Temperature, salinity and ikaite crystal characteristics in snow, slush and sea ice during R/V Lance cruise in April-May 2011 ...

• Main Authors: Nomura, Daiki, Assmy, Philipp, Nehrke, Gernot, Granskog, Mats A, Fischer, Michael, Dieckmann, Gerhard S, Fransson, Agneta, Hu, Yubin, Schnetger, Bernhard
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2011
• Subjects: Priority Programme 1158 Antarctic Research with Comparable Investigations in Arctic Sea Ice Areas SPP1158; Antarc*; Antarctic; R/V Lance; Sea ice; Svalbard
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.1594/pangaea.848979; https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.848979

We identified ikaite crystals (CaCO3 · 6H2O) and examined their shape and size distribution in first-year Arctic pack ice, overlying snow and slush layers during the spring melt onset north of Svalbard. Additional measurements of total alkalinity (TA) were made for melted snow and sea-ice samples. Ikaite crystals were mainly found in the bottom of the snowpack, in slush and the surface layers of the sea ice where the temperature was generally lower and salinity higher than in the ice below. Image analysis showed that ikaite crystals were characterized by a roughly elliptical shape and a maximum caliper diameter of 201.0±115.9 µm (n = 918). Since the ice-melting season had already started, ikaite crystals may already have begun to dissolve, which might explain the lack of a relationship between ikaite crystal size and sea-ice parameters (temperature, salinity, and thickness of snow and ice). Comparisons of salinity and TA profiles for melted ice samples suggest that the precipitation/dissolution of ikaite ... : Supplement to: Nomura, Daiki; Assmy, Philipp; Nehrke, Gernot; Granskog, Mats A; Fischer, Michael; Dieckmann, Gerhard S; Fransson, Agneta; Hu, Yubin; Schnetger, Bernhard (2013): Characterization of ikaite (CaCO3 6H2O) crystals in first-year Arctic sea ice north of Svalbard. Annals of Glaciology, 54(62), 125-131 ...