AON: Sustained observation and study of the rapidly evolving Arctic Ocean environment

气候模型预测，北极将在未来几十年内经历地球上最大的变暖。 与这些模拟结果似乎一致的是，自进入世纪以来，北极海冰范围和总体积显著减少。 夏季暴露在大气中的海面面积扩大，海洋正在变暖，洋流将热量带到冰层覆盖区域以下，以推动更多的冰层从下面融化。 对快速变化的北冰洋进行持续观测对于记录持续变化和探索负责任的机制至关重要，这些研究最终将提高预测北极未来状态的能力。 该合同将支持每年部署自主的一次性仪器系统（称为冰系剖面仪），这些系统在浮标随其支持的浮冰漂移时对上层海洋的海水温度和盐度进行真实的采样和报告，继续2004年开始的观测记录。 这些数据已被证明是科学研究，学生项目和业务预测的宝贵资源;迄今为止，已出版了约275篇研究论文，并利用ITP数据撰写了许多学生论文。 在为期5年的合同期内，将在北极建造、测试和部署18个ITP系统，并将由此产生的数据公开并保存在国家数据档案中。 在这些和其他极地观测的基础上提高预报技能，将有助于更有效地规划弹性沿海基础设施、渔业和资源开采、导航、搜索和救援活动以及防御系统。 从2004年开始，冰系剖面仪计划每年都在整个北极深海部署仪器系统，这些仪器系统在浮标随其支持的浮冰漂移时，以亚米级的垂直分辨率在~5米至~750米的深度返回全年海水温度和盐度的每日垂直剖面以及其他水的性质。 ITP的一个新的变体，系留海洋剖面仪，TOP，侧重于从200米深到冰-海洋界面15厘米以内的沃茨。 目前的奖项将继续和改善ITP/TOP观测计划的另一个5年。 计划采取三管齐下的措施，包括：（1）每年部署来自北极机会巡航的作业ITP和TOP，并传播所产生的数据;（2）不断开展工程工作，以跟上ITP/TOP组件不断发展的供应链;（3）对所产生的数据进行质量控制和科学分析，并在同行评审的期刊上发表结果。 来自这些自主仪器的数据将通过项目网站、全球电信系统（GTS）网络、北极数据中心和国家环境信息中心公开发布。该奖项反映了NSF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。

Climate models predict that the Arctic will experience the greatest amount of warming on the planet in the coming decades. Seemingly consistent with those modeling results, Arctic sea ice extent and total volume have decreased markedly since the turn of the century. The expanded areas of the sea surface exposed to the atmosphere in summer are warming and ocean currents are carrying that heat below the ice-covered regions to drive additional ice melting from below. Sustained observations of the rapidly-evolving Arctic Ocean are vital for documenting ongoing changes and exploring the responsible mechanisms, research that will ultimately lead to improved ability to forecast the future state of the Arctic. This award will support annual deployments of autonomous, expendable instrument systems (called Ice-Tethered Profilers, ITP) that sample and report in real time the sea water temperature and salinity of the upper ocean as the buoys drift with their supporting sea ice floes, continuing an observational record initiated in 2004. These data have proven to be a valuable resource for scientific research, student projects, and operational forecasting; to date, approximately 275 research papers have been published and numerous student dissertations written that have utilized ITP data. Over the duration of this 5-year award, a total of 18 ITP systems will be constructed, tested and deployed in the Arctic on cruises of opportunity with the resulting data being made publicly available and preserved in national data archives. Improved forecast skill based on these and other polar observations will allow more efficient planning for resilient coastal infrastructure, fishery and resource extraction, navigation, search and rescue activities and defense systems. Begun in 2004, the Ice-Tethered Profiler program has annually fielded instrument systems distributed throughout the deep Arctic that return year-round daily vertical profiles of sea water temperature and salinity, and other water properties at sub-meter vertical resolution over depths of ~5 m to ~750 m as the buoys drift with their supporting ice floes. A new variant of the ITP, the Tethered Ocean Profiler, TOP, focuses on waters from ~200 m depth up to within 15 cm of the ice-ocean interface. The present award will continue and improve the ITP/TOP observing program for another 5 years. A three-pronged effort is planned to consist of (1) annual deployments of operational ITPs and TOPs from Arctic cruises of opportunity and dissemination of the resulting data, (2) ongoing engineering efforts to keep abreast of the evolving supply chain for ITP/TOP components, and (3) quality control and scientific analysis of the resulting data with results published in peer-reviewed journals. Data from these autonomous instruments will be publicly distributed via the project website, the Global Telecommunications System (GTS) network, the Arctic Data Center, and the National Centers for Environmental Information.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.