Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity
Open-ocean polynyas in the Weddell Sea of Antarctica are the product of deep convection, which transports Warm Deep Water (WDW) to the surface and melts sea ice or prevents its formation. These polynyas occur only rarely in the observational record, but are a near-permanent feature of many climate a...
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American Meteorological Society
2019
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ftnerc:oai:nora.nerc.ac.uk:522534 2023-05-15T13:41:43+02:00 Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity Naughten, Kaitlin Jenkins, Adrian Holland, Paul Mugford, Ruth Nicholls, Keith Munday, Dave 2019-08 text http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/522534/ https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/522534/1/jcli-d-19-0203.1.pdf https://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/abs/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1 en eng American Meteorological Society https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/522534/1/jcli-d-19-0203.1.pdf Naughten, Kaitlin orcid:0000-0001-9475-9162 Jenkins, Adrian orcid:0000-0002-9117-0616 Holland, Paul orcid:0000-0001-8370-289X Mugford, Ruth; Nicholls, Keith orcid:0000-0002-2188-4509 Munday, Dave orcid:0000-0003-1920-708X . 2019 Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity. Journal of Climate, 32 (16). 5389-5303. https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1 <https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1> Publication - Article PeerReviewed 2019 ftnerc https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1 2023-02-04T19:47:53Z Open-ocean polynyas in the Weddell Sea of Antarctica are the product of deep convection, which transports Warm Deep Water (WDW) to the surface and melts sea ice or prevents its formation. These polynyas occur only rarely in the observational record, but are a near-permanent feature of many climate and ocean simulations. A question not previously considered is the degree to which the Weddell Polynya affects the nearby Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf (FRIS) cavity. Here we assess these effects using regional ocean model simulations of the Weddell Sea and FRIS, where deep convection is imposed with varying area, location, and duration. In these simulations, the idealised Weddell Polynyas consistently cause an increase in WDW transport onto the continental shelf, as a result of density changes above the shelf break. This leads to saltier, denser source waters for the FRIS cavity, which then experiences stronger circulation and increased ice shelf basal melting. It takes approximately 14 years for melt rates to return to normal after the deep convection ceases. Weddell Polynyas similar to those seen in observations have a modest impact on FRIS melt rates, which is within the range of simulated interannual variability. However, polynyas which are larger or closer to the shelf break, such as those seen in many ocean models, trigger a stronger response. These results suggest that ocean models with excessive Weddell Sea convection may not be suitable boundary conditions for regional models of the Antarctic continental shelf and ice shelf cavities. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Filchner Ronne Ice Shelf Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf Ice Shelf Ronne Ice Shelf Sea ice Weddell Sea Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive Antarctic The Antarctic Weddell Sea Weddell Ronne Ice Shelf ENVELOPE(-61.000,-61.000,-78.500,-78.500) Journal of Climate 32 16 5289 5303 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Natural Environment Research Council: NERC Open Research Archive |
op_collection_id |
ftnerc |
language |
English |
description |
Open-ocean polynyas in the Weddell Sea of Antarctica are the product of deep convection, which transports Warm Deep Water (WDW) to the surface and melts sea ice or prevents its formation. These polynyas occur only rarely in the observational record, but are a near-permanent feature of many climate and ocean simulations. A question not previously considered is the degree to which the Weddell Polynya affects the nearby Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf (FRIS) cavity. Here we assess these effects using regional ocean model simulations of the Weddell Sea and FRIS, where deep convection is imposed with varying area, location, and duration. In these simulations, the idealised Weddell Polynyas consistently cause an increase in WDW transport onto the continental shelf, as a result of density changes above the shelf break. This leads to saltier, denser source waters for the FRIS cavity, which then experiences stronger circulation and increased ice shelf basal melting. It takes approximately 14 years for melt rates to return to normal after the deep convection ceases. Weddell Polynyas similar to those seen in observations have a modest impact on FRIS melt rates, which is within the range of simulated interannual variability. However, polynyas which are larger or closer to the shelf break, such as those seen in many ocean models, trigger a stronger response. These results suggest that ocean models with excessive Weddell Sea convection may not be suitable boundary conditions for regional models of the Antarctic continental shelf and ice shelf cavities. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Naughten, Kaitlin Jenkins, Adrian Holland, Paul Mugford, Ruth Nicholls, Keith Munday, Dave |
spellingShingle |
Naughten, Kaitlin Jenkins, Adrian Holland, Paul Mugford, Ruth Nicholls, Keith Munday, Dave Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity |
author_facet |
Naughten, Kaitlin Jenkins, Adrian Holland, Paul Mugford, Ruth Nicholls, Keith Munday, Dave |
author_sort |
Naughten, Kaitlin |
title |
Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity |
title_short |
Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity |
title_full |
Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity |
title_fullStr |
Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity |
title_full_unstemmed |
Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity |
title_sort |
modeling the influence of the weddell polynya on the filchner-ronne ice shelf cavity |
publisher |
American Meteorological Society |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/522534/ https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/522534/1/jcli-d-19-0203.1.pdf https://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/abs/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-61.000,-61.000,-78.500,-78.500) |
geographic |
Antarctic The Antarctic Weddell Sea Weddell Ronne Ice Shelf |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic The Antarctic Weddell Sea Weddell Ronne Ice Shelf |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Filchner Ronne Ice Shelf Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf Ice Shelf Ronne Ice Shelf Sea ice Weddell Sea |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Filchner Ronne Ice Shelf Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf Ice Shelf Ronne Ice Shelf Sea ice Weddell Sea |
op_relation |
https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/522534/1/jcli-d-19-0203.1.pdf Naughten, Kaitlin orcid:0000-0001-9475-9162 Jenkins, Adrian orcid:0000-0002-9117-0616 Holland, Paul orcid:0000-0001-8370-289X Mugford, Ruth; Nicholls, Keith orcid:0000-0002-2188-4509 Munday, Dave orcid:0000-0003-1920-708X . 2019 Modeling the influence of the Weddell Polynya on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf cavity. Journal of Climate, 32 (16). 5389-5303. https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1 <https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1> |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-19-0203.1 |
container_title |
Journal of Climate |
container_volume |
32 |
container_issue |
16 |
container_start_page |
5289 |
op_container_end_page |
5303 |
_version_ |
1766154407204880384 |