Articles | Volume 19, issue 6
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-19-1649-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-19-1649-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
29 Nov 2023
Research article |
| 29 Nov 2023
| 29 Nov 2023
Response of the Arctic sea ice–ocean system to meltwater perturbations based on a one-dimensional model study
Haohao Zhang
Key Laboratory of Marine Hazards Forecasting, Ministry of Natural Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210024, China
College of Oceanography, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210024, China
Xuezhi Bai
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Key Laboratory of Marine Hazards Forecasting, Ministry of Natural Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210024, China
College of Oceanography, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210024, China
Kaiwen Wang
Key Laboratory of Marine Hazards Forecasting, Ministry of Natural Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210024, China
College of Oceanography, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210024, China
Related authors
Haohao Zhang, Andrea Storto, Xuezhi Bai, and Chunxue Yang
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3030, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3030, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Using a 1D coupled ice-ocean model, we quantified the effects of meltwater and ice-albedo feedback independently. The meltwater reduces melting by 19 % through thermal isolation, while ice-albedo feedback increases melting by 41 %, with nonlinear coupling between them. In winter, meltwater protects ice in weakly stratified areas by blocking Atlantic heat. Our study provides new insights into the relative importance of different components in the Arctic ice-ocean system.
Haohao Zhang, Andrea Storto, Xuezhi Bai, and Chunxue Yang
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3030, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3030, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Using a 1D coupled ice-ocean model, we quantified the effects of meltwater and ice-albedo feedback independently. The meltwater reduces melting by 19 % through thermal isolation, while ice-albedo feedback increases melting by 41 %, with nonlinear coupling between them. In winter, meltwater protects ice in weakly stratified areas by blocking Atlantic heat. Our study provides new insights into the relative importance of different components in the Arctic ice-ocean system.
Cited articles
Bintanja, R. and Selten, F. M.: Future increases in Arctic precipitation linked to local evaporation and sea-ice retreat, Nature, 509, 479–482, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13259, 2014.
Bintanja, R., van Oldenborgh, G. J., Drijfhout, S. S., Wouters, B., and Katsman, C. A.: Important role for ocean warming and increased ice-shelf melt in Antarctic sea-ice expansion, Nat. Geosci., 6, 376–379, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1767, 2013.
Bitz, C. M. and Lipscomb, W. H.: An energy-conserving thermodynamic model of sea ice, J. Geophys. Res., 104, 15669–15677, https://doi.org/10.1029/1999JC900100, 1999.
Bitz, C. M., Battisti, D. S., Moritz, R. E., and Beesley, J. A.: Low-Frequency Variability in the Arctic Atmosphere, Sea Ice, and Upper-Ocean Climate System, J. Climate, 9, 394–408, 1996.
Björk, G.: Dependence of the Arctic Ocean ice thickness distribution on the poleward energy flux in the atmosphere, J. Geophys. Res., 107, 3173, https://doi.org/10.1029/2000JC000723, 2002a.
Björk, G.: Return of the cold halocline layer to the Amundsen Basin of the Arctic Ocean: Implications for the sea ice mass balance, Geophys. Res. Lett., 29, 1513, https://doi.org/10.1029/2001GL014157, 2002b.
Carmack, E., Polyakov, I., Padman, L., Fer, I., Hunke, E., Hutchings, J., Jackson, J., Kelley, D., Kwok, R., Layton, C., Melling, H., Perovich, D., Persson, O., Ruddick, B., Timmermans, M.-L., Toole, J., Ross, T., Vavrus, S., and Winsor, P.: Toward Quantifying the Increasing Role of Oceanic Heat in Sea Ice Loss in the New Arctic, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 96, 2079–2105, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-13-00177.1, 2015.
Carmack, E. C., Yamamoto-Kawai, M., Haine, T. W. N., Bacon, S., Bluhm, B. A., Lique, C., Melling, H., Polyakov, I. V., Straneo, F., Timmermans, M.-L., and Williams, W. J.: Freshwater and its role in the Arctic Marine System: Sources, disposition, storage, export, and physical and biogeochemical consequences in the Arctic and global oceans, J. Geophys. Res.-Biogeo., 121, 675–717, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JG003140, 2016.
Davis, P. E. D., Lique, C., Johnson, H. L., and Guthrie, J. D.: Competing Effects of Elevated Vertical Mixing and Increased Freshwater Input on the Stratification and Sea Ice Cover in a Changing Arctic Ocean, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 46, 1531–1553, https://doi.org/10.1175/JPO-D-15-0174.1, 2016.
Fer, I.: Weak Vertical Diffusion Allows Maintenance of Cold Halocline in the Central Arctic, Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters, 2, 148–152, https://doi.org/10.1080/16742834.2009.11446789, 2009.
Haine, T. W. N. and Martin, T.: The Arctic-Subarctic sea ice system is entering a seasonal regime: Implications for future Arctic amplification, Sci. Rep., 7, 4618, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-04573-0, 2017.
Haine, T. W. N., Curry, B., Gerdes, R., Hansen, E., Karcher, M., Lee, C., Rudels, B., Spreen, G., De Steur, L., Stewart, K. D., and Woodgate, R.: Arctic freshwater export: Status, mechanisms, and prospects, Global Planet. Change, 125, 13–35, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2014.11.013, 2015.
Hansen, J., Russell, G., Rind, D., Stone, P., Lacis, A., Lebedeff, S., Ruedy, R., and Travis, L.: Efficient Three-Dimensional Global Models for Climate Studies: Models I and II, Mon. Weather Rev., 111, 609–662, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0493(1983)111<0609:ETDGMF>2.0.CO;2, 1983.
Hordoir, R., Skagseth, Ø., Ingvaldsen, R. B., Sandø, A. B., Löptien, U., Dietze, H., Gierisch, A. M. U., Assmann, K. M., Lundesgaard, Ø., and Lind, S.: Changes in Arctic Stratification and MLD Cycle: A Modeling Analysis, JGR Oceans, 127, https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JC017270, 2022.
Jackett, D. R. and McDougall, T. J.: Minimal Adjustment of Hydrographic Profiles to Achieve Static Stability, J. Atmos. Ocean. Tech., 12, 381, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0426(1995)012<0381:MAOHPT>2.0.CO;2, 1995.
Jackson, J. M., Carmack, E. C., McLaughlin, F. A., Allen, S. E., and Ingram, R. G.: Identification, characterization, and change of the near-surface temperature maximum in the Canada Basin, 1993–2008, J. Geophys. Res., 115, C05021, https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JC005265, 2010.
Jackson, J. M., Williams, W. J., and Carmack, E. C.: Winter sea-ice melt in the Canada Basin, Arctic Ocean: Winter Sea – ice melt Canada basin, Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L03603, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011GL050219, 2012.
Kanamitsu, M., Ebisuzaki, W., Woollen, J., Yang, S.-K., Hnilo, J. J., Fiorino, M., and Potter, G. L.: NCEP–DOE AMIP-II Reanalysis (R-2), B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 83, 1631–1644, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-83-11-1631, 2002 (data available at: https://psl.noaa.gov/data/gridded/data.ncep.reanalysis2.html).
Krishfield, R., Toole, J., Proshutinsky, A., and Timmermans, M.-L.: Automated Ice-Tethered Profilers for Seawater Observations under Pack Ice in All Seasons, J. Atmos. Ocean. Tech., 25, 2091–2105, https://doi.org/10.1175/2008JTECHO587.1, 2008.
Large, W. G., McWilliams, J. C., and Doney, S. C.: Oceanic vertical mixing: A review and a model with a nonlocal boundary layer parameterization, Rev. Geophys., 32, 363, https://doi.org/10.1029/94RG01872, 1994.
Linders, J. and Björk, G.: The melt-freeze cycle of the Arctic Ocean ice cover and its dependence on ocean stratification, J. Geophys. Res.-Oceans, 118, 5963–5976, https://doi.org/10.1002/jgrc.20409, 2013.
Losch, M., Menemenlis, D., Campin, J.-M., Heimbach, P., and Hill, C.: On the formulation of sea-ice models. Part 1: Effects of different solver implementations and parameterizations, Ocean Model., 33, 129–144, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocemod.2009.12.008, 2010.
Marshall, J., Hill, C., Perelman, L., and Adcroft, A.: Hydrostatic, quasi-hydrostatic, and nonhydrostatic ocean modeling, J. Geophys. Res., 102, 5733–5752, https://doi.org/10.1029/96JC02776, 1997.
Martinson, D. G. and Steele, M.: Future of the Arctic sea ice cover: Implications of an Antarctic analog, Geophys. Res. Lett., 28, 307–310, https://doi.org/10.1029/2000GL011549, 2001.
McClelland, J. W., Holmes, R. M., Dunton, K. H., and Macdonald, R. W.: The Arctic Ocean Estuary, Estuar. Coast., 35, 353–368, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-010-9357-3, 2012.
Nummelin, A., Li, C., and Smedsrud, L. H.: Response of Arctic Ocean stratification to changing river runoff in a column model, J. Geophys. Res.-Oceans, 120, 2655–2675, https://doi.org/10.1002/2014JC010571, 2015.
Nummelin, A., Ilicak, M., Li, C., and Smedsrud, L. H.: Consequences of future increased Arctic runoff on Arctic Ocean stratification, circulation, and sea ice cover, J. Geophys. Res.-Oceans, 121, 617–637, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JC011156, 2016.
Pemberton, P. and Nilsson, J.: The response of the central Arctic Ocean stratification to freshwater perturbations, J. Geophys. Res.-Oceans, 121, 792–817, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JC011003, 2016.
Peralta-Ferriz, C. and Woodgate, R. A.: Seasonal and interannual variability of pan-Arctic surface ML properties from 1979 to 2012 from hydrographic data, and the dominance of stratification for multiyear MLD shoaling, Prog. Oceanogr., 134, 19–53, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2014.12.005, 2015.
Perovich, D., Meier, W., Tschudi, M., Hendricks, S., Petty, A. A., Divine, D., Farrell, S., Gerland, S., Haas, C., Kaleschke, L., Pavlova, O., Ricker, R., Tian-Kunze, X., Wood, K., and Webster, M.: Arctic Report Card 2020: Sea Ice, https://doi.org/10.25923/N170-9H57, 2020.
Perovich, D. K., Richter-Menge, J. A., Jones, K. F., Light, B., Elder, B. C., Polashenski, C., Laroche, D., Markus, T., and Lindsay, R.: Arctic sea-ice melt in 2008 and the role of solar heating, Ann. Glaciol., 52, 355–359, https://doi.org/10.3189/172756411795931714, 2011.
Peterson, B. J., Holmes, R. M., McClelland, J. W., Vörösmarty, C. J., Lammers, R. B., Shiklomanov, A. I., Shiklomanov, I. A., and Rahmstorf, S.: Increasing River Discharge to the Arctic Ocean, Science, 298, 2171–2173, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1077445, 2002.
Polyakov, I. V., Timokhov, L. A., Alexeev, V. A., Bacon, S., Dmitrenko, I. A., Fortier, L., Frolov, I. E., Gascard, J.-C., Hansen, E., Ivanov, V. V., Laxon, S., Mauritzen, C., Perovich, D., Shimada, K., Simmons, H. L., Sokolov, V. T., Steele, M., and Toole, J.: Arctic Ocean Warming Contributes to Reduced Polar Ice Cap, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 40, 2743–2756, https://doi.org/10.1175/2010JPO4339.1, 2010.
Polyakov, I., Pnyushkov, A., Rember, R., Padman, L., Carmack, E., and Jackson, J.: Winter Convection Transports Atlantic Water Heat to the Surface Layer in the Eastern Arctic Ocean, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 43, 2142–2155, https://doi.org/10.1175/JPO-D-12-0169.1, 2013a.
Polyakov, I. V., Bhatt, U. S., Walsh, J. E., Abrahamsen, E. P., Pnyushkov, A. V., and Wassmann, P. F.: Recent oceanic changes in the Arctic in the context of long-term observations, Ecol. Appl., 23, 1745–1764, https://doi.org/10.1890/11-0902.1, 2013b.
Price, J. F., Weller, R. A., and Pinkel, R.: Diurnal cycling: Observations and models of the upper ocean response to diurnal heating, cooling, and wind mixing, J. Geophys. Res., 91, 8411, https://doi.org/10.1029/JC091iC07p08411, 1986.
Rawlins, M. A., Steele, M., Holland, M. M., Adam, J. C., Cherry, J. E., Francis, J. A., Groisman, P. Y., Hinzman, L. D., Huntington, T. G., Kane, D. L., Kimball, J. S., Kwok, R., Lammers, R. B., Lee, C. M., Lettenmaier, D. P., McDonald, K. C., Podest, E., Pundsack, J. W., Rudels, B., Serreze, M. C., Shiklomanov, A., Skagseth, Ø., Troy, T. J., Vörösmarty, C. J., Wensnahan, M., Wood, E. F., Woodgate, R., Yang, D., Zhang, K., and Zhang, T.: Analysis of the Arctic System for Freshwater Cycle Intensification: Observations and Expectations, J. Climate, 23, 5715–5737, https://doi.org/10.1175/2010JCLI3421.1, 2010.
Rudels, B.: Arctic Ocean circulation, processes and water masses: A description of observations and ideas with focus on the period prior to the International Polar Year 2007–2009, Prog. Oceanogr., 132, 22–67, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2013.11.006, 2015.
Rudels, B., Anderson, L. G., and Jones, E. P.: Formation and evolution of the surface ML and halocline of the Arctic Ocean, J. Geophys. Res., 101, 8807–8821, https://doi.org/10.1029/96JC00143, 1996.
Rudels, B., Björk, G., Nilsson, J., Winsor, P., Lake, I., and Nohr, C.: The interaction between waters from the Arctic Ocean and the Nordic Seas north of Fram Strait and along the East Greenland Current: results from the Arctic Ocean-02 Oden expedition, J. Marine Syst., 55, 1–30, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmarsys.2004.06.008, 2005.
Shaw, W. J. and Stanton, T. P.: Vertical diffusivity of the Western Arctic Ocean halocline, J. Geophys. Res.-Oceans, 119, 5017–5038, https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JC009598, 2014.
Shaw, W. J., Stanton, T. P., McPhee, M. G., Morison, J. H., and Martinson, D. G.: Role of the upper ocean in the energy budget of Arctic sea ice during SHEBA, J. Geophys. Res., 114, C06012, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JC004991, 2009.
Shimada, K., Carmack, E. C., Hatakeyama, K., and Takizawa, T.: Varieties of shallow temperature maximum waters in the Western Canadian Basin of the Arctic Ocean, Geophys. Res. Lett., 28, 3441–3444, https://doi.org/10.1029/2001GL013168, 2001.
Smith, M., Stammerjohn, S., Persson, O., Rainville, L., Liu, G., Perrie, W., Robertson, R., Jackson, J., and Thomson, J.: Episodic Reversal of Autumn Ice Advance Caused by Release of Ocean Heat in the Beaufort Sea, J. Geophys. Res.-Oceans, 123, 3164–3185, https://doi.org/10.1002/2018JC013764, 2018.
Steele, M.: Salinity trends on the Siberian shelves, Geophys. Res. Lett., 31, L24308, https://doi.org/10.1029/2004GL021302, 2004.
Steele, M. and Boyd, T.: Retreat of the cold halocline layer in the Arctic Ocean, J. Geophys. Res., 103, 10419–10435, https://doi.org/10.1029/98JC00580, 1998.
Steele, M., Zhang, J., and Ermold, W.: Mechanisms of summertime upper Arctic Ocean warming and the effect on sea ice melt, J. Geophys. Res., 115, C11004, https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JC005849, 2010.
Steele, M., Ermold, W., and Zhang, J.: Modeling the formation and fate of the near-surface temperature maximum in the Canadian Basin of the Arctic Ocean, J. Geophys. Res., 116, 2010JC006803, https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JC006803, 2011.
Timmermans, M.-L.: The impact of stored solar heat on Arctic Sea ice growth: stored solar heat impacts sea ice growth, Geophys. Res. Lett., 42, 6399–6406, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015GL064541, 2015.
Toole, J., Krishfield, R., Timmermans, M.-L., and Proshutinsky, A.: The Ice-Tethered Profiler: Argo of the Arctic, Oceanography, 24, 126–135, https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2011.64, 2011.
Toole, J. M., Timmermans, M. -L., Perovich, D. K., Krishfield, R. A., Proshutinsky, A., and Richter-Menge, J. A.: Influences of the ocean surface ML and thermohaline stratification on Arctic Sea ice in the central Canada Basin, J. Geophys. Res., 115, 2009JC005660, https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JC005660, 2010.
Toole, J. M., Krishfield, R. A., O’Brien, J. K., Houk, A., Cole, S. T., and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Ice-Tethered Profiler Program: Ice-Tethered Profiler observations: Vertical profiles of temperature, salinity, oxygen, and ocean velocity from an Ice-Tethered buoy system, NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information [data set], https://doi.org/10.7289/v5mw2f7x, 2016.
Turner, J. S.: The Melting of Ice in the Arctic Ocean: The Influence of Double-Diffusive Transport of Heat from Below, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 40, 249–256, https://doi.org/10.1175/2009JPO4279.1, 2010.
Wang, Q., Wekerle, C., Danilov, S., Sidorenko, D., Koldunov, N., Sein, D., Rabe, B., and Jung, T.: Recent Sea Ice Decline Did Not Significantly Increase the Total Liquid Freshwater Content of the Arctic Ocean, J. Climate, 32, 15–32, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-18-0237.1, 2019.
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: Data, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution [data set], https://www2.whoi.edu/site/itp/data, last access: 28 November 2023.
Winton, M.: A Reformulated Three-Layer Sea Ice Model, J. Atmos. Ocean. Tech., 17, 525–531, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0426(2000)017<0525:ARTLSI>2.0.CO;2, 2000.
Zhang, J.: Increasing Antarctic Sea Ice under Warming Atmospheric and Oceanic Conditions, J. Climate, 20, 2515–2529, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI4136.1, 2007.
Zhang, H., Bai, X., and Wang, K.: Response of the Arctic sea ice–ocean system to meltwater perturbations based on a one-dimensional model study, Zenodo [code], https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10208222, 2023.
Zhong, W., Cole, S. T., Zhang, J., Lei, R., and Steele, M.: Increasing Winter Ocean-to-Ice Heat Flux in the Beaufort Gyre Region, Arctic Ocean Over 2006–2018, Geophys. Res. Lett., 49, e2021GL096216, https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL096216, 2022.
Short summary
Meltwater is a critical factor affecting the upper Arctic Ocean, but there has been little research on its specific effects. By artificially removing meltwater from a column model, we found that reducing meltwater weakened ocean stratification and increased summer sea ice melting. The role of meltwater in winter sea ice formation varies by region – removing meltwater increased winter sea ice formation in areas with strong stratification, while decreasing it in areas with weak stratification.
Meltwater is a critical factor affecting the upper Arctic Ocean, but there has been little...
