Author(s): Nobuo Ono
Linked Author(s): Nobuo Ono
Keywords: No Keywords
Abstract: Oceanic heat flux from water to atmosphere in the high latitudes seas is discussed under various surface conditions such as open water before freezing, sea ice cover with different thickness, and openings in the frozen sea. The oceanic heat flux through sea ice cover decreases with increasing ice thickness, from about 100 W/m2 for start of freezing to several W/m2 for 1~2 m thick ice cover. The oceanic heat flux through openings such as leads and polynyas within the frozen sea is estimated as more than 1000 W/m, especially in the severe winter season. These results indicate that leads and polynyas in the winter frozen seas play an important role in the thermal regimes of water in frozen seas, and in the poleward energy transport in the global climate.
Year: 1990