Collaborative Research: Modeling Giant Icebergs and Their Decay

冰山是南极气候系统的一个组成部分，但在气候模型中对其动态的全面表示仍然是难以捉摸的。在全球气候模型（GCM）中代表冰山的作用对科学界构成了巨大的挑战。目前冰山模型最显著的缺点是它们不能代表巨大的平板冰山，尽管巨大的冰山携带着南大洋冰山中储存的大部分淡水。模型中缺少大冰山主要是由于与充分模拟冰山衰变相关的困难。特别是，断裂和解体通常不被认为是冰山模型，尽管占主导地位的冰山衰变过程。调查人员将使用冰山模型的层次结构来解决这些问题，从理想化的分析模型到综合的GCM，并与最近的观测数据相结合。这项研究的主要目标是开发一个新的冰山模型，（一）帐户的冰山解体和断裂过程中，已被忽视的日期，（二）改进的代表性的冰山衰变过程中，被认为是在以前的模型，（三）明确表示大型板状冰山。拟议的工作的主要更广泛的影响将是通过一个K-12教师研讨会系列展示这个项目作为一个例子，科学家如何开发物理模型。加州K-12科学标准的持续变化将使教师能够在课堂上创造性地使用这些材料。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

Icebergs are a component of the Antarctic climate system, yet a comprehensive representation of their dynamics in climate models has remained elusive. Representing the role of icebergs in global climate models (GCMs) poses a formidable challenge to the scientific community. The most striking shortcoming of current iceberg models is arguably that they do not represent giant tabular icebergs, even though giant icebergs carry most of the freshwater stored in icebergs in the Southern Ocean. This lack of large icebergs in models is mostly due to the difficulties associated with adequately modeling iceberg decay. In particular, fracturing and breakup are not typically considered in iceberg models, despite being dominant iceberg decay processes. Investigators are to address these issues using a hierarchy of iceberg models, ranging from an idealized analytical model to a comprehensive GCM, in concert with recent observational data. The main objective of this study is to develop a new iceberg model that:(i) accounts for iceberg breakup and fracturing processes that have been neglected to date,(ii) improves on the representation of iceberg decay processes that were considered in previous models,(iii) explicitly represents large tabular icebergs.The primary broader impact of the proposed work will be through a K-12 teacher workshop series showcasing this project as an example of how scientists develop physical models. Ongoing changes in the California K-12 science standards will enable the teachers to creatively use this material in their classrooms.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.