Hydrological character and sea-current structure in the front of Amery Ice Shelf

Hydrological character and Sea-current profiles structure are studied and analyzed in sea-area of the front of Amery Ice Shelf, Prydz Bay with LADCP, CTD data. These LADCP, CTD data were acquired during the 19th Chinese Antarctic Scientific Expedition. Results of this study agree with that, there exist four different kinds of water masses in the area of the front of Amery Ice Shelf in the summer of Antarctica. Current distribution presents a semi-circumfluence which flows in at the east and flows out in the west. Moreover, clockwise and anti-clockwise vortices were found in upper layer and mid-layer in the Prydz Bay. Western areas of these anti-clockwise vortices are positions of inflows from Prydz Bay to Amery Ice Shelf. The source of these inflows is the coastal westward current originated in the east of Prydz Bay. All these characteristics come down to the pattern of circumfluence, ice melt rate under Ice Shelf, scale of Ice Shelf water production and form of water exchanges between area of Ice Shelf and area of Prydz Bay

Definition of Arctic and Antarctic Sea Ice Variation Index

It is well known that varying of the sea ice not only in the Antarctic but also in the Arctic has an active influence on the globe atmosphere and ocean. In order to understand the sea ice variation in detail, for the first time, an objective index of the Arctic and Antarctic sea ice variation is defined by projecting the monthly sea ice concentration anomalies poleward of 20°N or 20°S onto the EOF (empirical orthogonal function) -1 spatial pattern. Comparing with some work in former studies of polar sea ice, the index has the potential for clarifying the variability of sea ice in northern and southern high latitudes

Climate anomalies in the southern high latitudes associated with the Subtropical Dipole Mode

Climate anomalies in the southern high latitude associated with the Subtropical Dipole Mode (SDM) are investigated using a 23 year database consisting of SLP (sea level pressure), surface air temperature (SAT) and sea surface temperature (SST). The analysis depicts, for the first time, the spatial variability in the relationship of the above variables with the Subtropical Dipole Mode Index (SDI). It suggests that the SDM signal exists in the southern high latitudes and the correlation fields exhibit a wave number -3 pattern around the circumpolar Southern Ocean. Leadlag correlation analysis used to the SLP, SAT and SST anomalies with the SDI time series at the positive and negative correlation extremes shows that the southern-high-latitude climate responses to SDM almost instantaneously proposing the connection is by atmospheric and not by oceanic propogation