The record 2013 Southern Hemisphere sea-ice extent maximum

• Published in: Annals of Glaciology
• Main Authors: Reid, P, Stammerjohn, S, Massom, R, Scambos, T, Lieser, J
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Int Glaciol Soc 2015
• Subjects: Earth Sciences; Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience; Glaciology; Southern Ocean; Ross Sea; Amundsen Sea; Annals of Glaciology; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3189/2015AoG69A892; http://ecite.utas.edu.au/98031

Observations of Southern Hemisphere sea ice from passive microwave satellite measurements show that a new record maximum extent of 19.58 10 6 km 2 was reached on 30 September 2013; the extent is just over two standard deviations above the 19792012mean and follows a similar record (19.48 10 6 km 2 ) in 2012. On the record day in 2013, sea-ice extent was greater than the 30 year average (19812010) in nearly all Southern Ocean regions. For the year as a whole, Southern Hemisphere sea-ice area and extentwere well above average, and numerous monthly and daily records were broken. Analysis of anomaly patterns and the atmospheric and oceanic events suggests that a sequence of regional wind and cold-freshened surface waters is likely responsible for the record maximum and the generally high 2013extent. In particular, the Ross Sea sector experienced a combination of cold southerly winds associated with the position and depth of the Amundsen Sea low, and lower than normal sea surface temperatures (up to 2C below normal). The resulting very high anomaly in ice extent in this regionwas a major component of the overall record maximum.