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This dataset contains water column oxygen measurements from multi-day bottle incubations collected in the Central Arctic Ocean during the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition – in which the RV (Research Vessel) Polarstern was tethered to sea ice, drifting across the Central Arctic Ocean from October 2019 to September 2020. Water was collected from various depths in the water column for whole seawater respiration rates via oxygen evolution incubations during legs 1, 3, 4, and 5 of the expedition. Incubations took place in a 1 ºC (celsius) cold room onboard Polarstern. Due to temperature stability and bubble formation issues, most measurements were compromised and data has been flagged accordingly during quality checks.
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The MOSAiC ice floe: sediment-laden survivor from the Siberian shelf
Abstract. In September 2019, the researchicebreaker Polarstern started the largest multidisciplinary Arctic expedition to date,the MOSAiC (Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of ArcticClimate) drift experiment. Being moored to an ice floe for a whole year,thus including the winter season, the declared goal of the expedition is tobetter understand and quantify relevant processes within theatmosphere–ice–ocean system that impact the sea ice mass and energy budget,ultimately leading to much improved climate models. Satellite observations,atmospheric reanalysis data, and readings from a nearby meteorologicalstation indicate that the interplay of high ice export in late winter andexceptionally high air temperatures resulted in the longest ice-free summerperiod since reliable instrumental records began. We show, using aLagrangian tracking tool and a thermodynamic sea ice model, that the MOSAiCfloe carrying the Central Observatory (CO) formed in a polynya event northof the New Siberian Islands at the beginning of December 2018. The resultsfurther indicate that sea ice in the vicinity of the CO (<40 kmdistance) was younger and 36 % thinner than the surrounding ice withpotential consequences for ice dynamics and momentum and heat transferbetween ocean and atmosphere. Sea ice surveys carried out on variousreference floes in autumn 2019 verify this gradient in ice thickness, andsediments discovered in ice cores (so-called dirty sea ice) around the COconfirm contact with shallow waters in an early phase of growth, consistentwith the tracking analysis. Since less and less ice from the Siberianshelves survives its first summer (Krumpen et al., 2019), the MOSAiCexperiment provides the unique opportunity to study the role of sea ice as atransport medium for gases, macronutrients, iron, organic matter,sediments and pollutants from shelf areas to the central Arctic Ocean andbeyond. Compared to data for the past 26 years, the sea ice encountered atthe end of September 2019 can already be classified as exceptionally thin,and further predicted changes towards a seasonally ice-free ocean willlikely cut off the long-range transport of ice-rafted materials by theTranspolar Drift in the future. A reduced long-range transport of sea icewould have strong implications for the redistribution of biogeochemicalmatter in the central Arctic Ocean, with consequences for the balance ofclimate-relevant trace gases, primary production and biodiversity in theArctic Ocean.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1723400
- PAR ID:
- 10196224
- Author(s) / Creator(s):
- ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more »
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- The Cryosphere
- Volume:
- 14
- Issue:
- 7
- ISSN:
- 1994-0424
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 2173 to 2187
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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The Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition was conducted from October 2019-September 2020. During this ~1 year period, the Research Vessel (R/V) Polarstern was frozen into the ice in the Central Arctic Ocean north of Norway and drifted with the prevailing currents from north to south, traversing multiple Arctic basins and regimes, and was re-located in late July to near the North Pole after drifting through Fram Strait. The ship served as a floating laboratory for an international, multidisciplinary program focusing on multiple facets of ice, ocean, atmosphere, biogeochemistry, and ecosystem responses to ongoing changing environmental conditions. Zooplankton ecology was investigated as part of the ecosystem team program. Here we present data on key zooplankton rate processes collected over the period of the drift including: respiration, feeding, and reproduction.more » « less
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The Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition was an international initiative in which research vessel (R/V) Polarstern drifted with the sea ice in the Central Arctic Ocean from October 2019 to September 2020. Here, we present data from a study in which Beryllium-7, a naturally occurring radioactive isotope with a half-life of 53 days, is used as a tracer for the atmospheric deposition of trace elements to the ocean / ice surface and their partitioning among the seawater, ice and snow catchments during winter and spring. The data sets include measurements of Be-7 in 1) aerosol particles collected on filters using a high volume sampler on Polastern, 2) seawater from the upper water column (8-60 meters depth) collected using the ship’s seawater intake system and using pumps on the ice floe, and 3) ice cores, snow, and frost flowers collected from sites on the MOSAiC and surrounding ice floes. Be-7 analysis was performed using high purity germanium gamma detectors.more » « less
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Arctic Ocean properties and processes are highly relevant to the regional and global coupled climate system, yet still scarcely observed, especially in winter. Team OCEAN conducted a full year of physical oceanography observations as part of the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of the Arctic Climate (MOSAiC), a drift with the Arctic sea ice from October 2019 to September 2020. An international team designed and implemented the program to characterize the Arctic Ocean system in unprecedented detail, from the seafloor to the air-sea ice-ocean interface, from sub-mesoscales to pan-Arctic. The oceanographic measurements were coordinated with the other teams to explore the ocean physics and linkages to the climate and ecosystem. This paper introduces the major components of the physical oceanography program and complements the other team overviews of the MOSAiC observational program. Team OCEAN’s sampling strategy was designed around hydrographic ship-, ice- and autonomous platform-based measurements to improve the understanding of regional circulation and mixing processes. Measurements were carried out both routinely, with a regular schedule, and in response to storms or opening leads. Here we present along-drift time series of hydrographic properties, allowing insights into the seasonal and regional evolution of the water column from winter in the Laptev Sea to early summer in Fram Strait: freshening of the surface, deepening of the mixed layer, increase in temperature and salinity of the Atlantic Water. We also highlight the presence of Canada Basin deep water intrusions and a surface meltwater layer in leads. MOSAiC most likely was the most comprehensive program ever conducted over the ice-covered Arctic Ocean. While data analysis and interpretation are ongoing, the acquired datasets will support a wide range of physical oceanography and multi-disciplinary research. They will provide a significant foundation for assessing and advancing modeling capabilities in the Arctic Ocean.more » « less
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With the Arctic rapidly changing, the needs to observe, understand, and model the changes are essential. To support these needs, an annual cycle of observations of atmospheric properties, processes, and interactions were made while drifting with the sea ice across the central Arctic during the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition from October 2019 to September 2020. An international team designed and implemented the comprehensive program to document and characterize all aspects of the Arctic atmospheric system in unprecedented detail, using a variety of approaches, and across multiple scales. These measurements were coordinated with other observational teams to explore cross-cutting and coupled interactions with the Arctic Ocean, sea ice, and ecosystem through a variety of physical and biogeochemical processes. This overview outlines the breadth and complexity of the atmospheric research program, which was organized into 4 subgroups: atmospheric state, clouds and precipitation, gases and aerosols, and energy budgets. Atmospheric variability over the annual cycle revealed important influences from a persistent large-scale winter circulation pattern, leading to some storms with pressure and winds that were outside the interquartile range of past conditions suggested by long-term reanalysis. Similarly, the MOSAiC location was warmer and wetter in summer than the reanalysis climatology, in part due to its close proximity to the sea ice edge. The comprehensiveness of the observational program for characterizing and analyzing atmospheric phenomena is demonstrated via a winter case study examining air mass transitions and a summer case study examining vertical atmospheric evolution. Overall, the MOSAiC atmospheric program successfully met its objectives and was the most comprehensive atmospheric measurement program to date conducted over the Arctic sea ice. The obtained data will support a broad range of coupled-system scientific research and provide an important foundation for advancing multiscale modeling capabilities in the Arctic.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-2173-2020
