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Salinity response to atmospheric forcing of the Terra Nova Bay polynya, Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2021

Deborah A. Le Bel Open the ORCID record for Deborah A. Le Bel [Opens in a new window] ,
Christopher J. Zappa Open the ORCID record for Christopher J. Zappa [Opens in a new window] ,
Giorgio Budillon  and
Arnold L. Gordon Open the ORCID record for Arnold L. Gordon [Opens in a new window]
Deborah A. Le Bel
Affiliation:
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY, 10964, USA
Christopher J. Zappa*
Affiliation:
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY, 10964, USA
Giorgio Budillon
Affiliation:
Università degli Studi di Napoli Parthenope, Centro Direzionale, Isola C4 - 80143Naples, Italy
Arnold L. Gordon
Affiliation:
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY, 10964, USA
*
[email protected]
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Abstract

The density and salinity of High Salinity Shelf Water, a key component of Antarctic Bottom Water emanating from the Ross Sea, are intensified by brine rejection induced by ice formation within the Terra Nova Bay (TNB) polynya. Ocean mooring data from 2007, meteorological observations from automatic weather stations and a satellite-derived history of the opening of TNB polynya delineate variability in water column salinity linked to atmospheric forcing, with a period on the order of 10 days. Lagged correlation analysis indicates that on average salinity response lags the polynya opening by 2 days and the wind forcing by 5 days. We find stronger correlations of salinity with the wind during March through May and with the polynya open-water fraction during June through October, with decreasing lags in the latter period. A one-dimensional mixed-layer model incorporating thermodynamic ice formation captures the oscillations in salinity. A process study shows that the variability in the polynya open-water fraction governs the final salinity attained by the model as well as the salinity cycling. Variability in surface heat fluxes modulates that effect. Our work suggests that there is a more complex relationship between salinity, the polynya open-water fraction, and atmospheric forcing than previously suggested.

Keywords

High Salinity Shelf Waterocean-atmosphere interactionpolynyassalinity response
Type
Physical Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 33 , Issue 3 , June 2021 , pp. 318 - 331
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Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2021

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