Collaborative Research: MOSAiC Sea Ice Samples for Stratigraphy, Microstructure, and Inherent Optical Property Studies

北极海冰覆盖正在发生变化。随着气候变暖，冰盖生长期缩短，空间覆盖减少，冰层厚度减小，融化时间提前，融化强度增大。然而，人们还没有完全了解冰是如何结冰的，它是如何融化的，它是如何对气候做出反应的，以及气候是如何对它做出反应的。为了填补这一知识空白，研究人员将研究在为期一年的北极气候研究多学科漂流观测站（MOSAiC）野外活动期间拍摄的多年冰芯的微观结构特性，在该活动中，一艘研究船在秋季被冻结在北极海冰中，并被允许漂流一年（2019年10月至2020年9月）。研究人员将从这些岩心样本上切下薄片来记录冰的微观结构。他们将用照相机和显微镜拍摄这些切片的数字图像。研究人员将检查冰晶和冰袋的数量、大小、形状和方向，以确定冰的大规模物理特性，包括它如何导热和反射光。这个项目将提高我们对海冰在变暖的北极如何变化的理解。调查人员将创建一个可搜索的图像和海冰属性库。调查人员将包括大学生参与这项工作。学生将学习如何提出他们可以测试的问题，并练习批判性思维。一位电影制作人将与他们一起工作，向公众传播这项研究。调查人员将在他们的机构展示一系列摄影作品和短片。他们将通过科学出版物和会议分享发现。调查人员将把数据和结果存档在美国北极数据中心。该提案利用了一个机会，准备和分析从最近一年的北极气候研究多学科漂流观测站（马赛克）实地活动（2019年10月至2020年9月）收集的冰芯样本。我们将利用这些冰制作薄片，创建一个全面的图像数字清单，进行微观结构和纹理分析，生成光学数据以了解结构-光学关系，并研究沉积物包裹体在海冰微观结构变化和短波辐射分配背景下的作用。研究人员将开发一个可搜索的图像库和样本冰的微观结构特性。本科生将参与研究，学习科学方法，培养批判性思维技能。调查人员将与一位电影制作人合作，向公众传播这项研究。他们将策划一系列图像和短片，在调查机构展出。研究结果将通过科学出版物和会议传播，并在美国北极数据中心存档。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The Arctic sea ice cover is changing. As the climate has warmed, ice cover has experienced a shorter growing season and reduced spatial coverage, ice thickness has decreased, and melt is earlier and more intense. However, it is not fully understood how ice freezes, how it melts, how it responds to climate, and how climate responds to it. To fill this gap in knowledge, the investigators will study the microstructural properties of multi-year ice cores taken during the year-long Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) field campaign, where a research ship was frozen into Arctic Sea ice in the fall and allowed to drift for a year (Oct 2019 - Sept 2020). The investigators will cut thin slices from these core samples to document the ice microstructure. They will take digital images of these slices using a camera and microscope. The investigators will examine the number, size, shape, and orientation of the crystals and pockets to determine large-scale physical properties of the ice, including how it conducts heat, and reflects light. This project will improve our understanding of how sea ice may change in a warming Arctic. The investigators will create a searchable library of images and sea ice properties. The investigators will include college students in this work. Students will learn how to develop questions they can test and practice critical thinking. A filmmaker will work alongside to communicate this research to the public. The investigators will display a collection of photography and short movies at their institutions. They will share findings through scientific publications and conferences. The investigators will archive the data and results at the US Arctic Data Center.This proposal acts on an opportunity to prepare and analyze ice core samples collected from the recent year-long Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) field campaign (Oct 2019 - Sept 2020). We will use this ice to produce thin sections, create a comprehensive digital inventory of the imagery, carry out microstructural and textural analyses, generate optical data for understanding structural-optical relationships, and investigate the role of sediment inclusions in the context of changing sea ice microstructure and the partitioning of shortwave radiation. The investigators will develop a searchable library of images and microstructure properties of the sampled ice. Undergraduate students will be involved in the research, learning the scientific method, and developing critical thinking skills. The investigators will work with a filmmaker to communicate this research to the public. They will curate a collection of imagery and short movies for display at the investigators’ institutions. Findings will be disseminated through scientific publications and conferences and archived at the US Arctic Data Center.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.