Ice Mass Balance Buoys for the Arctic Observing Network: Observing and Understanding a Changing Arctic Sea Ice Cover

The Arctic sea ice cover is in decline. The areal extent of sea ice is decreasing and the ice is getting thinner. Observing and understanding this ice loss is critical to predict future ice conditions and develop plans to respond to these changes.

This project uses autonomous buoys to determine the mass balance of sea ice. The sea ice mass balance is a simple concept. It is how much the ice grows in winter and how much it melts in summer; specifically, how much it melts on the surface of the ice and how much on the bottom of the ice.

This separation enables the relative contributions of the atmosphere and the ocean to be determined. These buoys will be deployed at key locations in partnership with other instruments measuring conditions in the atmosphere and ocean. Buoy deployment locations are influenced by modeling studies and by logistical opportunities.

The ice mass balance data will be used to gain insights into the drivers of the current rapid sea ice decline and changes in the characteristics of the upper layers of the Arctic Ocean and to improve models of sea ice and climate.

Seasonal ice mass balance buoys are based on a spar-type hull design. They are designed to be installed in the ice and to float stably upright in open water. The sensor package on the buoy provides time series data on position, barometric pressure, vertical profiles of air-snow-ice-upper ocean temperature, snow depth, ice thickness, ice growth, surface melt, bottom melt, and ocean heat flux.

This project will procure and deploy a minimum of eight buoys per year; process and archive the data from these buoys to be fully, freely, and immediately accessible to all users; implement new sensors into the buoy production process and make this ever-improving technology available; and continue to post mass balance results on a publicly accessible website. The ice mass balance buoys will also be the centerpiece of a middle school science program called “Adopt-a-buoy.” By working with an observation site at the school, where they collect data similar to measurements by buoys installed in the Arctic, eighth-grade students will gain firsthand experience formulating hypotheses, accessing, processing and analyzing data, and presenting results to their peers.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.