Collaborative Research: Circulation in the Freshwater Switchyard of the Arctic Ocean

合作研究：北冰洋淡水开关站的循环

• 批准号: 0230238
• 负责人: Peter Schlosser
• 金额: $ 131.05万
• 依托单位: Columbia University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2003
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2003-01-01 至 2007-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0230238&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Circulation; Freshwater; Switchyard

The proposed research will document the circulation, variability, and driving mechanisms of the upper ocean in the freshwater switchyard of the Arctic Ocean. This unexplored region lies to the north of the eastern Canadian Archipelago and Greenland, extending about 500-800 km into the central Arctic Ocean. It lies just upstream of the freshwater exit points in Fram and Nares Straits, i.e., where freshwater from various sources is finally delivered to some of the main channels that lead to the North Atlantic Ocean. The main hypothesis is that this area is a bifurcation point for freshwater transfer between the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans, and that small changes in the overall circulation of this region may have large downstream effects. This study will measure ocean temperature, salinity, currents, and geochemical freshwater tracers such as oxygen, oxygen isotopes, tritium/3He, CFC.s, barium, and nutrients. The focus will be on the upper ocean (0-300 m) where freshwater resides. This will be an aircraft-based operation, because thick sea ice prevents access by most surface ships and political realities prevent access by submarine. There will also be a satellite-based study of sea ice motion and thickness in the switchyard region which will determine how much ice recirculates westward within the Beaufort Gyre, how much exits through Fram Strait, and how much exits within the various passages of the Canadian Archipelago. Results from this study will be made available via an internet web site that will be linked to other similar ongoing projects, as well as through presentations and articles in both scientific and popular formats. Additionally, they will be used for educational purposes through involvement of both graduate and undergraduate students, and in course material. A special link to numerical modeling studies is planned via incorporation of our data into a gridded ocean database as well as raw validation data. The appropriate logistics infrastructure at NSF has been developed over the past several years as part of various projects, in particular the North Pole Environmental Observatory, an aircraft-based project staged out of Alert/Eureka.

拟议的研究将记录北冰洋淡水开关场上层海洋的环流、变异性和驱动机制。这个未开发的区域位于加拿大东部群岛和格陵兰岛以北，延伸约500-800公里进入北冰洋中部。它位于弗拉姆和纳雷斯海峡淡水出口点的上游，即来自各种来源的淡水最终被输送到通往北大西洋的一些主要渠道。主要的假设是，这一地区是北冰洋和北大西洋之间淡水转移的分岔点，该地区整体环流的微小变化可能会产生巨大的下游影响。这项研究将测量海洋温度、盐度、洋流和地球化学淡水示踪剂，如氧、氧同位素、氚/3He、CFCs、钡和营养物质。重点将放在淡水所在的上层海洋(0-300米)。这将是一次以飞机为基础的行动，因为厚厚的海冰阻止大多数水面舰艇进入，而政治现实阻止潜艇进入。还将对开关站区域的海冰运动和厚度进行基于卫星的研究，以确定有多少冰在波弗特环流内向西循环，有多少冰通过弗拉姆海峡流出，以及有多少冰流出加拿大群岛的各个航道。这项研究的结果将通过将与其他类似的正在进行的项目相链接的因特网网站以及以科学和大众形式发表的演示文稿和文章公布。此外，它们将用于教育目的，通过研究生和本科生的参与，以及在课程材料中。通过将我们的数据并入网格海洋数据库以及原始验证数据，计划建立与数值模拟研究的特殊链接。过去几年，作为各种项目的一部分，特别是北极环境观测站，在Alert/Eureka以外实施了一个以飞机为基础的项目--北极环境观测站，开发了国家科学基金会的适当后勤基础设施。