Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya
The carbonate chemistry of sea ice is known to play a role in global carbon cycles, but its importance is uncertain in part due to disparities in reported results. Variability in physical and biological drivers is usually invoked to explain differences between studies. In the Canadian Arctic Archipe...
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Copernicus Publications
2022
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:d30b9d7955f1403bbe838221a52c30e8 2023-05-15T14:28:58+02:00 Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya B. G. T. Else A. Cranch R. P. Sims S. Jones L. A. Dalman C. J. Mundy R. A. Segal R. K. Scharien T. Guha 2022-09-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3685-2022 https://doaj.org/article/d30b9d7955f1403bbe838221a52c30e8 EN eng Copernicus Publications https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/16/3685/2022/tc-16-3685-2022.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-16-3685-2022 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/d30b9d7955f1403bbe838221a52c30e8 The Cryosphere, Vol 16, Pp 3685-3701 (2022) Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 article 2022 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3685-2022 2022-12-30T21:08:13Z The carbonate chemistry of sea ice is known to play a role in global carbon cycles, but its importance is uncertain in part due to disparities in reported results. Variability in physical and biological drivers is usually invoked to explain differences between studies. In the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, “invisible polynyas” – areas of strong currents, thin ice, and potentially high biological productivity – are examples of extreme spatial variability. We used an invisible polynya as a natural laboratory to study the effects of inferred initial ice formation conditions, ice growth rate, and algal biomass on the distribution of carbonate species by collecting enough cores to perform a statistical comparison between sites located within, and just outside of, a polynya near Iqaluktuttiaq (Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada). At both sites, the uppermost 10 cm ice horizon showed evidence of CO 2 off-gassing, while carbonate distributions in the middle and bottommost 10 cm horizons largely followed the salinity distribution. In the polynya, the upper ice horizon had significantly higher bulk total inorganic carbon (TIC), total alkalinity (TA), and salinity potentially due to freeze-up conditions that favoured frazil ice production. The middle ice horizons were statistically indistinguishable between sites, suggesting that ice growth rate is not an important factor for the carbonate distribution under mid-winter conditions. The thicker (non-polynya) site experienced higher algal biomass, TIC, and TA in the bottom horizon. Carbonate chemistry in the bottom horizon could largely be explained by the salinity distribution, with the strong currents at the polynya site potentially playing a role in desalinization; biology appeared to exert only a minor control, with some evidence that the ice algae community was net heterotrophic. We did see evidence of calcium carbonate precipitation but with little impact on the TIC:TA ratio and little difference between sites. Because differences were constrained to relatively thin layers at ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Archipelago Arctic Cambridge Bay Canadian Arctic Archipelago ice algae Nunavut Sea ice The Cryosphere Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Nunavut Canadian Arctic Archipelago Canada Cambridge Bay ENVELOPE(-105.130,-105.130,69.037,69.037) The Cryosphere 16 9 3685 3701 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
spellingShingle |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 B. G. T. Else A. Cranch R. P. Sims S. Jones L. A. Dalman C. J. Mundy R. A. Segal R. K. Scharien T. Guha Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya |
topic_facet |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
The carbonate chemistry of sea ice is known to play a role in global carbon cycles, but its importance is uncertain in part due to disparities in reported results. Variability in physical and biological drivers is usually invoked to explain differences between studies. In the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, “invisible polynyas” – areas of strong currents, thin ice, and potentially high biological productivity – are examples of extreme spatial variability. We used an invisible polynya as a natural laboratory to study the effects of inferred initial ice formation conditions, ice growth rate, and algal biomass on the distribution of carbonate species by collecting enough cores to perform a statistical comparison between sites located within, and just outside of, a polynya near Iqaluktuttiaq (Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada). At both sites, the uppermost 10 cm ice horizon showed evidence of CO 2 off-gassing, while carbonate distributions in the middle and bottommost 10 cm horizons largely followed the salinity distribution. In the polynya, the upper ice horizon had significantly higher bulk total inorganic carbon (TIC), total alkalinity (TA), and salinity potentially due to freeze-up conditions that favoured frazil ice production. The middle ice horizons were statistically indistinguishable between sites, suggesting that ice growth rate is not an important factor for the carbonate distribution under mid-winter conditions. The thicker (non-polynya) site experienced higher algal biomass, TIC, and TA in the bottom horizon. Carbonate chemistry in the bottom horizon could largely be explained by the salinity distribution, with the strong currents at the polynya site potentially playing a role in desalinization; biology appeared to exert only a minor control, with some evidence that the ice algae community was net heterotrophic. We did see evidence of calcium carbonate precipitation but with little impact on the TIC:TA ratio and little difference between sites. Because differences were constrained to relatively thin layers at ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
B. G. T. Else A. Cranch R. P. Sims S. Jones L. A. Dalman C. J. Mundy R. A. Segal R. K. Scharien T. Guha |
author_facet |
B. G. T. Else A. Cranch R. P. Sims S. Jones L. A. Dalman C. J. Mundy R. A. Segal R. K. Scharien T. Guha |
author_sort |
B. G. T. Else |
title |
Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya |
title_short |
Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya |
title_full |
Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya |
title_fullStr |
Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya |
title_full_unstemmed |
Variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya |
title_sort |
variability in sea ice carbonate chemistry: a case study comparing the importance of ikaite precipitation, bottom-ice algae, and currents across an invisible polynya |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3685-2022 https://doaj.org/article/d30b9d7955f1403bbe838221a52c30e8 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-105.130,-105.130,69.037,69.037) |
geographic |
Arctic Nunavut Canadian Arctic Archipelago Canada Cambridge Bay |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Nunavut Canadian Arctic Archipelago Canada Cambridge Bay |
genre |
Arctic Archipelago Arctic Cambridge Bay Canadian Arctic Archipelago ice algae Nunavut Sea ice The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
Arctic Archipelago Arctic Cambridge Bay Canadian Arctic Archipelago ice algae Nunavut Sea ice The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 16, Pp 3685-3701 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/16/3685/2022/tc-16-3685-2022.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-16-3685-2022 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/d30b9d7955f1403bbe838221a52c30e8 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3685-2022 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
16 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
3685 |
op_container_end_page |
3701 |
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1766303083915116544 |