Assessment and impact of ice cover and future projections for the Baltic Curonian Lagoon /

• Main Author: Idzelytė, Rasa
• Other Authors: Umgiesser, Hans Georg
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: Lithuanian; English
• Published: Institutional Repository of Klaipeda University 2021
• Subjects: ice phenology; satellite observations; ice thickness; thermodynamic ice model; climate change; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://vb.ku.lt/KU:ELABAETD107065819&prefLang=en_US

This study, for the first time, presents comprehensive analysis of ice cover phenology, thickness distribution, as well as impact on the aquatic environment of the largest lagoon in Europe – the Curonian Lagoon. Combination of advanced remote sensing imaging techniques, conventional in situ observations, and numerical modelling techniques enabled the exploration of new approaches in the monitoring and forecasting of the ice cover. Using satellite data in the numerical modeling framework SHYFEM revealed the importance of high resolution ice observations for describing the physical processes during the ice cover season, such as circulation, water exchange capabilities, saltwater intrusions, water residence time, and suspended sediment dynamics. The incorporation of an advanced sea ice thermodynamic model in the modelling framework SHYFEM, together with remote sensing and ground observations, serve as an important tool for the analysis and representation of ice thickness over the whole lagoon surface, testing the impact of different climate change scenarios on the ice cover, and further improve the numerical description of this freshwater lagoon.