Atmospheric conditions during the Arctic Clouds in Summer Experiment (ACSE): Contrasting open-water and sea-ice surfaces during melt and freeze-up seasons

Details

• Journal Title:
  Journal of Climate
• Personal Author:
  Sotiropoulou, Georgia ; Tjernström, Michael ; Sedlar, Joseph ; Achtert, Peggy ; Brooks, Barbara J. ; Brooks, Ian M. ; Persson, P. Ola G. ; Prytherch, John ; Salisbury, Dominic J. ; Shupe, Matthew D. ; Johnston, Paul E. ; Wolfe, Dan
• NOAA Program & Office:
  OAR (Oceanic and Atmospheric Research) ; PSL (Physical Sciences Laboratory) ; ESRL (Earth System Research Laboratory)
• Description:
  The Arctic Clouds in Summer Experiment (ACSE) was conducted during summer and early autumn 2014, providing a detailed view of the seasonal transition from ice melt into freeze-up. Measurements were taken over both ice-free and ice-covered surfaces, near the ice edge, offering insight to the role of the surface state in shaping the atmospheric conditions. The initiation of the autumn freeze-up was related to a change in air mass, rather than to changes in solar radiation alone; the lower atmosphere cooled abruptly leading to a surface heat loss. During melt season, strong surface inversions persisted over the ice, while elevated inversions were more frequent over open water. These differences disappeared during autumn freeze-up, when elevated inversions persisted over both ice-free and ice-covered conditions. These results are in contrast to previous studies that found a well-mixed boundary layer persisting in summer and an increased frequency of surface-based inversions in autumn, suggesting that our knowledge derived from measurements taken within the pan-Arctic area and on the central ice-pack does not necessarily apply closer to the ice-edge. This study offers an insight to the atmospheric processes that occur during a crucial period of the year; understanding and accurately modeling these processes is essential for the improvement of ice-extent predictions and future Arctic climate projections.
• Source:
  J. Climate
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-16-0211.1
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Rights Information:
  Other
• Compliance:
  Submitted
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:e8869833a7c6fe3f68c9ee6584141d941dcf96739e6fb1fbbd250ff843cbd54f
• Download URL:
  https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/14614/noaa_14614_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.16 MB ]