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Fram Strait freshwater export
Updated 8 February 2008
The freshwater exported from the Arctic to the Nordic Seas through Fram Strait is an important source water that may alter the density contrasts which drive the meridional overturning circulation (MOC) in the Atlantic Ocean. The transport of freshwater by the East Greenland Current (EGC) has been monitored by the Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI) since 1997.
Flow velocities, salinity and temperature are measured at different depths in a mooring array along the East Greenland shelf slope at 78°50'N. In addition, upward looking sonars monitor the sea-ice thickness. Apart from these temporal observations, CTD sections are carried out each year in September to add spatial information of the hydrographic parameters in the western Fram Strait. Current estimates of the annual mean liquid freshwater export relative to a salinity of 34.9 varies between ~ 800 and 1300 km3/year (or ~24 to 42 mSv). We are currently improving our method for calculating the freshwater transport by using all available data in the last 10 years. The freshwater export in the form of sea ice is approximately twice as large.
Our current research focus in the Fram Strait concentrates on analyzing the variability of the freshwater and of the other water masses (PSW, AW, RAW, AIW, CBDW, EBDW) found in the western Fram Strait on different time scales. We investigate how our observations in the EGC relate to upstream and downstream conditions in order to improve our understanding of the role of the Fram Strait in the exchange between the Arctic and Atlantic ocean.
Principal investigator: Edmond Hansen
Postdoc: Laura de Steur
This research has been funded by national
sources and by the following EU programs:
1997-2002: VEINS
2003-2006: ASOF
2007-2009: DAMOCLES |
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