On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s
We investigated liquid freshwater content (FWC) in the upper 100 m layer of the Arctic Ocean using oceanographic observations covering the period from 1990 through 2018. Our analysis revealed two opposite tendencies in freshwater balance—the freshening in the Canada Basin at the mean rate of 2.04 ±...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:6d672882f1d24f919f2be8ed2896756d 2023-05-15T14:29:17+02:00 On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s Andrey V. Pnyushkov Genrikh V. Alekseev Alexander V. Smirnov 2022-03-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10030401 https://doaj.org/article/6d672882f1d24f919f2be8ed2896756d EN eng MDPI AG https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/3/401 https://doaj.org/toc/2077-1312 doi:10.3390/jmse10030401 2077-1312 https://doaj.org/article/6d672882f1d24f919f2be8ed2896756d Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, Vol 10, Iss 401, p 401 (2022) freshwater content Arctic Ocean climate changes and feedback Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 article 2022 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10030401 2022-12-31T13:41:44Z We investigated liquid freshwater content (FWC) in the upper 100 m layer of the Arctic Ocean using oceanographic observations covering the period from 1990 through 2018. Our analysis revealed two opposite tendencies in freshwater balance—the freshening in the Canada Basin at the mean rate of 2.04 ± 0.64 m/decade and the salinization of the eastern Eurasian Basin (EB) at the rate of 0.96 ± 0.86 m/decade. In line with this, we found that the Arctic Ocean gained an additional 19,000 ± 1000 km 3 of freshwater over the 1990–2018 period. FWC changes in the EB since 1990 demonstrate an intermittent pattern with the most rapid decrease (from ~5.5 to 3.8 m) having occurred between 2000 and 2005. The 1990–2018 FWC changes in the upper ocean were concurrent with prominent changes of the thermohaline properties of the intermediate Atlantic Water (AW)—the main source of salt and heat for the Arctic Basin. In the eastern EB, we found a 50 m rise of the upper AW boundary accompanied by a ~0.5 °C increase in the AW core temperature. The close relationship (R > 0.7 ± 0.2) between available potential energy in the layer above the AW and FWC in the eastern EB suggests a positive feedback mechanism that links the amount of freshwater with the intensity of vertical heat and salt exchange in the halocline and upper AW layers. Together with other mechanisms of Atlantification, this feedback creates a complex picture of interactions behind the observed changes in the hydrological and ice regimes of the Eurasian sector of the Arctic Ocean. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Basin Arctic Arctic Ocean canada basin Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Arctic Ocean Canada Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 10 3 401 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
freshwater content Arctic Ocean climate changes and feedback Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
spellingShingle |
freshwater content Arctic Ocean climate changes and feedback Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 Andrey V. Pnyushkov Genrikh V. Alekseev Alexander V. Smirnov On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s |
topic_facet |
freshwater content Arctic Ocean climate changes and feedback Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
description |
We investigated liquid freshwater content (FWC) in the upper 100 m layer of the Arctic Ocean using oceanographic observations covering the period from 1990 through 2018. Our analysis revealed two opposite tendencies in freshwater balance—the freshening in the Canada Basin at the mean rate of 2.04 ± 0.64 m/decade and the salinization of the eastern Eurasian Basin (EB) at the rate of 0.96 ± 0.86 m/decade. In line with this, we found that the Arctic Ocean gained an additional 19,000 ± 1000 km 3 of freshwater over the 1990–2018 period. FWC changes in the EB since 1990 demonstrate an intermittent pattern with the most rapid decrease (from ~5.5 to 3.8 m) having occurred between 2000 and 2005. The 1990–2018 FWC changes in the upper ocean were concurrent with prominent changes of the thermohaline properties of the intermediate Atlantic Water (AW)—the main source of salt and heat for the Arctic Basin. In the eastern EB, we found a 50 m rise of the upper AW boundary accompanied by a ~0.5 °C increase in the AW core temperature. The close relationship (R > 0.7 ± 0.2) between available potential energy in the layer above the AW and FWC in the eastern EB suggests a positive feedback mechanism that links the amount of freshwater with the intensity of vertical heat and salt exchange in the halocline and upper AW layers. Together with other mechanisms of Atlantification, this feedback creates a complex picture of interactions behind the observed changes in the hydrological and ice regimes of the Eurasian sector of the Arctic Ocean. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Andrey V. Pnyushkov Genrikh V. Alekseev Alexander V. Smirnov |
author_facet |
Andrey V. Pnyushkov Genrikh V. Alekseev Alexander V. Smirnov |
author_sort |
Andrey V. Pnyushkov |
title |
On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s |
title_short |
On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s |
title_full |
On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s |
title_fullStr |
On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s |
title_full_unstemmed |
On the Interplay between Freshwater Content and Hydrographic Conditions in the Arctic Ocean in the 1990s–2010s |
title_sort |
on the interplay between freshwater content and hydrographic conditions in the arctic ocean in the 1990s–2010s |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10030401 https://doaj.org/article/6d672882f1d24f919f2be8ed2896756d |
geographic |
Arctic Arctic Ocean Canada |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Arctic Ocean Canada |
genre |
Arctic Basin Arctic Arctic Ocean canada basin |
genre_facet |
Arctic Basin Arctic Arctic Ocean canada basin |
op_source |
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, Vol 10, Iss 401, p 401 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/3/401 https://doaj.org/toc/2077-1312 doi:10.3390/jmse10030401 2077-1312 https://doaj.org/article/6d672882f1d24f919f2be8ed2896756d |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10030401 |
container_title |
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
container_volume |
10 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
401 |
_version_ |
1766303345784389632 |