Mesoscale Features and Atmospheric Refraction Conditions of the Arctic Marginal Ice Zone.

This thesis summarizes the Marginal Ice Zone Experiment (MIZEX-83) conducted in the Arctic during the summer of 1983 and describes the mesoscale features and atmospheric refraction conditions. The three case studies examined are: warm air advection over dense pack ice causing strong elevated ducting...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: McNitt,J A
Other Authors: NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY CA
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: 1984
Subjects:
Atmospheric Physics
*ATMOSPHERIC REFRACTION
*PACK ICE
CLOUDS
LOW TEMPERATURE
STABILITY
AIR
LAYERS
AIR FLOW
THESES
BOUNDARY LAYER
CONVECTION
TRAPPING(CHARGED PARTICLES)
SURFACES
CASE STUDIES
ICE
IMAGES
DUCTS
HIGH DENSITY
ARTIFICIAL SATELLITES
MIXING
INVERSION
VALUE
REFRACTION
LOW STRENGTH
ADVECTION
HEIGHT
ENTRAINMENT
OPEN WATER
ARCTIC REGIONS
GREENLAND SEA
EAST(DIRECTION)
CONVECTION(ATMOSPHERIC)
QUADRANTS
SHALLOW DEPTH
MIZE(Marginal Ice Zone Experiment)
MIZEX-83 project
Atmospheric ducts
Atmospheric boundary layer
Arctic
Greenland
East Greenland
Fram Strait
Greenland Sea
Online Access:http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA155139
http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA155139
Description
Summary:This thesis summarizes the Marginal Ice Zone Experiment (MIZEX-83) conducted in the Arctic during the summer of 1983 and describes the mesoscale features and atmospheric refraction conditions. The three case studies examined are: warm air advection over dense pack ice causing strong elevated ducting and subrefraction; cold air advection over relatively open water causing shallow convection and normal refraction conditions; and large scale subsidence in the western quadrants of an anticyclone leading to super-refraction and weak ducting. Developing synoptic scale cyclones adjacent to the MIZEX-83 area often determined the airflow over the region. The observed large horizontal sea surface temperature gradients were the dominant forcing mechanisms on surface layer stability. Trapping layers associated with subsidence inversions can be located on satellite imagery by assuming that stratiform clouds form immediately below the inversion. Uniform cloud and refraction layers were not common during MIZEX-83 due to strong mesoscale variability. Factors affecting inversion height include subsidence and entrainment mixing. Bulk Richardson number value for locations over the open water and pack ice show significant variability in stability conditions across the MIZ. Keywords: Fram Strait; East Greenland Sea; ABL mixing; and Atmospheric boundary layer.

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