Enhanced wind mixing and deepened mixed layer in the Pacific Arctic shelf seas with low summer sea ice

The Arctic Ocean has experienced significant sea ice loss over recent decades, shifting towards a thinner and more mobile seasonal ice regime. However, the impacts of these transformations on the upper ocean dynamics of the biologically productive Pacific Arctic continental shelves remain underexplored. Here, we quantified the summer upper mixed layer depth and analyzed its interannual to decadal evolution with sea ice and atmospheric forcing, using hydrographic observations and model reanalysis from 1996 to 2021. Before 2006, a shoaling summer mixed layer was associated with sea ice loss and surface warming. After 2007, however, the upper mixed layer reversed to a generally deepening trend due to markedly lengthened open water duration, enhanced wind-induced mixing, and reduced ice meltwater input. Our findings reveal a shift in the primary drivers of upper ocean dynamics, with surface buoyancy flux dominant initially, followed by a shift to wind forcing despite continued sea ice decline. These changes in upper ocean structure and forcing mechanisms may have substantial implications for the marine ecosystem, potentially contributing to unusual fall phytoplankton blooms and intensified ocean acidification observed in the past decade.

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Publication Details

Journal
Nature Communications
Published
2024-11-29
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54733-w
Citations
4
Primary Topic
Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamics
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.51

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article

Enhanced wind mixing and deepened mixed layer in the Pacific Arctic shelf seas with low summer sea ice

Di Qi, Jicai Zhang, Zhixuan Feng, Peigen Lin et al.
4 citations
Nature Communications
Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamics
1.51
article

Enhanced wind mixing and deepened mixed layer in the Pacific Arctic shelf seas with low summer sea ice

Di Qi, Jicai Zhang, Zhixuan Feng, Peigen Lin, Hui Wu, Haiyan Jin, Yuanqi Wang, Jianfang Chen, Jacqueline M. Grebmeier, Hongjun Song
article en
4 citations

Abstract

The Arctic Ocean has experienced significant sea ice loss over recent decades, shifting towards a thinner and more mobile seasonal ice regime. However, the impacts of these transformations on the upper ocean dynamics of the biologically productive Pacific Arctic continental shelves remain underexplored. Here, we quantified the summer upper mixed layer depth and analyzed its interannual to decadal evolution with sea ice and atmospheric forcing, using hydrographic observations and model reanalysis from 1996 to 2021. Before 2006, a shoaling summer mixed layer was associated with sea ice loss and surface warming. After 2007, however, the upper mixed layer reversed to a generally deepening trend due to markedly lengthened open water duration, enhanced wind-induced mixing, and reduced ice meltwater input. Our findings reveal a shift in the primary drivers of upper ocean dynamics, with surface buoyancy flux dominant initially, followed by a shift to wind forcing despite continued sea ice decline. These changes in upper ocean structure and forcing mechanisms may have substantial implications for the marine ecosystem, potentially contributing to unusual fall phytoplankton blooms and intensified ocean acidification observed in the past decade.

Nature CommunicationsVol. 15(1)
University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (US), Jimei University (CN), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (CN), Ministry of Natural Resources (CN), Second Institute of Oceanography (CN), First Institute of Oceanography (CN), East China Normal University (CN)
National Science Foundation, Natural Science Foundation of Shanghai, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Key Research and Development Program of China, Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, Office of Polar Programs
Life below water
Openalex Percentile: Top 19%
Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamics
1.51
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