Eddy-Induced Dispersion of Sea Ice Floes at the Marginal Ice Zone

Gupta, M.; Gürcan, Emma; Thompson, Andrew F.

doi:10.1029/2023GL105656

Eddy-Induced Dispersion of Sea Ice Floes at the Marginal Ice Zone

Title

Eddy-Induced Dispersion of Sea Ice Floes at the Marginal Ice Zone

Author

Gupta, M. (TU Delft Physical and Space Geodesy; California Institute of Technology)
Gürcan, Emma (California Institute of Technology)
Thompson, Andrew F. (California Institute of Technology)

Date

2024

Abstract

Ocean heat exchanges at the marginal ice zone (MIZ) play an important role in melting sea ice. Mixed-layer eddies transport heat and ice floes across the MIZ, facilitating the pack's access to warm waters. This study explores these frontal dynamics using disk-shaped floes coupled to an upper-ocean model simulating the sea ice edge. Numerical experiments reveal that small floes respond more strongly to fine-scale ocean currents, which favors higher dispersion rates and weakens sea ice drag onto the underlying ocean. Floes with radii smaller than resolved turbulent filaments (∼2–4 km) result in a wider and more energetic MIZ, by a factor of 70% each, compared to larger floes. We hypothesize that this floe size dependency may affect sea ice break-up by controlling oceanic energy propagation into the MIZ and modulate the sea ice pack's melt rate by regulating lateral heat transport toward the sea ice cover.

Subject

eddies
heat transport
oceanography
polar climate
sea ice
submesoscale

To reference this document use:

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:95ef7374-1908-4ebd-81fe-c042d7f3b2d3

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL105656

ISSN

0094-8276

Source

Geophysical Research Letters, 51 (2)

Part of collection

Institutional Repository