A numerical study of the Southern Ocean including a thermodynamic active ice shelf - Part 1: Weddell Sea

There is a great amount of uncertainty regarding the understanding of the atmosphere-ocean-cryosphere interactions in the Southern Ocean despite the role that the region plays in our changing climate. With the aim of studying the relative importance of sea-ice and ice shelf processes in the Southern Ocean, a coupled ocean circulation sea-ice/ice shelf cavity model based on the Regional Ocean Model System (ROMS) is used in a periodic circumpolar domain with enhanced resolution in the Weddell Sea. A hierarchy of numerical experiments is performed where first a sea-ice model is used and then an ice shelf thermodynamic parameterization is included in order to evaluate the improvements resulting from each component. Results show that it is necessary to consider the formation and melting of sea-ice in order to adequately reproduce the observed hydrography and circulation. Inclusion of ice shelves cavities in the model only improves results if the ice shelf-ocean thermodynamic fluxes are active. Ice shelves and ocean interactions are an important process to be considered in order to obtain realistic hydrographic values under the ice shelf. The model framework presented in this work is a promising tool for analyzing the Southern Ocean response to future climate change scenarios

Numerical Assessment of the Ross Sea Water Masses Variability in the 20 th and 21 st Centuries

O oceano desempenha papel fundamental na configuração e manutenção do clima da Terra, sendo considerado um dos componentes principais do sistema climático.Diversos estudo foram conduzidos para avaliar as mudanças nos processos climáticos e como o clima, em contrapartida, é afetado por tais mudanças. O presente trabalho visa investigar o impacto das mudanças climáticas na formação de massas de água do oceano austral. Foram analisados resultados de simulação numérica para os séculos XX e XXI pelo modelo CCSM3 para os cenários 20c3m e SRESA1B do IPCC. Através da técnica de separação de mássas de água Análise Otimizada de Parâmetros Múltiplos (OMP) foram identificadas 3 massas de água no Mar de Ross: Água Profunda Circumpolar (CDW); Água da Plataforma de Gelo (ISW); Água de Plataforma de Baixa Salinidade (LSSW). A ISW, precursora da Água de Fundo Antártica (AABW), apresenta maior variação espacial tornando-se mais rasa no século XX e assumindo camadas mais profundas no século XXI. A variação da ISW está relacionada à variação do Modo Anular Sul (SAM) e à variação do gelo marinho.It has been known for a long time that the ocean plays the most important role on Earth\'s heat budget, what turns it into a major component of the global climate system. Therefore, many studies have been made to assess whether features of climate processes are changing and how may climate itself be affected by these changes. This work aims to look at the impact of climate changes on water masses formation in the Southern Ocean. Results from the 20th century and SRESA1b CCSM3/NCAR simulation (1870 to 2100) were analyzed using the Optimum Multiparameter Analysis (OMP) to separate water masses. Three water masses were identified in the Ross Sea: Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW); Ice Shelf Water (ISW); Low Salinity Shelf Water (LSSW). Simulation results have shown that the ISW gets shallower during the 20th century and then, during the 21stcentury, it gets deeper and occupies the deepest layer by 2100 while it flows towards higher latitudes as AABW. Much closely to what has been shown by observational studies, water masses formation in the Southern Ocean is intrinsically linked to atmospheric vaiability modes, such as the southern annular mode--SAM, and to sea ice variation

Numerical Assessment of the Ross Sea Water Masses Variability in the 20 th and 21 st Centuries

O oceano desempenha papel fundamental na configuração e manutenção do clima da Terra, sendo considerado um dos componentes principais do sistema climático.Diversos estudo foram conduzidos para avaliar as mudanças nos processos climáticos e como o clima, em contrapartida, é afetado por tais mudanças. O presente trabalho visa investigar o impacto das mudanças climáticas na formação de massas de água do oceano austral. Foram analisados resultados de simulação numérica para os séculos XX e XXI pelo modelo CCSM3 para os cenários 20c3m e SRESA1B do IPCC. Através da técnica de separação de mássas de água Análise Otimizada de Parâmetros Múltiplos (OMP) foram identificadas 3 massas de água no Mar de Ross: Água Profunda Circumpolar (CDW); Água da Plataforma de Gelo (ISW); Água de Plataforma de Baixa Salinidade (LSSW). A ISW, precursora da Água de Fundo Antártica (AABW), apresenta maior variação espacial tornando-se mais rasa no século XX e assumindo camadas mais profundas no século XXI. A variação da ISW está relacionada à variação do Modo Anular Sul (SAM) e à variação do gelo marinho.It has been known for a long time that the ocean plays the most important role on Earth\'s heat budget, what turns it into a major component of the global climate system. Therefore, many studies have been made to assess whether features of climate processes are changing and how may climate itself be affected by these changes. This work aims to look at the impact of climate changes on water masses formation in the Southern Ocean. Results from the 20th century and SRESA1b CCSM3/NCAR simulation (1870 to 2100) were analyzed using the Optimum Multiparameter Analysis (OMP) to separate water masses. Three water masses were identified in the Ross Sea: Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW); Ice Shelf Water (ISW); Low Salinity Shelf Water (LSSW). Simulation results have shown that the ISW gets shallower during the 20th century and then, during the 21stcentury, it gets deeper and occupies the deepest layer by 2100 while it flows towards higher latitudes as AABW. Much closely to what has been shown by observational studies, water masses formation in the Southern Ocean is intrinsically linked to atmospheric vaiability modes, such as the southern annular mode--SAM, and to sea ice variation

Numerical Investigation of the Ross Sea water masses using the Regional Ocean Modeling System - ROMS

A formação de águas profundas na Antártica afeta diretamente o clima global, uma vez que este processo conecta os ramos superior e inferior da circulação termohalina global (MOC). Avaliar os impactos das mudanças climáticas nestes processos é importante para compreensão do transporte global de calor pelos oceanos e para realização de projeções climáticas. Aplicando a forçante interanual Coordinated Ocean-Ice Reference (CORE), foi realizada uma simulação de 60 anos (1948-2007) utilizando o ROMS com módulos de gelo marinho e plataforma de gelo ativos. Uma rodada preliminar de 100 anos foi realizada com forçante do ano normal CORE, para gerar campos estáveis de inicialização da rodada interanual. Para ambos os experimentos adotou-se uma grade circumpolar periódica com resolução variável, alcançando cerca de 5 km na borda sul. Para investigar as massas de água foi aplicada a Análise Multiparamétrica Ótima - OMP. As principais massas de água do Mar de Ross foram identificadas: Água de Superfície Antártica (AASW), Água Circumpolar Profunda (CDW), Água de Fundo Antártica (AABW) e Água de Plataforma (SW), posteriormente separadas em Água da Plataforma de Gelo (ISW) e Água de Plataforma de Alta Salinidade (HSSW). Os resultados são consistentes com observações prévias (Bergamasco, 2002; Orsi & Wiederwohl, 2009; Budillon, 2011). A simulação interanual sugere que o Oceano Austral vem sofrendo um processo de aquecimento e diminuição de salinidade. Houve um aumento do calor advectado pela CDW e uma diminuição da salinidade das águas de plataforma e da AABW, consistente com as observações de Johnson & Doney (2006). A capacidade do modelo regional ROMS de reproduzir as águas de plataforma ISW, HSSW e a AABW é uma importante contribuição para estudos climáticos, visto que os modelos globais não conseguem representar tais processos. A inclusão de parametrizações explícitas dos processos de gelo marinho e plataforma de gelo capacita o ROMS para reproduzir os processos associados a criosfera, possibilitando a obtenção de projeções mais realísticas.Dense water formation around Antarctica is recognized as a significant process that significantly impacts the global climate, since that\'s where the linkage between the upper and lower limbs of Global Thermohaline Circulation takes place. Assessing whether these processes may be affected by rapid climate changes and all the eventual feedbacks is crucial to fully understand the ocean heat transport and to provide quality future climate projections. Applying the Coordinated Ocean-Ice Reference (CORE) interannual forcing we have run a 50-year simulation (1948-2007) using ROMS with a new sea ice/ice shelf thermodynamics module. Another 100-year simulation forced with CORE normal year was previously run to provide stable starting fields. The normal year consists of single annual cycle of all the data that are representative of climatological conditions over decades and can be applied repeatedly for as many years of model integration as necessary. The 60-year forcing has interannually varying data from 1948 to 2007, which allows validation of model output with ocean observations. Both experiments employed a periodic circumpolar variable resolution grid reaching less than 5 km at the southern border. By applying the OMP water masses separating scheme, we were able to identify the main Ross Sea water masses: Antarctic Surface Water (AASW), Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW), Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) and Shelf Water (SW), further separated into Ice Shelf Water (ISW) and High Salinity Shelf Water (HSSW). Results are consistent with previous observational studies (Bergamasco, 2002; Orsi & Wiederwohl, 2009; Budillon, 2011). The interannual simulation indicates that the Southern Ocean is becoming warmer and less salty. The CDW poleward heat transport increased while shelf waters salinity as well as the AABW salinity decreased during the simulation period, consistent with Johnson & Doney (2006), who have reported the export of less dense AABW. ROMS capability to represent ISW, HSSW and AABW is an important contribution to climate studies, since IPCC class models seem unable to provide reliable representations of such important processes, which may lead to projections of more realistic scenarios. This is significantly improved in this study by including more explicit sea ice/ice shelf parameretization. ROMS is able to reproduce cryosphere-linked mechanisms of dense water formation around Antarctica

The annual cycle of the Atmosphere heat budget fousing on the southern hemisphere

Based on NCEP/NCAR reanalysis and World Ocean Atlas 2005, the long-term variation of the Atmosphere heat budget has been investigated. The aim of this work was to evaluate the role of each component of the climate system on the planet energy balance, focusing on the atmospheric variability over the Southern Ocean and the Antarctic Continent. The calculation was performed according to the formulation used by Oort and Vonder Haar (1976). As expected, the ocean has shown a huge dominance on heat storage around the globe. A large seasonal variation on both oceanic and atmospheric systems was evident. Results show unusual atmospheric variability over the southern polar region. After removing the seasonal cycle, the atmospheric heat storage anomaly displays significant intraseasonal variability at high latitudes. EOF and Wavelets analysis show that the atmospheric heat storage changed from the beginning of the record with a distinct 2 months cycle, which is well defined between 60◦S and 90◦S. According to the EOF analysis it grew more intense from mid 20th to early 21st centuries, reflecting the warming trend.Utilizando dados da re-análise NCEP/NCAR e do World Ocean Atlas 2005, foi investigada a variação de longo termo do balaço de calor da atmosfera. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o papel de cada componente do sistema climático no balanço de energia do planeta, especialmente a variabilidade atmosférica sobre o Hemisfério Sul e o continente antártico. Foi adotada a formulação proposta por Oort and Vonder Haar (1976). Como esperado, o oceano apresentou grande dominância em termos do armazenamento do calor no âmbito global. A variabilidade sazonal ficou evidente tanto para o oceano quanto para atmosfera. Foi observada uma variabilidade incomum no termo atmosférico sobre a região polar sul. Removendo o ciclo sazonal, a anomalia do armazenamento de calor pela atmosfera mostra uma variabilidade em escala intrasazonal em altas latitudes. Análises de EOF e Wavelets mostram que o armazenamento de calor pela atmosfera alterou-se entre o início e o fim do período analisado, evidenciando uma oscilação com período de 2 meses muito bem marcada entre as latitudes de 60◦S e 90◦S. De acordo com a EOF, esse modo de variabilidade intensificou-se entre meados do século XX e início do século XXI, refletindo a tendência de aquecimento

Globalization of the Antarctic seas: Pollution and Climate Change Perspectives

The Antarctic continent is entirely surrounded by the Antarctic Ocean alsonamed Southern Ocean, forming a barrier to the movement of organismsinto and out of Antarctica. Therefore, the Antarctic Continent has uniquecharacteristics because of its geographic isolation.It is regarded as one of the remaining environments on the planetwhere human activities have little direct impact. Thus, this region hasbeen considered an ideal observatory for research on global change andenvironmental impacts caused by man (Xuebin et al. 2006).Fil: Montone, Rosalinda. Instituto Oceanografico (iousp); Brasil. Universidade de Sao Paulo; BrasilFil: de Castro Martins, Cesar. Centro de Estudos do Mar, UFPR; BrasilFil: Maruch Tonelli, Marcos Henrique. Universidade de Sao Paulo; Brasil. Instituto Oceanografico (iousp); BrasilFil: Hoppe Trevizani, Tailisi. Universidade de Sao Paulo; Brasil. Instituto Oceanografico (iousp); BrasilFil: Caruso Bicego, Marcia. Universidade de Sao Paulo; Brasil. Instituto Oceanografico (iousp); BrasilFil: Lopes Figueira, Rubens Cesar. Universidade de Sao Paulo; Brasil. Instituto Oceanografico (iousp); BrasilFil: Coaracy Wainer, Ilana Elazari Klein. Universidade de Sao Paulo; Brasil. Instituto Oceanografico (iousp); BrasilFil: Marcovecchio, Jorge Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía; Argentin