Title: Observing and Understanding the Impacts of a Thinning and Retreating Sea Ice Cover on Light Propagation, Primary Productivity, and Biogeochemistry in the Pacific Arctic Region
Principal Investigator: Karen Frey
Funding Agency: National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Arctic sea ice cover is undergoing tremendous change. There has been a pronounced decrease in the summer sea ice extent, an overall thinning of the ice, a lengthening of the summer melt season, and a fundamental shift to a primarily seasonal sea ice cover. Some of the greatest changes in sea ice cover have been observed in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas, where there has been substantial loss of summer ice in recent decades. These changes in the physical system are affecting biological and biogeochemical systems profoundly.

The goal of this project is to determine the impact of physical changes in the sea ice cover of the Chukchi and Beaufort seas on biological productivity and biogeochemical cycling in waters beneath and associated with this ice cover. An interdisciplinary and multi-methodological approach is being used to address this goal, including integration of field observations, satellite remote sensing, process studies, and large-scale modeling.

Because of the interdisciplinary nature of this work, the project will be integrated with several ongoing projects and will leverage observations from previous and ongoing field programs. There is also a strong educational component to this research, including the training of two Ph.D. students, multiple undergraduate students, and comprehensive student involvement in research subcomponents at all involved institutions (Clark, Dartmouth, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, University of Washington, and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center).