Spatiotemporal variations of sea ice kinematics in the Transpolar Drift of the Arctic Ocean in 2019/2020 derived from buoy measurements during MOSAiC

Liu, Minghao and Lei, Ruibo and Li, Na and Cheng, Xuhua (2025) Spatiotemporal variations of sea ice kinematics in the Transpolar Drift of the Arctic Ocean in 2019/2020 derived from buoy measurements during MOSAiC. Advances in Polar Science, 36 (2). pp. 137-151.

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Abstract

Using nine ice-tethered buoys deployed across the marginal ice zone (MIZ) and pack ice zone (PIZ) north of the Laptev Sea during the expedition of the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) in 2019–2020, we characterized the spatiotemporal variations in sea ice kinematics and deformation between October 2019 and July 2020 in the Transpolar Drift (TPD). From October to November, the buoys were in the upstream area of the TPD; spatial variations of deformation rates were significantly correlated with initial ice thickness (R=−0.84, P<0.05). From December 2019 to March 2020, the buoys were in the high Arctic and the ice cover was consolidated; heterogeneity in ice kinematics as measured across the buoys reduced by 65%. From April to May 2020, the buoys were in the downstream TPD; amplified spatial variations in ice kinematics were observed. This is because two buoys had drifted over the shallow waters north of Svalbard earlier; trajectory-stretching exponents derived from the data from these two buoys indicate deformation rates (10.6 d−1) that were about twice those in the deep basin (4.2 d−1). By June 2020, a less consolidated ice pack and enhanced tidal forcing in the Fram Strait MIZ resulted in ice deformation with a semi-diurnal power spectral density of >0.25 d−1, which is about 1.5 times that in PIZ. Therefore, in both the upstream and downstream regions of the TPD, the transition between the MIZ and the PIZ contributes to the spatial and seasonal variations of sea ice motion and deformation. The results from this study can be used to support the characterization of the momentum balance and influencing factors during the ice advection along the TPD, which is a crucial corridor for Arctic sea ice outflow to the north Atlantic Ocean.

Item Type:	Article
Related URLs:
Keywords:	sea ice motion, sea ice deformation, Arctic Ocean, buoy measurements, MOSAiC
Subjects:	Natural Environment > Oceans
Organizations:	Advances in Polar Science (APS)
Date Deposited:	03 Jul 2025 14:02
URI:	https://library.arcticportal.org/id/eprint/2898

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