How does sea ice affects the water movement in the Arctic Ocean? To study this, more than $1 million federal grant money is given to a team of University of Alaska Fairbanks scientists. The study will be starting next summer. It will focus on various activities, such as:
how storm systems stir up ice on the upper ocean,
drawing water from the warmer middle layers of the Arctic Ocean to the surface.
For better understanding of climate change, the sea ice is important. The presence of sea ice affects the amount of heat from the sun being reflected back into space, Harper Simmons said. He is an assistant research professor at the UAF International Arctic Research Center, collaborating with other scientists at the university.
Simmons said,
The reason we are interested in this is there is a lot of heat in the Arctic Ocean… The motion that results from these storms may be important for stirring up the upper ocean and drawing heat out of the Arctic Ocean.
Via: Environmental News Network