Editors’ Highlights are summaries of recent papers by AGU’s journal editors.
Source: Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
The Arctic climate system involves dynamic interactions between the atmosphere, sea ice, and ocean. However, due to the lack of comprehensive observations and analyses in previous studies, these interactions are not fully understood.
Watkins et al. [2024] collected a large set of observational data from stations, weather balloons, radars, buoys and performed an in-depth analysis of how Arctic sea ice and ocean responded to a strong cyclone passing over the Arctic during the winter of 2019-2020. They demonstrate that the strong wind stress of the cyclone first impacts sea ice, which consequently transfers momentum to the upper layer of ocean. It drives acceleration and circular inertial motion in the upper ocean, known as ringing, enhancing mixing at depth and prolonging the overall impact of the storm by up to several days.
This study is both timely and significant, particularly given the ongoing warming of the Arctic and the reduction in sea ice. Such studies, particularly those utilizing in situ data collected around the sea ice pack during winter, are rare due to the harsh Arctic environment. This study fills a crucial gap by providing results that significantly enhance our understanding of the dynamics of the air-ice-ocean system.
Citation: Watkins, D. M., Persson, P. O. G., Stanton, T., Solomon, A., Hutchings, J. K., Haapala, J., & Svensson, G. (2024). Air-ice-ocean coupling during a strong mid-winter cyclone: Observing coupled dynamic interactions across scales. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 129, e2024JD041057. https://doi.org/10.1029/2024JD041057
—Yongyun Hu, Editor, JGR: Atmospheres