Global Science Team Will Map Change With Sensors Above, Below Ice, Across Vast Area Of Beaufort Sea
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The study, which has been funded by the U.S. Office of Naval Research, is intended to help in improving understanding of the impact that weather has on the ice patterns. Lee described the project’s ground breaking nature in a statement: “This has never been done at this level, over such a large area and for such a long period of time… We’re really trying to resolve the physics over the course of an entire melt season.”
The research team comprises of researchers from the world over, including members from Cambridge University, Yale University, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Yale University, and the British Antarctic Survey, among others.
The team aim to examine whether an increased amount of open water to the south of the ice sheets affects the melt process, as the water absorbs solar radiation. The study also aims to observe how winds and broken ice churn up the open water as the ice melts, breaking up the ice further. Luc Rainville, also from the University of Washington Applied Physics Laboratory, explained this theory further: “Increased open water likely means more wind-driven mixing,” Rainville said. “Similarly surface waves will be able to travel further in open water, gaining height and power. Once these waves meet the ice they contribute to breaking the ice edge.”
The researchers visited the area in March, when the ice was thick enough to be able to support an aircraft’s weight. The sensors were installed in four seperate groups over a straight North-South line measuring just under 200 miles. Every site contains sensors capable of monitoring the ocean, ice, and the atmosphere.
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http://www.sciencerecorder.com/news/scientists-to-monitor-arctic-summer-melt-at-level-not-seen-before/