in the Arctic fjords indicate that approximately 78% of the brine-enriched shelf water was released out of the fjord in the Norwegian Sea (Haarpaintner et al, 2001), i.e. around 62% of the salt flux rapidly released by sea ice formation (the first rapid salt release is ∼82% of the total salt flux rejected by sea ice formation).…”

Section: Implementation Of Brines In the Climber-2 Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Impact of brine-induced stratification on the glacial carbon cycle

2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. During the cold period of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, about 21 000 years ago) atmospheric CO 2 was around 190 ppm, much lower than the pre-industrial concentration of 280 ppm. The causes of this substantial drop remain partially unresolved, despite intense research. Understanding the origin of reduced atmospheric CO 2 during glacial times is crucial to comprehend the evolution of the different carbon reservoirs within the Earth system (atmosphere, terrestrial biosphere and ocean). In this context, the ocean is believed to play a major role as it can store large amounts of carbon, especially in the abyss, which is a carbon reservoir that is thought to have expanded during glacial times. To create this larger reservoir, one possible mechanism is to produce very dense glacial waters, thereby stratifying the deep ocean and reducing the carbon exchange between the deep and upper ocean. The existence of such very dense waters has been inferred in the LGM deep Atlantic from sediment pore water salinity and δ 18 O inferred temperature. Based on these observations, we study the impact of a brine mechanism on the glacial carbon cycle. This mechanism relies on the formation and rapid sinking of brines, very salty water released during sea ice formation, which brings salty dense water down to the bottom of the ocean. It provides two major features: a direct link from the surface to the deep ocean along with an efficient way of setting a strong stratification. We show with the CLIMBER-2 carbon-climate model that such a brine mechanism can account for a significant decrease in atmospheric CO 2 and contribute to the glacial-interglacial change. This mechanism can be amplified by low vertical diffusion resulting from the brine-induced stratification. The modeled glacial disCorrespondence to: N. Bouttes (nathaelle.bouttes@lsce.ipsl.fr) tribution of oceanic δ 13 C as well as the deep ocean salinity are substantially improved and better agree with reconstructions from sediment cores, suggesting that such a mechanism could have played an important role during glacial times.

show abstract

Section: Glacial-interglacial Carbon Cycle Changesmentioning

confidence: 82%

Section: Implementation Of Brines In the Climber-2 Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Implementation Of Brines In the Climber-2 Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Impact of brine-induced stratification on the glacial carbon cycle

2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The dense brines precipitate and convect through the surface mixed layer down to a certain depth depending on the vertical stratification and water depth. In Storfjorden, Svalbard, a major "brine factory" (Harpaintner et al, 2001), brines have two major effects depending on where they are formed. One effect is to increase salinity of the upper 100 m in Storfjorden in the deepest part of the fjord and the second effect is to form a benthic layer originating from the shallowest parts of the fjord and overflowing at sill depth into the Barents Sea (Storfjordrenna).…”

Section: Brine Formation In the Arctic Oceanmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances in understanding and parameterization of small-scale physical processes in the marine Arctic climate system: a review

et al. 2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The Arctic climate system includes numerous highly interactive small-scale physical processes in the atmosphere, sea ice, and ocean. During and since the International Polar Year 2007-2009, significant advances have been made in understanding these processes. Here, these recent advances are reviewed, synthesized, and discussed. In atmospheric physics, the primary advances have been in cloud physics, radiative transfer, mesoscale cyclones, coastal, and fjordic processes as well as in boundary layer processes and surface fluxes. In sea ice and its snow cover, advances have been made in understanding of the surface albedo and its relationships with snow properties, the internal structure of sea ice, the heat and salt transfer in ice, the formation of superimposed ice and snow ice, and the small-scale dynamics of sea ice. For the ocean, significant advances have been related to exchange processes at the ice-ocean interface, diapycnal mixing, double-diffusive convection, tidal currents and diurnal resonance. Despite this recent progress, some of these small-scale physical processes are still not sufficiently understood: these include wave-turbulence interactions in the atmosphere and ocean, the exchange of heat and salt at the ice-ocean interface, and the mechanical weakening of sea ice. Many other processes are reasonably well understood as stand-alone processes but the challenge is to understand their interactions with and impacts and feedbacks on other processes. Uncertainty in the parameterization of small-scale processes continues to be among the greatest challenges facing climate modelling, particularly in high latitudes. Further improvements in parameterization require new year-round field campaigns on the Arctic sea ice, closely combined with satellite remote sensing studies and numerical model experiments.

show abstract

“…Storfjorden is estimated to supply about 5-10% of the newly formed waters of the Arctic Ocean ( [Quadfasel et al (1988)]). Previous recent studies in the area have dealt primarily with field observations ( [Quadfasel et al (1988)]; [Schauer (1995)]; [Schauer and Fahrbach (1999)]) and numerical simulations ( [Backhaus et al (1994)]; [Jungclaus et al (1995)]) of the Storfjorden overflow, as well as the variability of ice production and brine formation using satellite remote sensing data ( [Haarpaintner et al (2001a) and Haarpaintner et al (2001b)]). Earlier estimates of volume transport of the overflow ( Section 5.3) were from single-point moored current meters and assumed constant width and thickness of the overflow, or were from numerical simulations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations of the Storfjorden overflow

Fer

Skogseth

Haugan

et al. 2003

Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The mixing and spreading of the Storfjorden overflow were investigated with density and horizontal velocity profiles collected at closely spaced stations. The dense bottom water generated by strong winter cooling, enhanced ice formation and the consequent brine rejection drains into and fills the depression of the fjord and upon reaching a 120-m deep sill, descends like a gravity current following the bathymetry towards the shelf edge. The observations covered an approximate 37-km path of the plume starting from about 68 km downstream of the sill. The plume is identified as two layers: a dense layer 1 with relatively uniform vertical structure underlying a thicker layer 2 with larger vertical density gradients. Layer 1, probably remnants from earlier overflows, almost maintains its temperature-salinity characteristics and spreads to a width of about 6 km over its path, comparable to spread resulting from Ekman veering. Layer 2, on the other hand, is a mixing layer and widens to about 16 km. The overflow, in its core, is observed to have salinities greater than 34.9, temperatures close to the freezing point, and light transmissivity typically 5% less than that of the ambient waters. The overall properties of the observed part of the plume suggest dynamical stability with weak entrainment. However local mixing is observed through profiles of the gradient Richardson number, the non-dimensional ratio of density gradient over velocity gradient, which show portions with supercritical values in the vicinity of the plume-ambient water interface. The net volume transport associated with the overflow is estimated to be 0.06 Sv (Sv≡10 6 m 3 s −1 ) out of a section closest to the sill and almost double that as it leaves the section furthest downstream. The weak entrainment is estimated to account for the doubling of the volume transport between the two sections. A simple model proposed by Killworth (J. Geophys. Res. 106 (2001) 22267), giving the path of the overflow from a constant rate of vertical descent along the slope, compares well with our observations.

show abstract

Ice production and brine formation in Storfjorden, Svalbard

Cited by 100 publications

References 32 publications

Impact of brine-induced stratification on the glacial carbon cycle

Impact of brine-induced stratification on the glacial carbon cycle

Advances in understanding and parameterization of small-scale physical processes in the marine Arctic climate system: a review

Observations of the Storfjorden overflow

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About