Heat fluxes from an Arctic fjord with glaciers and ice-bergs

Glaciers on the Northern Hemisphere and on Svalbard in particular, are decreasing in volume. In Hornsund, SW Spitsbergen, the reduction of the multiple tide water glaciers has been observed for more than a century. Melt water from the glaciers represent a contribution of relatively cold fresh water to the water masses in the west, by the West -Spitsbergen current. We have used a numerical hydrodynamical model to simulate the fluxes of heat and fresh water between the Hornsund fjord and the water masses outside the fjord, with ice bergs and glacier melting included. Glacier melting and ice-berg melting are in general poorly described in hydrodynamical models of the Arctic. The Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) model was set up for the Hornsund area with high resolution (160m), and fluxes through the fjord were calculated for the year 2011. The ocean current model was evaluated against current meter measurements and hydrographic data from strategic locations in the inner parts of Hornsund. An estimate of the heat flux and its seasonal signal between Hornsund and the outer water masses has been found. It is concluded that the there is a significant potential of oceanic heat contributing to facial melting of the tide water glacier fronts. Correspondingly, the glaciers contribute with a fresh water volume that mixes with the coastal northward current west of Svalbard and subsequently with the West Spitsbergen current. This flux is considered to be substantial, and indicates that glacier melting and ice-berg melting should be included in regional Arctic hydrodynamical ocean models.