Open AccessLarge‐scale drift of Arctic Sea ice retrieved from passive microwave satellite data
Author(s) -
Martin T.,
Augstein E.
Publication year - 2000
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 - 10.1029/1999jc900270
Subject(s) - buoy , sea ice , arctic , arctic ice pack , satellite , climatology , geology , sea ice concentration , sea ice thickness , drift ice , special sensor microwave/imager , remote sensing , environmental science , oceanography , microwave , brightness temperature , aerospace engineering , engineering , physics , quantum mechanics
A method of determining the large‐scale sea ice drift using 85.5 GHz Special Sensor Microwave Imager data are presented. A cross‐correlation method is applied to sequential images of gridded data covering the entire Arctic. Individual correlation results are validated with ice velocities derived from buoy data. The satellite‐derived mean drift values and the variabilities of the ice drift correspond closely with the buoy data. Similarly, time series of buoy data and associated satellite data are in good agreement even over large time periods. An example of a satellite‐retrieved 3 day mean drift field demonstrates the potential of the method for providing large‐scale ice circulation patterns. Mean drift fields of the winter periods 1987–1988 and 1992–1993 indicate a considerable interannual variability of the sea ice drift pattern in the Arctic Ocean. The Arctic region is divided into seven larger areas, and the area flux between these regions has been derived. The Kara Sea and the Laptev Sea show the largest area ice export with 0.02 and 0.015 km 2 s −1 , respectively. The central Arctic export through Fram Strait amounts to 0.12 Sv during the winter of 1992–1993 with a maximum of 0.15 Sv in January.