High Latitude Air-Sea-Ice Dynamics and Interactions

在过去几十年中，越来越清楚的是，地球气候的变化正在对我们的社会结构以及支持生态系统产生巨大影响。这些变化在北方高纬度地区最为明显。例如，根据GISTEMP数据集，自20世纪80年代以来，全球年平均地表温度上升了约0.5oC;而在北极（北纬66度以北），上升幅度超过0.75oC。这种放大的北极变暖在冬季最大，增幅超过2.2摄氏度。 正如人们所预料的那样，这导致了北极气候系统的重大变化。除了广泛报道的北极海冰范围缩小之外，还有一种趋势是冰层变得更薄、更年轻和更移动的，这对北极和中纬度地区都有广泛的影响。特别令人感兴趣的是加拿大北极群岛以北的地区，预计该地区将是最后一个失去常年冰盖的地区，从而为依赖冰的物种提供了重要的避难所。最近，该地区发生了一些极端事件，这表明该地区的冰比以前认为的更有活力，导致我们对该地区气候的知识和稳定性产生了更多的担忧。虽然南极没有明显的变暖，但过去几年发生了一些异常事件，例如威德尔海冰穴40年后的回归，以及自20世纪70年代末微波卫星记录开始以来的最低海冰范围。我的研究目标是重点了解重要的高纬度气候过程的变化，涉及大气，海洋和冰冻圈之间的相互作用。 在这个计划的过程中，我的研究小组收集和解释这些过程的数据，并使用它们沿着遥感数据，数值模型和再分析数据集，以描述正在发生的变化。 将通过该赠款接受培训的个人将获得关于气候变化动态的知识以及生成和解释大型复杂地球物理数据集的经验，这将为他们提供一套技术技能，使他们能够为描述和适应我们不断变化的气候，特别是加拿大北部气候变化的努力做出贡献。

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.