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Antarctic ice-free coastal environments, like the Vestfold Hills (East Antarctica), are shaped by a complex interplay of physical processes. This study synthesizes new data and existing research from the Vestfold Hills across marine, terrestrial and cryosphere science, meteorology, geomorphology…
Net sea-ice extent (SIE; the area enclosed by greater than 15% sea-ice concentration) and sea-ice area (SIA; the product of sea-ice extent and concentration) were well below average or at record-low levels throughout 2023 (Fig. 6.11a).
Overview of past and future climate change in Australia's area of responsibility in Antarctica, sub-Antarctic islands and Southern Ocean, and impacts of Antarctic changes upon the Australian mainland.
Surface melt on the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) occurs primarily on the low-elevation coastal margins, especially on the Antarctic Peninsula and on the ice shelves surrounding the continent.
Snow on sea ice plays a critical role in the global climate system, affecting the growth and decay of the ice, polar ecosystems, human activities, and the retrieval of sea ice characteristics from remote sensing data.
The retreat of Antarctic ice shelves due to calving and the subsequent reduction in buttressing of the Antarctic Ice Sheet are of major concern for future sea-level rise. Sudden…
Antarctic sea ice plays many crucial roles in the physical environments and ecosystems of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. In this study, we synthesize the physical, biogeochemical, ecosystem, and societal impacts of summers with extreme low Antarctic sea-ice coverage.
Net sea-ice extent (SIE) and sea-ice area (SIA) were well below or at record-low levels for all of 2022 (based on satellite passive-microwave ice concentration data since 1979 when the near-homogenous satellite record began; Cavalieri et al. 1996). Indeed…
Antarctic sea ice plays a crucial role in the global climate system and is highly sensitive to climate change and variability (Walsh 1983; Liu et al. 2002; Roach et al. 2020). Sea ice seasonally covers a vast area of the high-latitude Southern Ocean each year…
This study reports the occurrence of intense atmospheric rivers (ARs) during the two large Weddell Polynya events in November 1973 and September 2017 and investigates their role in the opening events via their enhancement of sea ice melt. Few days before the polynya openings…
Antarctic sea ice plays a pivotal role in the global climate system. Forming a highly reflective, dynamic, and insulative blanket that varies seasonally in its areal coverage from ~3 × 106 km2 to ~19–20 × 106 km2, sea ice and its snow cover strongly modifies ocean…
Net sea ice areal extent was well above average during the first few months of 2015 (Fig. 6.8a). Monthly record extents were observed in January (7.46 × 106 km2), April (9.06 × 106 km2), and May (12.1 × 106 km2).
Antarctic sea ice performs important roles in the climate system through the formation of dense oxygen rich Antarctic Bottom Water (Johnson 2008) and modulating fluxes across the ocean/atmosphere interface within the high southern latitudes (Bourassa et al. 2013).
Both net sea ice extent (SIE) and area (SIA) were close to the 1981–2010 average for January through August 2016, after which there was a dramatic departure from the mean through to the end of the year (Fig. 6.8a). Maximum net SIE peaked on 31 August (18.44 × 106 km2)…
The Southern Ocean is disproportionately important in its effect on the Earth system, impacting climatic, biogeochemical, and ecological systems, which makes recent observed changes to this system cause for global concern.
Satellite-derived Antarctic sea ice extent has displayed a slight upward since 1979, but with strong temporal and regional variability—the drivers of which are poorly understood. Here, we conduct numerical experiments with a circum-Antarctic ocean–sea ice…
Snow is the most reflective, and also the most insulative, natural material on Earth. Consequently, it is an integral part of the sea-ice and climate systems. However, the spatial and temporal heterogeneities of snow pose challenges for observing…
Antarctic sea ice trends have to date been linked to surface winds, through sea ice motion and atmospheric thermal advection. This paper analyzes sea ice volume in 10 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) model configurations under pre-industrial and historical climate forcings…
The Maud Rise polynya is a persistent area of open water within the sea ice cover of the Southern Ocean, which overlies an area of elevated topography called Maud Rise (66°S, 3°E) located in the eastern sector of the Weddell Sea (Fig. SB6.1a).
Overall Antarctic sea ice extent in the 2016 spring attained a record minimum for the satellite period (1979–2016), presenting an abrupt departure from the record maxima in previous years and the slight upward trend since 1979.
Fast ice is an important component of Antarctic coastal marine ecosystems, providing a prolific habitat for ice algal communities. This work examines the relationships between normalized difference indices (NDI)…
The spreading of dense shelf water (DSW) from Antarctic coastal margins to lower latitudes plays a vital role in the ocean thermohaline circulation and the global climate system. Through enhanced localized sea ice production in Antarctic coastal polynyas…
In contrast to a strong decrease in Arctic sea ice extent, overall Antarctic sea ice extent has modestly increased since 1979. Several hypotheses have been proposed for the net Antarctic sea ice expansion, including atmosphere/ocean circulation and temperature changes…
Ocean–cryosphere interactions along the Adélie and George V Land (AGVL) coast are investigated using a coupled ocean–sea ice–ice shelf model. The dominant feature of the Mertz Glacier Tongue (MGT), located at approximately 145°E, was a highly productive winter coastal polynya system…
Contrasting regional changes in Southern Ocean sea ice have occurred over the last 30 years with distinct regional effects on ecosystem structure and function.