Year: 2014
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: Thickness measurements of Southern Ocean sea ice are very sparse \nand satellite altimetry still provides relatively uncertain estimates of ice \nthickness. The only tool for monitoring sea ice thickness over long \nperiods of time with sufficient accuracy are moored upward looking \nsonars (ULS). The instruments measure the subsurface portion (draft) of \nthe ice by recording the travel times of sonar signals (Fig. 1). \nWe present ULS data from the central Weddell Sea, where the sea ice \nstarts forming in April and disappears in January of the following year \n(length of growth period: ~180 days). \nWe use the data together with Stefan's Law to estimate the two \nquantities that limit the maximum thermodynamic ice growth in austral \nwinter to about 1 m: (a) The snow cover on top of the ice and (b) the \noceanic heat flux from below.
Authors: Axel Behrendt, Wolfgang Dierking, Volker Strass, Hannelore Witte
Language: English
Subfield: Atmospheric Science
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Life below water
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W784200557