Investigation of the impact of antarctic ice-shelf melting in a global ice-ocean model (ORCA2-LIM)

Abstract

Ice-shelf melting (ISM) removes heat from and injects fresh water into the adjacent ocean and contributes significantly to the freshwater balance and water mass formation in the Antarctic marginal seas. The thermodynamic interaction between ocean and ice shelf is a complicated process and usually not adequately included in the ocean-ice climate models. In this paper, the ISM from all major ice-shelf areas around Antarctica is added to a global coupled ice-ocean model ORCA2-LIM following the parameterization proposed by Beckmann and Goosse (2003). Using interannual forcing data from 1958 through 2000, the impact of ISM on Southern Ocean hydrography and sea-ice distribution is investigated. The model also shows global signatures of the Antarctic ISM.