Articles | Volume 19, issue 6
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-19-1791-2023
© 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-19-1791-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
14 Dec 2023
Research article |
| 14 Dec 2023
| 14 Dec 2023
Southern Weddell Sea surface freshwater flux modulated by icescape and atmospheric forcing
Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
Ralph Timmermann
Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
Stephan Paul
Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
Department of Aerospace and Geodesy, TUM School of Engineering and Design, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
Rolf Zentek
Environmental Meteorology, University of Trier, Trier, Germany
Günther Heinemann
Environmental Meteorology, University of Trier, Trier, Germany
Torsten Kanzow
Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
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Gerrit Lohmann, Almut Brunner, Gesine Mollenhauer, Christian Haas, Thomas Laepple, Torsten Kanzow, Ilka Weikusat, Monica Ionita, Olaf Eisen, Florian Adolphi, Vera S. N. Schlindwein, Angelika Humbert, Karsten Gohl, Juliane Müller, Klaus Grosfeld, Johann P. Klages, Frank Lamy, Lu Niu, Gregor Knorr, Walter Geibert, Maria Hoerhold, Ingo Sasgen, Daniela Jansen, Rebecca McPherson, Junjie Wu, Xinyue Li, Thomas Krumpen, Hanna Knahl, Helge Goessling, Renate Treffeisen, Peter Köhler, and Thomas Jung
Polarforschung, 94, 69–95, https://doi.org/10.5194/polf-94-69-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/polf-94-69-2026, 2026
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This paper reviews how the Alfred Wegener Institute studies changes in the ocean and the polar ice regions under climate warming. We bring together results from field observations, laboratory work, and computer models to show how melting ice and changing seas affect global climate and sea level. By combining many approaches, we identify key advances, remaining gaps, and future priorities. Integrating these methods improves our ability to project future climate change and guide decision-making.
Daniel M. C. Santos, Mathias Van Caspel, Ralph Timmermann, and Olga T. Sato
Ocean Sci., 22, 3079–3104, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-22-3079-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-22-3079-2026, 2026
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Numerical ocean models struggle to reproduce abyssal water properties and the northward spreading of cold, dense water from the Southern Ocean. We tested whether finer vertical or horizontal grid spacing improves performance. Adding more vertical layers near the seafloor improves how models represent cold abyssal water and inter-basin pathways. Finer horizontal spacing alone degrades abyssal properties. Combining both refinements better captures abyssal water mass structure in narrow passages.
Ronja Reese, Nicolas C. Jourdain, Xylar S. Asay-Davis, Clara Burgard, Erwin Lambert, Yoshihiro Nakayama, Paul R. Holland, Kaitlin A. Naughten, Ralph Timmermann, Pierre Dutrieux, Shenjie Zhou, Golsa Talebigheshlaghi, and Yanmei Tian
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5337, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5337, 2026
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An important factor in projections of the Antarctic contribution to future sea level rise is the Southern Ocean. The Ice Sheet Model Intercomparison Project for CMIP7 aims to provide ice sheet projections, and here we introduce the protocol for handling the ocean in Antarctica. It describes how ocean changes from global atmosphere-ocean models can be used in Antarctic simulations and how ocean conditions can be translated into melt rates, taking into account oceanographic knowledge.
Torsten Kanzow, Rebecca A. McPherson, Claudia Wekerle, Wilken-Jon von Appen, Oliver Huhn, Donald A. Slater, and Andreas Münchow
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5184, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5184, 2026
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Atlantic Water (AW) delivers heat to glaciers in Greenland, thereby causing melt. We reveal a cooling of the AW entering the world's largest fjord system, Kangertittivaq (East Greenland), after 2018. The cooling is present on the entire Northeast Greenland shelf, driven by cooling in the Nordic Seas. In the fjord, summertime glacier meltwater drives the flow of AW towards the prominent Daugaard Jensen Glacier. The cooling is as strong as the warming of AW at the fjord over the past half century.
Umesh Dubey, Sascha Willmes, and Günther Heinemann
The Cryosphere, 20, 4017–4035, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-4017-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-4017-2026, 2026
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Cracks and openings in sea ice, called leads, play an important role in regulating heat exchange between ocean and atmosphere, affecting global climate patterns. This study used a machine learning model trained on wintertime data from 2003 to 2023 to identify the key drivers of leads across the Southern Ocean and sub-regions. The analysis shows that directional wind components, ocean currents and ice divergence are the primary drivers, though their importance differs across regions and seasons.
Claire K. Yung, Xylar S. Asay-Davis, Alistair Adcroft, Christopher Y. S. Bull, Jan De Rydt, Michael S. Dinniman, Benjamin K. Galton-Fenzi, Daniel Goldberg, David E. Gwyther, Robert Hallberg, Matthew Harrison, Tore Hattermann, David M. Holland, Denise Holland, Paul R. Holland, James R. Jordan, Nicolas C. Jourdain, Kazuya Kusahara, Gustavo Marques, Pierre Mathiot, Dimitris Menemenlis, Adele K. Morrison, Yoshihiro Nakayama, Olga Sergienko, Robin S. Smith, Alon Stern, Ralph Timmermann, and Qin Zhou
The Cryosphere, 20, 2053–2088, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-2053-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-2053-2026, 2026
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The second Ice Shelf-Ocean Model Intercomparison Project, ISOMIP+, compares 12 ice shelf-ocean models with a common, idealised, static configuration, aiming to assess inter-model variability. Models show similar basal melt rate patterns, ocean profiles and circulation but differ in ice-ocean boundary layer properties. Ice-ocean boundary layer representation is a key area for future work, as are realistic-domain ice sheet-ocean model intercomparisons.
Ida Lundtorp Olsen, Henriette Skourup, Heidi Sallila, Stefan Hendricks, Renée Mie Fredensborg Hansen, Stefan Kern, Stephan Paul, Marion Bocquet, Sara Fleury, Dmitry Divine, and Eero Rinne
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 18, 2469–2505, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-2469-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-2469-2026, 2026
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Discover the latest advancements in sea ice research with our comprehensive Climate Change Initiative (CCI) sea ice thickness (SIT) Round Robin Data Package (RRDP). This pioneering collection contains reference measurements from 1960 to 2024 from airborne sensors, buoys, visual observations and sonar and covers the polar regions from 1993 to 2024, providing crucial reference measurements for validating satellite-derived sea ice thickness.
Alejandra Quintanilla-Zurita, Benjamin Rabe, Claudia Wekerle, Torsten Kanzow, Ivan Kuznetsov, Sinhue Torres-Valdes, Enric Pallàs-Sanz, and Ying-Chih Fang
Ocean Sci., 22, 305–328, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-22-305-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-22-305-2026, 2026
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During a year-long Arctic expedition, we discovered nine underwater eddies beneath the sea ice in the central Arctic Ocean. These hidden structures form within a layered part of the ocean just below the surface and may reshape water layers and transport heat, freshwater, and nutrients. Using drifting ice platforms, we measured their size, depth, and motion to understand how they form.
Benjamin K. Galton-Fenzi, Richard Porter-Smith, Sue Cook, Eva Cougnon, David E. Gwyther, Wilma G. C. Huneke, Madelaine G. Rosevear, Xylar Asay-Davis, Fabio Boeira Dias, Michael S. Dinniman, David Holland, Kazuya Kusahara, Kaitlin A. Naughten, Keith W. Nicholls, Charles Pelletier, Ole Richter, Hélène Seroussi, and Ralph Timmermann
The Cryosphere, 19, 6507–6525, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-6507-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-6507-2025, 2025
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Quantifying melt and freeze beneath Antarctica’s floating ice shelves is vital to understanding present-day ice-sheet behavior and its potential to contribute to future sea-level rise. We compare 10 ice-shelf/ocean computer simulations with satellite data, providing the first multi-model estimate of melting and refreezing driven by the ocean. This new estimate offers a valuable tool for assessing ice-shelf roles in current and future ice-sheet changes, informing coastal adaptation strategies.
Umesh Dubey, Sascha Willmes, and Günther Heinemann
The Cryosphere, 19, 3535–3552, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-3535-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-3535-2025, 2025
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Sea-ice leads facilitate the exchange of heat and moisture between the ocean and the atmosphere during wintertime. We present a new dataset on monthly wintertime sea-ice leads in the Southern Ocean from 2003 to 2023. Our study reveals distinct regional patterns, seasonal variability, and small but significant trends. Here, we present initial findings on Southern Ocean lead dynamics to support future research into the complex pan-Antarctic interactions among sea ice, ocean, and atmosphere.
Vanessa Teske, Ralph Timmermann, Cara Nissen, Rolf Zentek, Tido Semmler, and Günther Heinemann
Ocean Sci., 21, 1205–1221, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-1205-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-1205-2025, 2025
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We investigate the structural changes the Antarctic Slope Front in the southern Weddell Sea experiences in a warming climate by conducting two ocean simulations driven by atmospheric data of different horizontal resolutions. Cross-slope currents associated with a regime shift from a cold to a warm Filchner Trough on the continental shelf temporarily disturb the structure of the slope front and reduce its depth, but the primary reason for a regime shift is the cross-slope density gradient.
Ole Richter, Ralph Timmermann, G. Hilmar Gudmundsson, and Jan De Rydt
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 2945–2960, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-2945-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-2945-2025, 2025
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The new coupled ice sheet–ocean model addresses challenges related to horizontal resolution through advanced mesh flexibility, enabled by the use of unstructured grids. We describe the new model, verify its functioning in an idealised setting and demonstrate its advantages in a global-ocean–Antarctic ice sheet domain. The results of this study comprise an important step towards improving predictions of the Antarctic contribution to sea level rise over centennial timescales.
Torsten Kanzow, Angelika Humbert, Thomas Mölg, Mirko Scheinert, Matthias Braun, Hans Burchard, Francesca Doglioni, Philipp Hochreuther, Martin Horwath, Oliver Huhn, Maria Kappelsberger, Jürgen Kusche, Erik Loebel, Katrina Lutz, Ben Marzeion, Rebecca McPherson, Mahdi Mohammadi-Aragh, Marco Möller, Carolyne Pickler, Markus Reinert, Monika Rhein, Martin Rückamp, Janin Schaffer, Muhammad Shafeeque, Sophie Stolzenberger, Ralph Timmermann, Jenny Turton, Claudia Wekerle, and Ole Zeising
The Cryosphere, 19, 1789–1824, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-1789-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-1789-2025, 2025
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The Greenland Ice Sheet represents the second-largest contributor to global sea-level rise. We quantify atmosphere, ice and ocean processes related to the mass balance of glaciers in northeast Greenland, focusing on Greenland’s largest floating ice tongue, the 79° N Glacier. We find that together, the different in situ and remote sensing observations and model simulations reveal a consistent picture of a coupled atmosphere–ice sheet–ocean system that has entered a phase of major change.
Ole Pinner, Friederike Pollmann, Markus Janout, Gunnar Voet, and Torsten Kanzow
Ocean Sci., 21, 701–726, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-701-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-701-2025, 2025
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The Weddell Sea Bottom Water gravity current transports dense water from the continental shelf to the deep sea and is crucial for the formation of new deep-sea water. Building on vertical profiles and time series measured in the northwestern Weddell Sea, we apply three methods to distinguish turbulence caused by internal waves from that by other sources. We find that in the upper part of the gravity current, internal waves are important for the mixing of less dense water down into the current.
Jan De Rydt, Nicolas C. Jourdain, Yoshihiro Nakayama, Mathias van Caspel, Ralph Timmermann, Pierre Mathiot, Xylar S. Asay-Davis, Hélène Seroussi, Pierre Dutrieux, Ben Galton-Fenzi, David Holland, and Ronja Reese
Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 7105–7139, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-7105-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-7105-2024, 2024
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Global climate models do not reliably simulate sea-level change due to ice-sheet–ocean interactions. We propose a community modelling effort to conduct a series of well-defined experiments to compare models with observations and study how models respond to a range of perturbations in climate and ice-sheet geometry. The second Marine Ice Sheet–Ocean Model Intercomparison Project will continue to lay the groundwork for including ice-sheet–ocean interactions in global-scale IPCC-class models.
Ole Zeising, Niklas Neckel, Nils Dörr, Veit Helm, Daniel Steinhage, Ralph Timmermann, and Angelika Humbert
The Cryosphere, 18, 1333–1357, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1333-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1333-2024, 2024
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The 79° North Glacier in Greenland has experienced significant changes over the last decades. Due to extreme melt rates, the ice has thinned significantly in the vicinity of the grounding line, where a large subglacial channel has formed since 2010. We attribute these changes to warm ocean currents and increased subglacial discharge from surface melt. However, basal melting has decreased since 2018, indicating colder water inflow into the cavity below the glacier.
Cara Nissen, Ralph Timmermann, Mathias van Caspel, and Claudia Wekerle
Ocean Sci., 20, 85–101, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-20-85-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-20-85-2024, 2024
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The southeastern Weddell Sea is important for global ocean circulation due to the cross-shelf-break exchange of Dense Shelf Water and Warm Deep Water, but their exact circulation pathways remain elusive. Using Lagrangian model experiments in an eddy-permitting ocean model, we show how present circulation pathways and transit times of these water masses on the continental shelf are altered by 21st-century climate change, which has implications for local ice-shelf basal melt rates and ecosystems.
Verena Haid, Ralph Timmermann, Özgür Gürses, and Hartmut H. Hellmer
Ocean Sci., 19, 1529–1544, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-19-1529-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-19-1529-2023, 2023
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Recently, it was found that cold-to-warm changes in Antarctic shelf sea areas are possible and lead to higher ice shelf melt rates. In modelling experiments, we found that if the highest density in front of the ice shelf becomes lower than the density of the warmer water off-shelf at the deepest access to the shelf, the off-shelf water will flow onto the shelf. Our results also indicate that this change will offer some, although not much, resistance to reversal and constitutes a tipping point.
Sascha Willmes, Günther Heinemann, and Frank Schnaase
The Cryosphere, 17, 3291–3308, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3291-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-3291-2023, 2023
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Sea ice is an important constituent of the global climate system. We here use satellite data to identify regions in the Arctic where the sea ice breaks up in so-called leads (i.e., linear cracks) regularly during winter. This information is important because leads determine, e.g., how much heat is exchanged between the ocean and the atmosphere. We here provide first insights into the reasons for the observed patterns in sea-ice leads and their relation to ocean currents and winds.
Felix L. Müller, Stephan Paul, Stefan Hendricks, and Denise Dettmering
The Cryosphere, 17, 809–825, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-809-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-809-2023, 2023
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Thinning sea ice has significant impacts on the energy exchange between the atmosphere and the ocean. In this study we present visual and quantitative comparisons of thin-ice detections obtained from classified Cryosat-2 radar reflections and thin-ice-thickness estimates derived from MODIS thermal-infrared imagery. In addition to good comparability, the results of the study indicate the potential for a deeper understanding of sea ice in the polar seas and improved processing of altimeter data.
Francesca Doglioni, Robert Ricker, Benjamin Rabe, Alexander Barth, Charles Troupin, and Torsten Kanzow
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 225–263, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-225-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-225-2023, 2023
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This paper presents a new satellite-derived gridded dataset, including 10 years of sea surface height and geostrophic velocity at monthly resolution, over the Arctic ice-covered and ice-free regions, up to 88° N. We assess the dataset by comparison to independent satellite and mooring data. Results correlate well with independent satellite data at monthly timescales, and the geostrophic velocity fields can resolve seasonal to interannual variability of boundary currents wider than about 50 km.
Gilles Reverdin, Claire Waelbroeck, Catherine Pierre, Camille Akhoudas, Giovanni Aloisi, Marion Benetti, Bernard Bourlès, Magnus Danielsen, Jérôme Demange, Denis Diverrès, Jean-Claude Gascard, Marie-Noëlle Houssais, Hervé Le Goff, Pascale Lherminier, Claire Lo Monaco, Herlé Mercier, Nicolas Metzl, Simon Morisset, Aïcha Naamar, Thierry Reynaud, Jean-Baptiste Sallée, Virginie Thierry, Susan E. Hartman, Edward W. Mawji, Solveig Olafsdottir, Torsten Kanzow, Anton Velo, Antje Voelker, Igor Yashayaev, F. Alexander Haumann, Melanie J. Leng, Carol Arrowsmith, and Michael Meredith
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 2721–2735, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-2721-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-2721-2022, 2022
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The CISE-LOCEAN seawater stable isotope dataset has close to 8000 data entries. The δ18O and δD isotopic data measured at LOCEAN have uncertainties of at most 0.05 ‰ and 0.25 ‰, respectively. Some data were adjusted to correct for evaporation. The internal consistency indicates that the data can be used to investigate time and space variability to within 0.03 ‰ and 0.15 ‰ in δ18O–δD17; comparisons with data analyzed in other institutions suggest larger differences with other datasets.
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Short summary
In the southern Weddell Sea, the strong sea ice growth in coastal polynyas drives formation of dense shelf water. By using a sea ice–ice shelf–ocean model with representation of the changing icescape based on satellite data, we find that polynya sea ice growth depends on both the regional atmospheric forcing and the icescape. Not just strength but also location of the sea ice growth in polynyas affects properties of the dense shelf water and the basal melting of the Filchner–Ronne Ice Shelf.
In the southern Weddell Sea, the strong sea ice growth in coastal polynyas drives formation of...
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