High Latitude Air-Sea-Ice Dynamics and Interactions

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Over the past few decades, it has become increasingly clear that the changes to the Earth's climate are having dramatic impacts on our society's fabric as well as the supporting ecosystems. Nowhere are these changes more pronounced than at high northern latitudes. For example, according to the GISTEMP dataset, since the 1980s the annual global mean surface temperature has increased by approximately 0.5oC; while in the Arctic (north of 66oN), it has increased by more than 0.75oC. This amplified Arctic warming is largest during the winter months, where the increase has been in excess of 2.2oC. As one might expect, this has led to significant changes within the Arctic climate system. In addition to the widely reported reduction in the extent of the Arctic sea ice, there has also been trends towards a thinner, younger and more mobile ice pack that has widespread implications both within the Arctic and in the mid-latitudes. Of particular interest is the region, north of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago that is predicted to be the last to lose its perennial ice cover, thus providing an important refuge for ice-dependent species. Recently a number of extreme events have occurred in the region that suggest that the ice in the region is more dynamic than previously thought leading to additional concerns about our knowledge and stability of the region's climate. While the Antarctic has not seen as pronounced a warming, the last few years have a number of anomalous events, such as the return after 40 years of the Weddell Sea polynya, as well as the lowest sea ice extents since the start of the microwave satellite record in the late 1970s. The objectives of my research are focused on understanding the changes in important high latitude climate processes that involve interactions between the atmosphere, the ocean and the cryosphere. In the course of this program, my research group collects and interprets data on these processes and uses them along with remotely sensed data, numerical models and reanalysis datasets to characterize the changes that are occurring. The individuals who will undertake training through this grant will gain knowledge on the dynamics of the changing climate as well as experience in the generation and interpretation of large and complex geophysical data sets that will provide them with a technical skill set that will allow them to contribute to efforts to characterize and adapt to our changing climate, especially in Canada's north.