Data · collection
Weddell Polynya Modeling
Listed in NASA Earthdata CMR
Research Activities: In this project a coupled sea-ice ocean numerical model was developed for the purpose of studying the formation mechanism for a large, aperiodic anomaly occurring in the sea-ice cover of the Weddell Sea, Antarctica.
Description
That anomaly was first detected by Satellite in the mid-1970s as a hole in the sea-ice cover that covered an area of 200,000 km2. The strategy employed for understanding how such a large anomaly forms was to develop an idealized model of the physical environment.
Results arising from of a computer simulation of ocean flow past an idealized seamount, configured periodic channel domain with uniform atmospheric cooling, showed that a polynya spontaneously develops off one of the flanks of the seamount. Analysis of the simulation showed that a large cyclonic eddy is shed from the seamount and this eddy imparts a divergent strain to the overlying sea-ice cover (Holland, 2001a, 2001b, 2001c).
Read the rest (5 more)
That divergent strain creates an opening in the sea-ice cover that atmospheric processes further reinforce, and enlarges the opening. Holland, D.M., 2001a: Explaining the Weddell Polynya - A large ocean eddy shed at Maud Rise. Science, 292, 1697-1700.
Holland, D.M., 2001b: Transient sea-ice polynya forced by environmental flow variability. Prog. Oceanogr., 48, 475-532.
Holland, D.M., 2001c: An impact of sub-grid-scale ice-ocean dynamics on sea-ice cover. J. Climate, 14(7), 1585-1601. Educational Activities: The PI is involved in several educational initiatives at New York University that allow him to contribute to the development of human resources.
A graduate course in physical oceanography and an undergraduate course in environmental fluid mechanics is taught by the PI each year. These courses allow the PI to share with students an example of an active research program by incorporating aspects of computer modeling of polynyas into the core curriculum. Additionally, a formal Wednesday afternoon colloquium is offered each week and an informal Friday afternoon student seminar series is run by the PI.
These educational activities bring together both science and math students and gives them an opportunity to see cutting edge research and to present their own research to their peers. For example, Prof. Andrew Willmott of Keele University, an internationally recognized expert on polynyas, was invited to present a seminar and the students were given a chance to interact with him and learn about polynya research.
Links
Catalogue records · 2
- CMR record cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov/search/concepts/C1214611780-SCIOPS.html ↗
catalogue entry · from NASA CMR
- CMR UMM-JSON cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov/search/concepts/C1214611780-SCIOPS.umm_json ↗
metadata API · from NASA CMR
Topics
- Stated by source
- Not provided · Polynyas
- Inferred from text
- Simulation 75%
Provenance · 1 source records, 9 field assertions
| Source | Key | Last seen | Raw |
|---|---|---|---|
| NASA Earthdata CMR | C1214611780-SCIOPS | 11 d ago | JSON v1 |
| Field | Assertion | Extractor | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| access_level | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 | |
| concepts[measured_variable].gcmd:earth-science/oceans/sea-ice/polynyas | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 | |
| concepts[method].local:method:simulation | enrichment · NASA CMR | keyword-concept-rules@1.0.0 | title+description (75%) |
| concepts[platform].gcmd_platform:not-provided | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 | |
| description | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 | /umm/Abstract |
| spatial | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 | /umm/SpatialExtent |
| temporal | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 | /umm/TemporalExtents |
| title | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 | /umm/EntryTitle |
| version_label | source · NASA CMR | connector:nasa_cmr@1.0.0 |