Daniel Price
Supervisors:
Wolfgang Rack, Gateway Antarctica, University of Canterbury
Christian Haas, Department of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta
Pat Langhorne, Department of Physics, University of Otago
Adrian McDonald, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Canterbury
Three-dimensional assessment of sea ice characteristics in the western Ross Sea derived by ground validated remote sensing data
The modern unprecedented loss of Arctic summer sea ice during the 2007 and 2008 melt seasons has caused significant advances in the study of sea ice. The alarming rates at which ice was lost from the Arctic Basin initiated the realisation of the potential impact of anthropogenic change to the polar regions, and in turn the global climate system.
The Southern Ocean and Antarctic coastline remain unexplored in terms of the collation of large data sets on sea ice characteristics. A slight overall increase in areal extent of Antarctic sea ice has been documented, however with significant regional differences. For example, a 5% loss in the Amundsen Sea is almost exactly balanced by an increase in the Ross Sea. A major unknown is the thickness of sea ice in the Southern Ocean, which is needed to understand the volume flux of ice and to better quantify its role in the global climate system.
In Antarctica, the sea ice formation process is strongly influenced by ice shelves and the outflow of cold water from underneath, which manifests itself in a characteristic sea ice morphology with platelet ice accumulating underneath the sea ice. Such accumulation may strongly influence the retrieval of ice thickness from freeboard by remote sensing methods.
This research will utilise remote sensing data, from both space borne and (near) surface platforms extending the detailed knowledge on sea ice properties in McMurdo Sound to larger areas. Ground data stem from the long term New Zealand sea ice project. This research will investigate the potential of satellite based observations for mapping the spatial characteristics and freeboard heights of sea ice in the McMurdo Sound area and beyond. This in turn will allow determination of sea ice thickness. Initial data analysis presented is based on ICESat laser altimetry, Envisat imaging radar and from the new CryoSat-2 radar altimeter. Ground based validation will be conducted around a helicopter electromagnetic (EM) induction sounding campaign during the 2011-2014 period in the Antarctic summer seasons.