Collaborative Research: Sloccum Glider in Western Antarctic Peninsula Continental Shelf Waters Pilot Study

南极半岛(AP)的特征是：(1)最近区域(冬季)变暖最快(是全球平均水平的5.35倍)，(2)西缘几乎所有常年海冰覆盖消失，(3)87%的冰川消退，导致全球海平面上升。理解这种变化的能力取决于研究人员更好地理解这种变化的潜在来源及其驱动机制的能力。尽管进行了密集的努力，但西部AP(WAP)的样本长期不足。因此，发展维持在当地持续存在的能力是一项高度科学优先事项。目前的提案通过两个目标满足这一迫切需要：(1)确定Slocum Webb海洋滑翔机的可行性，以便能够进行实时高分辨率数据自适应极地海洋学研究；(2)通过在包含14年船载海洋快照的网格内测量海洋热收支，解决涉及区域气候变化的关键问题。这将包括在PAL-LTER南岸夏季研究巡航期间发射滑翔机，在那里它将沿着LTER样本网格的整个海岸距离飞行，当船在夏天晚些时候到达那里时，将在南端恢复。滑翔机将在这一距离内提供几乎连续的海洋特性(温度、盐度和压力)覆盖。拟议的活动将涉及最先进的采样方法，这将彻底改变应对气候变化和其他科学问题的能力，这些问题需要采样密度，而这些是考察船无法实现的。具体地说，滑翔机的自适应采样能力将被用来改变其航线，从而能够识别海洋热量(和营养物质)的来源水进入大陆架区域的路线，而近连续的采样将提供标准船载站在多大程度上满足热量收支的诊断。由于罗格斯Slocum Web滑翔机、滑翔机控制中心的可用性以及第一个驾驶此类滑翔机的专家团队的参与，这项研究的资源充足。布罗德撞击。拟议的活动将促进发现和理解WAP对气候变异性的反应，研究与这种变异性相关的复杂反馈机制，并更好地了解与气候变化相关的化学和物理过程。这些数据将通过万维网提供，因为这些数据几乎是实时收集的，在即将到来的国际极地年为科学家们带来了潜在的财富，用于课堂教学和一般推广。社会最终将受益于更好地了解世界其他地方的气候变化如何影响南极独特的生态系统，并推动冰川融化(海平面上升)，以及其他影响。

The Antarctic Peninsula (AP) is characterized by (1) the most rapid recent regional (winter) warming (5.35 times global mean), (2) a loss of nearly all its perennial sea ice cover on its western margin, and (3) 87% of the glaciers in retreat, contributing to global sea level rise. An ability to understand this change depends upon researchers' ability to better understand the underlying sources of this change and their driving mechanisms. Despite intensive efforts, the western AP (WAP) is chronically under-sampled. Therefore developing a capability to maintain a sustained in situ presence is a high scientific priority. The current proposal addresses this critical need through 2 objectives: (1) establish the feasibility of a Slocum Webb ocean glider to enable real-time high resolution data-adaptive polar oceanographic research; (2) address a critical question involving the regional climate change by measuring the ocean heat budget within a grid containing 14 years of ship-based ocean snapshots. This will involve the launch of the glider during the PAL-LTER austral summer research cruise, where it will fly the full along-shore distance of the LTER sample grid to be recovered at the southern extreme when the ship arrives there later in the summer. The glider will provide nearly continuous ocean property (temperature, salinity and pressure) coverage over this distance.Intellectual merit. The proposed activity will involve state of the art sampling methodology that will revolutionize the ability to address climate change and other scientific issues requiring sampling densities that could not be achieved by research vessels. Specifically, the adaptive sampling capability of the glider will be used to alter its course allowing identification of routes by which the source waters of the ocean heat (and nutrients) enter the continental shelf region, while the near-continuous sampling will provide a diagnosis of how well standard shipborne stations close the heat budget. Resources are adequate for this study due to heavy leveraging by the availability of the Rutgers SLOCUM Web glider, glider control center and participation of the team of experts that flew the first such glider.Broader Impacts. The proposed activity will advance discovery and understanding of the WAP responses to climate variability, to study the intricate feedback mechanisms associated with this variability and to better understand the chemical and physical processes associated with climate change. The data will be made available across the World Wide Web as it is collected, almost in real time, a potential bonanza for scientists during the upcoming International Polar Year, for classroom instruction and general outreach. Society will ultimately benefit from the improved knowledge of how climate change elsewhere in the world is impacting the unique ecosystem of the Antarctic, and driving glacial melt (sea level rise), among its other influences.