Editorial Type:
Article
Article Type:
Research Article

Creation of a Heat and Salt Flux Dataset Associated with Sea Ice Production and Melting in the Sea of Okhotsk

Sohey Nihashi Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tomakomai National College of Technology, Tomakomai, Japan

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Kay I. Ohshima Institute of Low Temperature Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan

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Noriaki Kimura Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Japan

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Print Publication:
01 Apr 2012
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CLIVAR/SeaFlux
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-11-00022.1
Page(s):
2261–2278
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Abstract

Sea ice formation, its transport, and its melting cause the redistribution of heat and salt, which plays an important role in the climate and biogeochemical systems. In the Sea of Okhotsk, a heat and salt flux dataset is created in which such sea ice processes are included, with a spatial resolution of ~12.5 km. The dataset is based on a heat budget analysis using ice concentration, thickness, and drift speed from satellite observations and the ECMWF Interim Re-Analysis (ERA-Interim) data. The salt flux calculation considers both salt supplied to the ocean from sea ice production and freshwater supplied when the ice melts. This dataset will be useful for the validation and boundary conditions of modeling studies. The spatial distribution of the annual fluxes shows a distinct contrast between north and south: significant ocean cooling with salt supply is shown in the northern coastal polynya region, while ocean heating with freshwater supply is shown in the south. This contrast suggests a transport of freshwater and negative heat by ice advection. The annual fluxes also show ocean cooling with freshwater supply in the Kashevarov Bank (KB) region and the central and eastern Sea of Okhotsk, suggesting the effect of warm water advection. In the ice melt season, relatively prominent ice melting is shown in the coastal polynya region, probably due to large solar heating of the upper ocean. This indicates that the polynya works as a “meltwater factory” in spring, contrasting with its role as an “ice factory” in winter. In the coastal polynya region, the spatial distribution of phytoplankton bloom roughly corresponds with the ice melt region.

Corresponding author address: Sohey Nihashi, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tomakomai National College of Technology, 443 Nishikioka, Tomakomai 059-1275, Japan. E-mail: sohey@me.tomakomai-ct.ac.jp

This article is included in the CLIVAR/SeaFlux special collection.

Abstract

Sea ice formation, its transport, and its melting cause the redistribution of heat and salt, which plays an important role in the climate and biogeochemical systems. In the Sea of Okhotsk, a heat and salt flux dataset is created in which such sea ice processes are included, with a spatial resolution of ~12.5 km. The dataset is based on a heat budget analysis using ice concentration, thickness, and drift speed from satellite observations and the ECMWF Interim Re-Analysis (ERA-Interim) data. The salt flux calculation considers both salt supplied to the ocean from sea ice production and freshwater supplied when the ice melts. This dataset will be useful for the validation and boundary conditions of modeling studies. The spatial distribution of the annual fluxes shows a distinct contrast between north and south: significant ocean cooling with salt supply is shown in the northern coastal polynya region, while ocean heating with freshwater supply is shown in the south. This contrast suggests a transport of freshwater and negative heat by ice advection. The annual fluxes also show ocean cooling with freshwater supply in the Kashevarov Bank (KB) region and the central and eastern Sea of Okhotsk, suggesting the effect of warm water advection. In the ice melt season, relatively prominent ice melting is shown in the coastal polynya region, probably due to large solar heating of the upper ocean. This indicates that the polynya works as a “meltwater factory” in spring, contrasting with its role as an “ice factory” in winter. In the coastal polynya region, the spatial distribution of phytoplankton bloom roughly corresponds with the ice melt region.

Corresponding author address: Sohey Nihashi, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tomakomai National College of Technology, 443 Nishikioka, Tomakomai 059-1275, Japan. E-mail: sohey@me.tomakomai-ct.ac.jp

This article is included in the CLIVAR/SeaFlux special collection.

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