Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift
The magnitude, spectral composition, and variability of the Arctic sea ice surface albedo are key to understanding and numerically simulating Earth’s shortwave energy budget. Spectral and broadband albedos of Arctic sea ice were spatially and temporally sampled by on-ice observers along individual s...
Published in: | Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene |
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Online Access: | http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1882215 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1882215 https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 |
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ftosti:oai:osti.gov:1882215 2023-07-30T03:55:37+02:00 Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift Light, Bonnie Smith, Madison M. Perovich, Donald K. Webster, Melinda A. Holland, Marika M. Linhardt, Felix Raphael, Ian A. Clemens-Sewall, David Macfarlane, Amy R. Anhaus, Philipp Bailey, David A. 2023-06-05 application/pdf http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1882215 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1882215 https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 unknown http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1882215 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1882215 https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 doi:10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES 2023 ftosti https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 2023-07-11T10:14:12Z The magnitude, spectral composition, and variability of the Arctic sea ice surface albedo are key to understanding and numerically simulating Earth’s shortwave energy budget. Spectral and broadband albedos of Arctic sea ice were spatially and temporally sampled by on-ice observers along individual survey lines throughout the sunlit season (April–September, 2020) during the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition. The seasonal evolution of albedo for the MOSAiC year was constructed from spatially averaged broadband albedo values for each line. Specific locations were identified as representative of individual ice surface types, including accumulated dry snow, melting snow, bare and melting ice, melting and refreezing ponded ice, and sediment-laden ice. The area-averaged seasonal progression of total albedo recorded during MOSAiC showed remarkable similarity to that recorded 22 years prior on multiyear sea ice during the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA) expedition. In accord with these and other previous field efforts, the spectral albedo of relatively thick, snow-free, melting sea ice shows invariance across location, decade, and ice type. In particular, the albedo of snow-free, melting seasonal ice was indistinguishable from that of snow-free, melting second-year ice, suggesting that the highly scattering surface layer that forms on sea ice during the summer is robust and stabilizing. In contrast, the albedo of ponded ice was observed to be highly variable at visible wavelengths. Notable temporal changes in albedo were documented during melt and freeze onset, formation and deepening of melt ponds, and during melt evolution of sediment-laden ice. While model simulations show considerable agreement with the observed seasonal albedo progression, disparities suggest the need to improve how the albedo of both ponded ice and thin, melting ice are simulated. Other/Unknown Material albedo Arctic Arctic Ocean Sea ice Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean SciTec Connect (Office of Scientific and Technical Information - OSTI, U.S. Department of Energy) Arctic Arctic Ocean Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene 10 1 |
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Open Polar |
collection |
SciTec Connect (Office of Scientific and Technical Information - OSTI, U.S. Department of Energy) |
op_collection_id |
ftosti |
language |
unknown |
topic |
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES |
spellingShingle |
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES Light, Bonnie Smith, Madison M. Perovich, Donald K. Webster, Melinda A. Holland, Marika M. Linhardt, Felix Raphael, Ian A. Clemens-Sewall, David Macfarlane, Amy R. Anhaus, Philipp Bailey, David A. Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift |
topic_facet |
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES |
description |
The magnitude, spectral composition, and variability of the Arctic sea ice surface albedo are key to understanding and numerically simulating Earth’s shortwave energy budget. Spectral and broadband albedos of Arctic sea ice were spatially and temporally sampled by on-ice observers along individual survey lines throughout the sunlit season (April–September, 2020) during the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition. The seasonal evolution of albedo for the MOSAiC year was constructed from spatially averaged broadband albedo values for each line. Specific locations were identified as representative of individual ice surface types, including accumulated dry snow, melting snow, bare and melting ice, melting and refreezing ponded ice, and sediment-laden ice. The area-averaged seasonal progression of total albedo recorded during MOSAiC showed remarkable similarity to that recorded 22 years prior on multiyear sea ice during the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA) expedition. In accord with these and other previous field efforts, the spectral albedo of relatively thick, snow-free, melting sea ice shows invariance across location, decade, and ice type. In particular, the albedo of snow-free, melting seasonal ice was indistinguishable from that of snow-free, melting second-year ice, suggesting that the highly scattering surface layer that forms on sea ice during the summer is robust and stabilizing. In contrast, the albedo of ponded ice was observed to be highly variable at visible wavelengths. Notable temporal changes in albedo were documented during melt and freeze onset, formation and deepening of melt ponds, and during melt evolution of sediment-laden ice. While model simulations show considerable agreement with the observed seasonal albedo progression, disparities suggest the need to improve how the albedo of both ponded ice and thin, melting ice are simulated. |
author |
Light, Bonnie Smith, Madison M. Perovich, Donald K. Webster, Melinda A. Holland, Marika M. Linhardt, Felix Raphael, Ian A. Clemens-Sewall, David Macfarlane, Amy R. Anhaus, Philipp Bailey, David A. |
author_facet |
Light, Bonnie Smith, Madison M. Perovich, Donald K. Webster, Melinda A. Holland, Marika M. Linhardt, Felix Raphael, Ian A. Clemens-Sewall, David Macfarlane, Amy R. Anhaus, Philipp Bailey, David A. |
author_sort |
Light, Bonnie |
title |
Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift |
title_short |
Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift |
title_full |
Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift |
title_fullStr |
Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift |
title_full_unstemmed |
Arctic sea ice albedo: Spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the MOSAiC drift |
title_sort |
arctic sea ice albedo: spectral composition, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution observed during the mosaic drift |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1882215 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1882215 https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 |
geographic |
Arctic Arctic Ocean |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Arctic Ocean |
genre |
albedo Arctic Arctic Ocean Sea ice Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean |
genre_facet |
albedo Arctic Arctic Ocean Sea ice Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean |
op_relation |
http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1882215 https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1882215 https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 doi:10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2021.000103 |
container_title |
Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene |
container_volume |
10 |
container_issue |
1 |
_version_ |
1772821005839892480 |