scholarly journals Climate change and ice hazards in the Beaufort Sea

Elem Sci Anth ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. G. Barber ◽  
G. McCullough ◽  
D. Babb ◽  
A. S. Komarov ◽  
L. M. Candlish ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Surface Wind ◽  
Beaufort Sea ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Ocean Current ◽  
Oil And Gas Development ◽  
Ice Pack

Abstract Recent reductions in the summer extent of sea ice have focused the world’s attention on the effects of climate change. Increased CO2-derived global warming is rapidly shrinking the Arctic multi-year ice pack. This shift in ice regimes allows for increasing development opportunities for large oil and gas deposits known to occur throughout the Arctic. Here we show that hazardous ice features remain a threat to stationary and mobile infrastructure in the southern Beaufort Sea. With the opening up of the ice pack, forecasting of high-frequency oscillations or local eddy-driven ice motion will be a much more complex task than modeling average ice circulation. Given the observed reduction in sea ice extent and thickness this rather counterintuitive situation, associated with a warming climate, poses significant hazards to Arctic marine oil and gas development and marine transportation. Accurate forecasting of hazardous ice motion will require improved real-time surface wind and ocean current forecast models capable of ingesting local satellite-derived wind data and/or local, closely-spaced networks of anemometers and improved methods of determining high-frequency components of surface ocean current fields ‘up-stream’ from drilling and extraction operations.

scholarly journals Late spring bloom development of pelagic diatoms in Baffin Bay

Elem Sci Anth ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Augustin Lafond ◽  
Karine Leblanc ◽  
Bernard Quéguiner ◽  
Brivaela Moriceau ◽  
Aude Leynaert ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Biogenic Silica ◽  
Late Spring ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Light Limitation ◽  
Diatom Bloom ◽  
Phytoplankton Primary Production ◽  
Uptake Rates ◽  
Ice Pack

The Arctic Ocean is particularly affected by climate change, with changes in sea ice cover expected to impact phytoplankton primary production. During the Green Edge expedition, the development of the late spring–early summer diatom bloom was studied in relation with the sea ice retreat by multiple transects across the marginal ice zone. Biogenic silica concentrations and uptake rates were measured. In addition, diatom assemblage structures and their associated carbon biomass were determined, along with taxon-specific contributions to total biogenic silica production using the fluorescent dye PDMPO. Results indicate that a diatom bloom developed in open waters close to the ice edge, following the alleviation of light limitation, and extended 20–30 km underneath the ice pack. This actively growing diatom bloom (up to 0.19 μmol Si L–1 d–1) was associated with high biogenic silica concentrations (up to 2.15 μmol L–1), and was dominated by colonial fast-growing centric (Chaetoceros spp. and Thalassiosira spp.) and ribbon-forming pennate species (Fragilariopsis spp./Fossula arctica). The bloom remained concentrated over the shallow Greenland shelf and slope, in Atlantic-influenced waters, and weakened as it moved westwards toward ice-free Pacific-influenced waters. The development resulted in a near depletion of all nutrients eastwards of the bay, which probably induced the formation of resting spores of Melosira arctica. In contrast, under the ice pack, nutrients had not yet been consumed. Biogenic silica and uptake rates were still low (respectively <0.5 μmol L–1 and <0.05 μmol L–1 d–1), although elevated specific Si uptake rates (up to 0.23 d–1) probably reflected early stages of the bloom. These diatoms were dominated by pennate species (Pseudo-nitzschia spp., Ceratoneis closterium, and Fragilariopsis spp./Fossula arctica). This study can contribute to predictions of the future response of Arctic diatoms in the context of climate change.

scholarly journals Variability and changes of Arctic sea ice thickness distribution under different AO/DA states

2011 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-167
Author(s):  
A. Oikkonen ◽  
J. Haapala
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Seasonal Variability ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Thickness Distribution ◽  
Beaufort Sea ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Ice Thickness ◽  
Sea Ice Thickness ◽  
Ice Pack

Abstract. Changes of the mean sea ice thickness and concentration in the Arctic are well known. However, comparable little is known about the ice thickness distribution and the composition of ice pack in quantity. In this paper we determine the ice thickness distributions, mean and modal thicknesses, and their regional and seasonal variability in the Arctic under different large scale atmospheric circulation modes. We compare characteristics of the Arctic ice pack during the periods 1975–1987 and 1988–2000, which have a different distribution in the AO/DA space. The study is based on submarine measurements of sea ice draft. The prevalent feature is that the peak of sea ice thickness distributions has generally taken a narrower form and shifted toward thinner ice. Also, both mean and modal ice thickness have generally decreased. These noticeable changes result from a loss of thick, mostly deformed, ice. In the spring the loss of the volume of ice thicker than 5 m exceeds 35% in all regions except the Nansen Basin, and the reduction is as much as over 45% at the North Pole and in the Eastern Arctic. In the autumn the volume of thick, mostly deformed ice has decreased by more than 40% in the Canada Basin only, but the reduction is more than 30% also in the Beaufort Sea and in the Chukchi Sea. In the Beaufort Sea region the decrease of the modal draft has been so strong that the peak has shifted from multiyear ice to first-year type ice. Also, the regional and seasonal variability of the sea ice thickness has decreased, since the thinning has been the most pronounced in the regions with the thickest pack ice (the Western Arctic), and during the spring (0.6–0.8 m per decade).

scholarly journals Spatial and temporal characterization of sea-ice deformation

2011 ◽  
Vol 52 (57) ◽  
pp. 360-368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer K. Hutchings ◽  
Andrew Roberts ◽  
Cathleen A. Geiger ◽  
Jacqueline Richter-Menge
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
Beaufort Sea ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Emergent Feature ◽  
Fractal Properties ◽  
Ice Pack

AbstractIn late March 2007 an array of GPS ice drifters was deployed in the Beaufort Sea as part of the Sea Ice Experiment: Dynamic Nature of the Arctic (SEDNA). the drifters were deployed in an array designed to resolve four, nested spatial scales of sea-ice deformation, from 10 to 140 km, with the arrays maintaining appropriate shape for strain-rate calculation until mid-June. In this paper, we test whether sea-ice deformation displays fractal properties in the vicinity of SEDNA. We identify that deformation time series have different spectral properties depending on the spatial scale. At the scales around 100 km, deformation is a red-noise process, indicating the importance of the ice-pack surface forcing in determining the deformation rate of sea ice at this scale. At smaller scales, the deformation becomes an increasingly whiter process (it has pink noise properties), which suggests an increasing role of dissipative processes at smaller scales. At spatial scales of 10–100 km, and sub-daily scales, there is no deformation coherence across scales; coherence only becomes apparent at longer scales greater than 100 km. the lack of coherence at small scales aids in understanding previous observations where correlation between 10km regions adjacent to each other varied widely, with correlation coefficients between –0.3 and 1. This suggests it is not appropriate to think of sea ice as having a decorrelation length scale for deformation. We find that lead scale observations of deformation are required when estimating ice growth in leads and ridging time series. For the two SEDNA arrays, we find coherence between 140 and 20 km scale deformation up to periods of 16 days. This suggests sea-ice deformation displays coherent deformation between 100 km scale and the scale of the Beaufort Sea (of order 1000 km), over synoptic time periods (daily to weekly timescales). Organization of leads at synoptic and larger scales is an emergent feature of the deformation field that is caused by the smooth variation of surface forcing (wind) on the ice pack.

scholarly journals Arctic Petroleum and the 2°C Goal: a Case for Accountability for Fossil-Fuel Supply

Climate Law ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 282-307
Author(s):  
Daria Shapovalova
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Emission Reduction ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Fossil Fuel ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Supply Side ◽  
Oil And Gas Development ◽  
Fossil Fuel Consumption ◽  
National Practice

Abstract The Arctic is both a place disproportionately affected by climate change and a place that has been, and continues to be, subject to large-scale oil-and-gas development. Production and subsequent combustion of these resources would compromise the treaty-established target of keeping global warming ‘well below’ 2°C. The global regulatory efforts on climate change are centred on greenhouse gas emissions from fossil-fuel consumption, almost ignoring the supply side. In the absence of universal and strict emission-reduction targets, petroleum exports and carbon leakage jeopardize the effectiveness of the climate change regime. Through the examination of treaties and national practice, this paper argues for the establishment of accountability for the production of Arctic petroleum in light of climate change.

Consideration of Geopolitical Challenges within the Analysis of Geoenvironmental Risks for Oil and Gas Development of the Russian Arctic

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 50-59
Author(s):  
O. P. Trubitsina ◽  
V. N. Bashkin
Keyword(s):  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Oil And Gas Industry ◽  
Optimal Operation ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Stage Model ◽  
Oil And Gas Development ◽  
Gas Industry ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Further Development ◽  
Geopolitical Risks

The article is devoted to the consideration of geopolitical challenges for the analysis of geoenvironmental risks (GERs) in the hydrocarbon development of the Arctic territory. Geopolitical risks (GPRs), like GERs, can be transformed into opposite external environment factors of oil and gas industry facilities in the form of additional opportunities or threats, which the authors identify in detail for each type of risk. This is necessary for further development of methodological base of expert methods for GER management in the context of the implementational proposed two-stage model of the GER analysis taking to account GPR for the improvement of effectiveness making decisions to ensure optimal operation of the facility oil and gas industry and minimize the impact on the environment in the geopolitical conditions of the Arctic.The authors declare no conflict of interest

Increasing Multiyear Sea Ice Loss in the Beaufort Sea: A New Export Pathway for the Diminishing Multiyear Ice Cover of the Arctic Ocean

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Gareth Babb ◽  
Ryan J. Galley ◽  
Stephen E. L. Howell ◽  
Jack Christopher Landy ◽  
Julienne Christine Stroeve ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Arctic Ocean ◽  
Beaufort Sea ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Export Pathway ◽  
The Arctic Ocean ◽  
Multiyear Ice

Using art to explore children’s perceptions of their Arctic community in a changing climate 

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Lipson ◽  
Kim Reasor ◽  
Kååre Sikuaq Erickson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Marine Mammals ◽  
School Curriculum ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Polar Bears ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
Subsistence Hunting ◽  
Sea Ice Decline

<p>In this project we analyze artwork and recorded statements of 5<sup>th</sup> grade students from the community of Utqiaġvik, Alaska, who participated in a science-art outreach activity. The team consisted of a scientist (Lipson), an artist (Reasor) and an outreach specialist (Erickson) of Inupiat heritage from a village in Alaska. We worked with four 5th grade classes of about 25 students each at Fred Ipalook Elementary. The predominantly Inupiat people of Utqiaġvik are among those who will be most impacted by climate change and the loss of Arctic sea ice in the near future. Subsistence hunting of marine mammals associated with sea ice is central to the Inupiat way of life. Furthermore, their coastal homes and infrastructure are increasingly subject to damage from increased wave action on ice-free Beaufort and Chukchi Seas. While the people of this region are among the most directly vulnerable to climate change, the teachers reported that the subject is not generally covered in the elementary school curriculum.</p><p>The scientist and the local outreach specialist gave a short presentation about sea ice and climate change in the Arctic, with emphasis on local impacts to hunting and infrastructure. We then showed the students a large poster of historical and projected sea ice decline, and asked the students to help us fill in the white space beneath the lines. The artist led the children in making small paintings that represent things that are important to their lives in Utqiaġvik (they were encouraged to paint animals, but they were free to do whatever they wanted). We returned to the class later that week and had each student briefly introduce themselves and their painting, and place it on the large graph of sea ice decline, which included the dire predictions of the RCP8.5 scenario. Then we added the more hopeful RCP2.6 scenario to end on a positive note.</p><p>Common themes expressed in the students’ artwork included subsistence hunting, other aspects of traditional Inupiat culture, nature and family. Modern themes such as sports and Pokémon were also common. The students reacted to the topic of climate change with pictures of whales, polar bears and other animals, and captions such as “Save the world/ice/animals.” There were several paintings showing unsuccessful hunts for whales or seals. Some students displayed an understanding of ecosystem science in their recorded statements. For example, a student who painted the sun and another who painted a krill both succinctly described energy flow in food webs that support the production of whales (for example, “I drew krill because without krill there wouldn’t be whales”). Some of the students described the consequences of sea ice loss to local wildlife with devastating succinctness (sea ice is disappearing and polar bears will go extinct). The overall sense was that the children had a strong grasp of the potential consequences of climate change to their region and way of life.</p>

scholarly journals Inorganic carbon fluxes on the Mackenzie Shelf of the Beaufort Sea

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacoba Mol ◽  
Helmuth Thomas ◽  
Paul G. Myers ◽  
Xianmin Hu ◽  
Alfonso Mucci
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Beaufort Sea ◽  
Total Alkalinity ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Surface Mixed Layer ◽  
Saturation State ◽  
Carbon Transfer ◽  
Mackenzie Shelf

Abstract. The Mackenzie Shelf in the southeastern Beaufort Sea is a region that has experienced large changes in the past several decades as warming, sea-ice loss, and increased river discharge have altered carbon cycling. Upwelling and downwelling events are common on the shelf, caused by strong, fluctuating along-shore winds, resulting in cross-shelf Ekman transport, and an alternating estuarine and anti-estuarine circulation. Downwelling carries inorganic carbon and other remineralization products off the shelf and into the deep basin for possible long-term storage in the world oceans. Upwelling carries dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and nutrient-rich waters from the Pacific-origin upper halocline layer (UHL) onto the shelf. Profiles of DIC and total alkalinity (TA) taken in August and September of 2014 are used to investigate the cycling of inorganic carbon on the Mackenzie Shelf. The along-shore transport of water and the cross-shelf transport of inorganic carbon are quantified using velocity field output from a simulation of the Arctic and Northern Hemisphere Atlantic (ANHA4) configuration of the Nucleus of European Modelling of the Ocean (NEMO) framework. A strong upwelling event prior to sampling on the Mackenzie Shelf is analyzed and the resulting influence on the carbonate system, including the saturation state of waters with respect to aragonite and pH, is investigated. TA and the oxygen isotope ratio of water (δ18O) are used to examine water-mass distributions in the study area and to investigate the influence of Pacific Water, Mackenzie River freshwater, and sea-ice melt on carbon dynamics and air-sea fluxes of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the surface mixed layer. Understanding carbon transfer in this seasonally dynamic environment is key to quantify the importance of Arctic shelf regions to the global carbon cycle and provide a basis for understanding how it will respond to the aforementioned climate-induced changes.

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