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A sensitivity study of the sea ice simulation in the global coupled climate model, HadGEM3
- Source :
- Ocean Modelling. 74:60-76
- Publication Year :
- 2014
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2014.
-
Abstract
- We present the results of a wide-ranging sea ice sensitivity study, performed with a fully-coupled global atmosphere–ice-ocean climate model. We investigate sensitivity to a selection of sea ice parameters, varied within the range of observational uncertainty, and additionally study the effect on the sea ice of increased resolution in the atmosphere and ocean-ice models, as well as dynamics and physics changes in the atmosphere. In the Arctic, we find that the sea ice thickness is most sensitive to the albedo of the overlying snow layer (because of its influence on surface melt) and the thermal conductivities of ice and snow (because of their role in regulating heat flux from the ocean to the atmosphere through the ice). We find the winter Arctic ice extent to be sensitive to the resolution of the ocean-ice model, through increased sea surface temperatures in the Labrador Sea at higher resolution. The Arctic ice extent is reduced under increased atmospheric resolution, because of increased poleward heat transport. In the Antarctic, the sensitivity to sea ice parameters is weaker, and atmosphere and ocean forcing dominate; in particular, increased resolution of the atmosphere and ocean-ice models leads to the enhancement of a warm bias in the Southern Ocean, which has a large impact on sea ice thickness and extent. Inclusion of a selection of these parameters in combination, together with changes to the atmosphere and ocean models, leads to significant improvements in representation of Arctic sea ice extent, thickness and volume in a new global coupled model configuration.
- Subjects :
- Drift ice
Arctic sea ice decline
Atmospheric Science
geography
geography.geographical_feature_category
Antarctic sea ice
Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology
Oceanography
Arctic ice pack
Physics::Geophysics
Climatology
Sea ice thickness
Computer Science (miscellaneous)
Sea ice
Cryosphere
Astrophysics::Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
Sea ice concentration
Physics::Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14635003
- Volume :
- 74
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Ocean Modelling
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........576854d4be637b93447a713b5688e0f7