Reprinted from Oceanology of the

• Main Authors: Amarcric Cominenral Shelf, Dennis D. Ku~tz, David H. B~omwich
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Drygalski; Drygalski Ice Tongue; Ross Sea; Sea ice
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.669.4024; http://polarmet.osu.edu/PMG_publications/kurtz_bromwich_agu_1985.pdf

Abstract. The Ter~a Nova Bay polynya is a large, stable, annually recu~ring feature in the western Ross Sea which ma~kedly influences sea ice dynamics and physical oceanography in that region. St~ong, pe~sistent katabatic winds which blow far offshore, and blockage of northward drift i ng sea ice by the Drygalski Ice Tongue are both necessary for polynya ex-istence. Secondary factors, such as katabatic and synoptic wind interactions, and seawater depth, characteristics and circulation also affect the polynya. However, it is the ab-sence of this katabatic-blocking combination along other windy coasts that explains why similar polynyas do not form there. Direct