The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations

The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) in the Southern Ocean is a dynamic area shown to vary seasonally in width and extent northward. Remote sensing is the only tool available to give a large-scale picture of sea-ice conditions but it is important to note that only surface properties are visible in remote sen...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: De Kock, Wade
Other Authors: Vichi, Marcello
Format: Master Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Cape Town 2018
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11427/29614
https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/11427/29614/1/thesis_sci_2018_de_kock_wade.pdf
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spelling ftunivcapetownir:oai:localhost:11427/29614 2023-05-15T16:05:46+02:00 The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations De Kock, Wade Vichi, Marcello 2018 application/pdf http://hdl.handle.net/11427/29614 https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/11427/29614/1/thesis_sci_2018_de_kock_wade.pdf eng eng University of Cape Town Faculty of Science Department of Oceanography http://hdl.handle.net/11427/29614 https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/11427/29614/1/thesis_sci_2018_de_kock_wade.pdf Oceanography Master Thesis Masters MSc 2018 ftunivcapetownir 2022-09-13T05:58:25Z The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) in the Southern Ocean is a dynamic area shown to vary seasonally in width and extent northward. Remote sensing is the only tool available to give a large-scale picture of sea-ice conditions but it is important to note that only surface properties are visible in remote sensing products. Little is known about the hydrographical properties of the Atlantic Sector of the Southern Ocean in the austral winter as it is difficult to obtain shipboard observations. Using observations from southern elephant seals, it is possible to analyse properties such as salinity and temperature within the MIZ. These properties may then be related to observations of sea ice concentration obtained by remote sensing to qualitatively describe their relationships. This work provides an example of how data from selected seal observations and satellite data can be used operationally to define the hydrography of the MIZ, focusing on the years 2005 to 2009. Results show that the properties of the underlying water in the MIZ appear to be fairly constant in the region of 15°W to 45°E for the months of July and August. A warmer pool of water is evident in the east of this region. Based on what is known about the physics of the region and what is seen spatially regarding changes in temperature and salinity, the warm pool may be brought about by eddies along the South West Indian Ridge. Results also show that surface concentrations of sea ice may have an effect on the underlying properties of the water. A more detailed description of the characteristics and features in the MIZ may further help to understand key processes in the region. Changes in subsurface temperature and salinity may influence the formation of ice. This may in turn influence large to mesoscale processes in both the ocean and atmosphere. Understanding how these physical properties change and what may cause them to change can help further understanding of larger scale processes. Master Thesis Elephant Seals Sea ice Southern Elephant Seals Southern Ocean University of Cape Town: OpenUCT Austral Indian Southern Ocean
institution Open Polar
collection University of Cape Town: OpenUCT
op_collection_id ftunivcapetownir
language English
topic Oceanography
spellingShingle Oceanography
De Kock, Wade
The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations
topic_facet Oceanography
description The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) in the Southern Ocean is a dynamic area shown to vary seasonally in width and extent northward. Remote sensing is the only tool available to give a large-scale picture of sea-ice conditions but it is important to note that only surface properties are visible in remote sensing products. Little is known about the hydrographical properties of the Atlantic Sector of the Southern Ocean in the austral winter as it is difficult to obtain shipboard observations. Using observations from southern elephant seals, it is possible to analyse properties such as salinity and temperature within the MIZ. These properties may then be related to observations of sea ice concentration obtained by remote sensing to qualitatively describe their relationships. This work provides an example of how data from selected seal observations and satellite data can be used operationally to define the hydrography of the MIZ, focusing on the years 2005 to 2009. Results show that the properties of the underlying water in the MIZ appear to be fairly constant in the region of 15°W to 45°E for the months of July and August. A warmer pool of water is evident in the east of this region. Based on what is known about the physics of the region and what is seen spatially regarding changes in temperature and salinity, the warm pool may be brought about by eddies along the South West Indian Ridge. Results also show that surface concentrations of sea ice may have an effect on the underlying properties of the water. A more detailed description of the characteristics and features in the MIZ may further help to understand key processes in the region. Changes in subsurface temperature and salinity may influence the formation of ice. This may in turn influence large to mesoscale processes in both the ocean and atmosphere. Understanding how these physical properties change and what may cause them to change can help further understanding of larger scale processes.
author2 Vichi, Marcello
format Master Thesis
author De Kock, Wade
author_facet De Kock, Wade
author_sort De Kock, Wade
title The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations
title_short The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations
title_full The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations
title_fullStr The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations
title_full_unstemmed The Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) seawater property dynamics of the Southern Ocean below Southern Africa using animal-borne observations
title_sort marginal ice zone (miz) seawater property dynamics of the southern ocean below southern africa using animal-borne observations
publisher University of Cape Town
publishDate 2018
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/29614
https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/11427/29614/1/thesis_sci_2018_de_kock_wade.pdf
geographic Austral
Indian
Southern Ocean
geographic_facet Austral
Indian
Southern Ocean
genre Elephant Seals
Sea ice
Southern Elephant Seals
Southern Ocean
genre_facet Elephant Seals
Sea ice
Southern Elephant Seals
Southern Ocean
op_relation http://hdl.handle.net/11427/29614
https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/11427/29614/1/thesis_sci_2018_de_kock_wade.pdf
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