Relationships between Arctic Sea Ice and Clouds during Autumn
- 15 September 2008
- journal article
- Published by American Meteorological Society in Journal of Climate
- Vol. 21 (18), 4799-4810
- https://doi.org/10.1175/2008jcli2156.1
Abstract
The connection between sea ice variability and cloud cover over the Arctic seas during autumn is investigated by analyzing the 40-yr ECMWF Re-Analysis (ERA-40) products and the Television and Infrared Observation Satellite (TIROS) Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) Polar Pathfinder satellite datasets. It is found that cloud cover variability near the sea ice margins is strongly linked to sea ice variability. Sea ice retreat is linked to a decrease in low-level cloud amount and a simultaneous increase in midlevel clouds. This pattern is apparent in both data sources. Changes in cloud cover can be explained by changes in the atmospheric temperature structure and an increase in near-surface temperatures resulting from the removal of sea ice. The subsequent decrease in static stability and deepening of the atmospheric boundary layer apparently contribute to the rise in cloud level. The radiative effect of this change is relatively small, as the direct radiative effects of cloud cover changes are compensated for by changes in the temperature and humidity profiles associated with varying ice conditions.Keywords
This publication has 29 references indexed in Scilit:
- Drivers of declining sea ice in the Arctic winter: A tale of two seasGeophysical Research Letters, 2007
- New insight into the disappearing Arctic sea iceEos, 2006
- 30‐Year satellite record reveals contrasting Arctic and Antarctic decadal sea ice variabilityGeophysical Research Letters, 2003
- Polar amplification of climate change in coupled modelsClimate Dynamics, 2003
- An annual cycle of Arctic surface cloud forcing at SHEBAJournal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 2002
- Toward an Explanation of the Annual Cycle of Cloudiness over the Arctic OceanJournal of Climate, 1999
- Evolution of the cloudy boundary layer during the autumnal freezing of the Beaufort SeaPublished by American Geophysical Union (AGU) ,1997
- Annual Cycle of Radiation Fluxes over the Arctic Ocean: Sensitivity to Cloud Optical PropertiesJournal of Climate, 1992
- Relationships between Large-Scale Heat and Moisture Budgets and the Occurrence of Arctic Stratus CloudsMonthly Weather Review, 1985
- Formation and Persistence of Summertime Arctic Stratus CloudsJournal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 1976