Is there a “new normal” climate in the Beaufort Sea?

Polar research

Xiquan Dong¹  William J. Williams²  Nicholas A. Bond³  Kevin R. Wood⁴  James E. Overland⁵  Sigrid A. Salo⁵ 

[1] Department of Atmospheric SciencesUniversity of North Dakota, 4149 University Avenue, Grand Forks, 58202 ND, USA;Institute of Ocean Sciences, 9860 West Saanich Road, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada V8L 4B2;Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and OceansUniversity of Washington, 3737 Brooklyn Avenue NE, Seattle, 98195-5672 WA, USA;Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and OceansUniversity of Washington, 3737 Brooklyn Avenue NE, Seattle, 98195-5672 WA, USACorrespondence;Pacific Marine Environmental LaboratoryNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, 98115 WA, USA

关键词: Arctic change;    sea ice;    Beaufort Sea;    Mackenzie River;    Arctic amplification;    atmospheric circulation;   

DOI  :  10.3402/polar.v32i0.19552

学科分类：自然科学（综合）

来源: Co-Action Publishing

【 摘 要 】

Since 2007, environmental conditions in the Beaufort Sea have appeared to be consistently different from those in the past. Is a “new normal” climate emerging in the region? Sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) have been notably warm during the summer, leading to delayed freeze-up in the fall along with large surface air temperature (SAT) anomalies due to the release of stored ocean heat to the atmosphere. In the autumn of 2011 and 2012, SST and SAT anomalies in Arctic marginal seas were the largest observed in the Northern Hemisphere. Since 2007, there has been an increase in easterly winds, which has helped set the stage for Arctic amplification by advecting sea ice out of the region and enhancing surface stratification due to the offshore transport of fresh water from the large Mackenzie River discharge plume. These winds are linked to an intensification of the Beaufort High and are evident throughout the troposphere. Their occurrence has undoubtedly contributed to the acceleration of sea-ice loss and surfa...

【 授权许可】

CC BY-NC