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Wintertime Antarctic coastal polynya area: 1992–2008
Author(s) -
Kern S.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2009gl038062
Subject(s) - bay , oceanography , geology , ice shelf , glacier , sea ice , climatology , cryosphere , geomorphology
An iterative classification technique based on Special Sensor Microwave/Imager data is used to estimate the total daily circum‐Antarctic coastal polynya area for 1992–2008. The average wintertime (June to September) area is estimated at 245,000 ± 10,000 km 2 , and varies between 210,000 km 2 (1997) and 281,000 km 2 (2007). The polynyas along East‐Antarctica (60 to 160°E) contribute about 40% to this area. The most persistent polynyas are located along East Antarctica: Lars‐Christensen Coast (LCC), Prydz Bay, Western Davis Sea, Mertz Glacier, and in the Ross Sea: Ross Ice Shelf and Terra Nova Bay. The polynya at the LCC is observed on 110 ± 5 days during winter for 1992–2008. It is the most persistent of the observed polynyas, covering an average area of 2400 km 2 on more than 90 days. Trends in the average wintertime area of the major coastal polynyas during 1992–2008 are small and not significant.