Researchers have implemented a new method to compare sea-ice age in climate models with satellite observations. This not only improves how climate models are evaluated, but also gives us a better understanding of ongoing and future changes in the Arctic climate.
The age of the sea ice reflects how long the ice has persisted despite melting processes that eventually lead to its disappearance. It also provides insight into the ice’s dynamic behaviour – how it has moved and transformed over time. Sea-ice age is therefore a useful measure for understanding the long-term behaviour of sea ice, especially in the highly dynamic and changing Arctic climate.
Despite it’s usefulness, sea-ice age hasn’t received much attention. It cannot be observed directly, and different methods to calculate sea-ice age have made in difficult to compare climate models with satellite observations. In this study, the researchers applied the same method to both types of data, allowing for a more fair comparison. The method was developed at the Nansen Center to derive sea-ice age from satellite observations, and has been important for getting reliable information (see info box).
By using this consistent way to determine sea-ice age from both satellite observations and model data, the researchers were able to uncover patterns of variability in the Arctic that have not been seen in other sea-ice variables such as concentration or thickness. This opens up new possibilities for improving studies of how the Arctic responds to both natural changes and human-driven climate change.
The Nansen Center is a partner in a new European Space Agency project, “SAGE”, that aims to create a new community standard for sea-ice age. This will include creating protocols for the regular monitoring of sea-ice age and digging deeper into what sea-ice age reveals about Arctic climate dynamics.
Understanding sea-ice age can help scientists to improve climate models and make more realible projections of the future state of the Arctic. This is important for impact and adaptation assessments, for management and policy making, and for local communities and industries.
By improving the accuracy of sea-ice age assessments, this research paves the way for better short-term predictions, as well as long-term projections of the changing Arctic and its global implications.
Nøkkelforskere: Richard Davy, Heather Regan, Anton Korosov, Einar Ólason
