Open AccessModeling ice shelf cavities in a z coordinate ocean general circulation model
Author(s) -
Losch M.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: oceans
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.67
H-Index - 298
eISSN - 2156-2202
pISSN - 0148-0227
DOI - 10.1029/2007jc004368
Subject(s) - geology , sea ice , ice shelf , meltwater , ocean current , climatology , ice sheet model , oceanography , glacial period , cryosphere , geomorphology
Processes at the ice shelf‐ocean interface and in particular in ice shelf cavities around Antarctica have an observable effect on the solutions of basin scale to global coupled ice‐ocean models. Despite this, these processes are not routinely represented in global ocean and climate models. It is shown that a new ice shelf cavity model for z coordinate models can reproduce results from an intercomparison project of earlier approaches with vertical σ or isopycnic coordinates. As a proof of concept, ice shelves are incorporated in a 100‐year global integration of a z coordinate model. In this simulation, glacial meltwater can be traced as far as north as 15°S. The observed effects of processes in the ice shelf cavities agree with previous results from a σ coordinate model, notably the increase in sea ice thickness. However, melt rates are overestimated probably because the parameterization of basal melting does not suit the low resolution of this configuration.