Long-term Variability of Landfast Ice along the Beaufort Coast
Abstract
Landfast ice thickness computed from a model and fast ice extent derived from ice charts show a large interannual variability along the Beaufort coast between 1976 and 2003. The largest change occurs in spring maximum ice extent, which shows a considerable reduction between the periods 1974-1988 and 1989-2003. This reduction is accompanied by a gradually shortened ice growth season; the maximum fast ice extent appears to contribute the most to the long-term trend. Compared with the Alaska coast, the Mackenzie shelf shows a larger decrease in fast ice cover at the peak of growth season in spring. The interannual variability of surface air temperature in winter and spring, as well as the mean atmospheric circulation patterns represented by the PDO and the AO are thought to be responsible for the observed long-term changes in fast ice cover. Since landfast ice can store a considerable amount of freshwater along the arctic coasts, the decrease in maximum fast ice cover, as well as its shortened growth season and reduced freshwater storage, could have a significant hydrological, biological, and biogeochemical consequences in the coastal regions.
- Publication:
-
AGU Spring Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- May 2004
- Bibcode:
- 2004AGUSM.B33A..02Y
- Keywords:
-
- 1719 Hydrology;
- 1863 Snow and ice (1827);
- 3309 Climatology (1620);
- 4207 Arctic and Antarctic oceanography;
- 4546 Nearshore processes