Environmental Science and Engineering Seminar

Seasonal sea ice advances and retreats in regions where deep waters of the ocean upwell and subduct as part of the same seasonal cycle.  Consequently, sea ice processes are thought to play a role in setting the properties of deep water and in partitioning of the ocean-atmosphere carbon budget.   The role of sea ice in air-sea gas exchange, spring blooms and carbonate precipitation may individually and in concert produce large changes in ocean carbon.  Here, we use a 1D model to probe the sensitivity of inorganic carbon transport to sea ice, and then follow these modeling insights with process studies in the lab and field.  The goal of these studies is to better constrain air-sea CO2 exchange in the presence of sea ice, and I will report on our progress.