Heat Content of the Summer Mixed Layer and its Impact on the Surface Heat Budget in the Arctic

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ABSTRACT OPP-9728825 OPP-978837 MAYKUT, GARY McPHEE, MILES UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON McPHEE RESEARCH The project will utilize a U.S. Navy submarine to conduct a larger-scale study of the solar heat flux affecting the melting of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean than has been possible previously. This study extends earlier studies by the investigators that show large seasonal differences in heat flux at single measurement locations. Those studies did not provide the opportunity to extend the single-point measurements over a large region; therefore, large-scale and seasonal patterns of variability in the Arctic Ocean are unknown. The variability is important because compiler simulations of the climate must represent a large-scale (Arctic Basin) value of heat flux and may be seriously in error if the single-point measurements are not representative of the regional value. The submarine will provide the opportunity to extend the point measurements over a larger region and assess more variables in the heat flux measurement than currently possible. The study is one component of a larger project, Surface HEat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA), that is examining the role of global change on the Arctic Ocean sea ice cover. The extension of the SHEBA site measurements to a large region of the Arctic Ocean using the submersible will allow calibration of the site measurements to the regional scale, and provide a basis for a regional-scale interpretation of SHEBA measurements on a full annual cycle. This project will lead to improved regional and global circulation models that are used to predict the impact of global climate change on the permanence of the Arctic Ocean ice pack.