30 March 2022 Observing Ocean Currents

Journal

A Bit of Science and a Lot of Fun!

It was a great day of being out on the sea ice for my very first time. I got much more comfortable driving a snow machine on the sea ice as well as figuring how to regulate how cold/warm I am with varying layers and coats and balaclavas to keep warm enough and not sweat and also not get frozen fogged up goggles.

Sarah R. Johnson's first view of sea ice first hand; without facemask and goggles for only about 10 seconds just to take this photo. Photo by Ben Cohen.

Winds, Weather, Density Gradients, and More

The complexity of variables creates very dynamic movement at the different depths and layers or stratigraphy of the Arctic Ocean. Depending on where people are observing, the water moves in different directions. The surface water moves in different directions than the deeper ocean currents. You can explore the Arctic Ocean Circulation with this interactive from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Arctic Ocean Circulations from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution — Arctic Ocean Circulation interactive from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution https://divediscover.whoi.edu/polar-regions/the-arctic-ocean-circulation

Today we deployed tilt meters for a colleague at Pacific Northwest National Laboratories who is interested in harvesting energy from the currents just below the sea ice as a potential source for renewable energy. We utilized a protocol that was inspired by Andreas Muenchow, professor at the School of Marine Science and Policy at the University of Delaware to deploy tilt meters. The tilt meters measure the angle of currents. We will retrieve the tilt meters next week before heading home so the data collected can be shuttled off to computer for analysis.

Science on the Sea Ice - installing current tilt meter. Photo by Ignatius Rigor

Sarah R Johnson augering a hole to deploy a current tilt meter. Photo by Ben Cohen

Ignatius Rigor using a ice thickness gage — Ben Cohen (left) and Ignatius Rigor (right) using a ice thickness gage.

Inserting tilt meter into two inch hole in sea ice. — Ignatius Rigor inserting tilt meter into two inch hole in sea ice.

The sea ice and the open water on the surface of the Arctic Ocean is typically influenced by the current weather conditions (wind). In the Beaufort SeaThe Beaufort Sea lies to the north of Alaska and the Yukon and Northwest Territories. off the coast of northern Alaska, the sea ice is moving in a clockwise direction. We know this as we collect position data with Arctic buoys.

Buoy tracks from International Arctic Buoy Programme https://iabp.apl.uw.edu/IABP_Table.html

The current in the deeper ocean layers is driven by variation in salinity creating density gradients. There is also a relationship with the current and the coast. Generally in the northern hemisphere, the coastal current follows the coastline with the coast on the right hand side and it is the opposite in the southern hemisphere.

Global Conveyor Belt from Nat Geo — The Global Conveyor Belt: a system of ocean currents that transport water around the world.https://www.nationalgeographic.org/media/global-conveyor-belt/

Engage with IABP AK Spring 22 Deployment Expedition

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