Puddles on a Frozen Ocean: The Role of Meltwater in the Arctic Sea Ice Pack
NSIDC Cryosphere Seminar with Dr. Maddie Smith of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Wednesday, June 11 from 11:00 am-12 noon
Zoom link: https://cuboulder.zoom.us/j/94492027114
Title:
Puddles on a Frozen Ocean: The Role of Meltwater in the Arctic Sea Ice Pack
Abstract:
Dramatic changes in Arctic sea ice extent and volume in recent decades have altered its seasonal growth and melt cycle. During the Arctic summer, the rapid melt of snow and sea ice introduces significant amounts of low-salinity meltwater to the surface ocean on a local scale. However, the fate of this meltwater and its broader impacts on the Arctic system remain key questions.
Here, we summarize recent findings on meltwater formation and distribution, with a focus on observations from the Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition in summer 2020. Meltwater accumulates in thin layers on, beneath, and around sea ice floes?features that are likely widespread yet often undetected by standard methods. Meltwater budget calculations indicate that these layers constitute less than a quarter of the total freshwater produced but have significant physical impacts. They reduce bottom ice melt, initiate new ice formation, and inhibit atmosphere-ocean exchanges of momentum, energy, and materials, potentially altering Arctic system dynamics.
As meltwater fluxes are expected to increase in the central Arctic Basin and decrease along its margins, further research is needed to understand their role in upper ocean freshening and Arctic climate change.
Short Bio: Dr. Maddie Smith is an Assistant Scientist in the Applied Ocean Physics & Engineering Department at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Motivated by the loss of sea ice in a rapidly changing climate, her research uses observations and modeling approaches to understand how sea ice interacts with the ocean. Maddie completed her PhD in Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Washington, exploring the role of surface waves and turbulence in the autumn Arctic Ocean, and her B.A. in Earth & Oceanographic Studies and Environmental Science from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine.