THE ROLE OF FLOE SIZE IN ICE DYNAMICS

• Main Authors: イトウ ハジメ, Hajime ITO
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: National Institute of Polar Research 1998
• Subjects: Polar meteorology and glaciology
• Online Access: https://nipr.repo.nii.ac.jp/?action=repository_uri&item_id=2869; http://id.nii.ac.jp/1291/00002869/; https://nipr.repo.nii.ac.jp/?action=repository_action_common_download&item_id=2869&item_no=1&attribute_id=18&file_no=1

The mechanical characteristics of the ice-covered sea are dictated primarily by the amount of ice found in the area, but several other elements also have influence. The floe size is one such element and is investigated in this article. Through numerical experiments, the floe size is found to be important in ice dynamics. However, not only the floe size itself but its distribution is critical. A sea with floes of various sizes deforms less than a sea with floes of uniform size under the application of the same force. Ice covering 30% or less of the total area does not sustain compression, regardless of the floe size and its distribution. A sea with such sparse ice cover is equivalent to an open sea without ice in terms of dynamics. The process of floe growth through the coagulation of adjacent floes to one another is also explained. Motion is found to be essential for such growth, but the same motion causes reduction of floe size through breaking. Motion is thus an important factor in both increase and decrease of floe size. And, as the floe size largely determines the mechanical characteristics of the ice-covered sea, motion seems to be quite important in ice dynamics.