Import of Atlantic Water and sea ice controls the ocean environment in the northern Barents Sea

Lundesgaard, Øyvind; Sundfjord, Arild; Lind, Sigrid; Nilsen, Frank; Renner, Angelika H. H.

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1389-2022

Articles | Volume 18, issue 5

https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1389-2022

© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-1389-2022

© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 18, issue 5

Research article

|

22 Sep 2022

Research article |

| 22 Sep 2022

Import of Atlantic Water and sea ice controls the ocean environment in the northern Barents Sea

Øyvind Lundesgaard, Arild Sundfjord, Sigrid Lind, Frank Nilsen, and Angelika H. H. Renner

Data sets

Mooring data Lundesgaard and Sundfjord https://doi.org/10.21334/npolar.2022.1a68b156

Shipboard CTD data Sundfjord https://doi.org/10.21335/NMDC-2135074338

Short summary

In this study, 2-year mooring observations show the evolution of temperature, salinity, and currents in the northern Barents Sea. Inflow of Atlantic Water from the north in autumn and winter was the main driver of the seasonal cycle in the ocean. Winds modulated the inflow on shorter timescales. The upper-ocean state reflected how much sea ice had previously melted in the area. The import of ocean water and sea ice from adjacent regions plays a key role in the complex air–ice–ocean interplay.