Articles | Volume 14, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-93-2020
© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-93-2020
© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
16 Jan 2020
Research article |
| 16 Jan 2020
| 16 Jan 2020
Feature-based comparison of sea ice deformation in lead-permitting sea ice simulations
Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany
Martin Losch
Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany
Related authors
Nils Hutter and Cecilia M. Bitz
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-461, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-461, 2026
Short summary
Short summary
Polar oceans are covered by many pieces of floating ice, called floes, that vary in size, shape and thickness. This study focuses on how fracturing caused by stresses from wind and ocean currents changes floe sizes. Using satellite images, we track ice motion and floe sizes, and study floe shapes and how deformation alters the distribution of floe sizes. We find that stronger deformation creates more small floes and present a formula to include this effect in sea-ice models.
Jean-François Lemieux, Mathieu Plante, Nils Hutter, Damien Ringeisen, Bruno Tremblay, François Roy, and Philippe Blain
The Cryosphere, 19, 5639–5654, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-5639-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-5639-2025, 2025
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In sea ice models, the flow rule determines how sea ice deforms (opening, closing and shearing) when critical stresses are reached. We implemented in CICE a novel approach to define the flow rule. This is a useful capability as it allows to independently optimize critical stresses and deformations. As opposed to the standard flow rule, the novel approach can lead to a thicker and more active sea ice cover with narrower deformations.
Evgenii Salganik, Odile Crabeck, Niels Fuchs, Nils Hutter, Philipp Anhaus, and Jack Christopher Landy
The Cryosphere, 19, 1259–1278, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-1259-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-1259-2025, 2025
Short summary
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To measure Arctic ice thickness, we often check how much ice sticks out of the water. This method depends on knowing the ice's density, which drops significantly in summer. Our study, validated with sonar and laser data, shows that these seasonal changes in density can complicate melt measurements. We stress the importance of considering these density changes for more accurate ice thickness readings.
Karl Kortum, Suman Singha, Gunnar Spreen, Nils Hutter, Arttu Jutila, and Christian Haas
The Cryosphere, 18, 2207–2222, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2207-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2207-2024, 2024
Short summary
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A dataset of 20 radar satellite acquisitions and near-simultaneous helicopter-based surveys of the ice topography during the MOSAiC expedition is constructed and used to train a variety of deep learning algorithms. The results give realistic insights into the accuracy of retrieval of measured ice classes using modern deep learning models. The models able to learn from the spatial distribution of the measured sea ice classes are shown to have a clear advantage over those that cannot.
Luisa von Albedyll, Stefan Hendricks, Nils Hutter, Dmitrii Murashkin, Lars Kaleschke, Sascha Willmes, Linda Thielke, Xiangshan Tian-Kunze, Gunnar Spreen, and Christian Haas
The Cryosphere, 18, 1259–1285, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1259-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1259-2024, 2024
Short summary
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Leads (openings in sea ice cover) are created by sea ice dynamics. Because they are important for many processes in the Arctic winter climate, we aim to detect them with satellites. We present two new techniques to detect lead widths of a few hundred meters at high spatial resolution (700 m) and independent of clouds or sun illumination. We use the MOSAiC drift 2019–2020 in the Arctic for our case study and compare our new products to other existing lead products.
Robert Ricker, Steven Fons, Arttu Jutila, Nils Hutter, Kyle Duncan, Sinead L. Farrell, Nathan T. Kurtz, and Renée Mie Fredensborg Hansen
The Cryosphere, 17, 1411–1429, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1411-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1411-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Information on sea ice surface topography is important for studies of sea ice as well as for ship navigation through ice. The ICESat-2 satellite senses the sea ice surface with six laser beams. To examine the accuracy of these measurements, we carried out a temporally coincident helicopter flight along the same ground track as the satellite and measured the sea ice surface topography with a laser scanner. This showed that ICESat-2 can see even bumps of only few meters in the sea ice cover.
Jan P. Gärtner, Martin Losch, Suvarchal K. Cheedela, Markus Jochum, and Roman Nuterman
Geosci. Model Dev., 19, 5225–5236, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-5225-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-5225-2026, 2026
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Climate simulations help us understand the Earth system and its evolution. The models used to perform these simulations are highly complex, require significant programming expertise to build and consume a lot of energy. A key component of climate models is their sea ice components. In this work, we present a sea ice model that offers an easier development process while maintaining strong performance. The model is able to run on a computer's graphics card, which greatly reduces its energy usage.
Jean-Francois Lemieux, Damien Ringeisen, Martin Losch, William Lipscomb, and Jinro Ukita
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1362, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1362, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for The Cryosphere (TC).
Short summary
Short summary
The sea ice cover in the Arctic and in the Southern Ocean strongly varies spatially due to the formation of leads and pressure ridges. Leads and pressure ridges are formed when sea ice fails because forces inside the ice cover reach critical values. This work describes how the representation of leads and ridges in sea ice models should be modified when different critical forces are used.
Damien Ringeisen, Bruno Tremblay, Jean-Francois Lemieux, and Martin Losch
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1845, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1845, 2026
Short summary
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Sea ice moves and deforms as wind and ocean currents push it around, creating narrow fracture lines on the surface. To accurately reproduce these fracture patterns in computer models used for climate predictions and navigation, we tested a mathematical approach to sea ice dynamics, common in other fields but rare in sea ice modeling, to see if it could better capture these patterns. Our results show this approach could improve fracture representation, though it requires more computing power.
Nils Hutter and Cecilia M. Bitz
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-461, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-461, 2026
Short summary
Short summary
Polar oceans are covered by many pieces of floating ice, called floes, that vary in size, shape and thickness. This study focuses on how fracturing caused by stresses from wind and ocean currents changes floe sizes. Using satellite images, we track ice motion and floe sizes, and study floe shapes and how deformation alters the distribution of floe sizes. We find that stronger deformation creates more small floes and present a formula to include this effect in sea-ice models.
Jean-François Lemieux, Mathieu Plante, Nils Hutter, Damien Ringeisen, Bruno Tremblay, François Roy, and Philippe Blain
The Cryosphere, 19, 5639–5654, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-5639-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-5639-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
In sea ice models, the flow rule determines how sea ice deforms (opening, closing and shearing) when critical stresses are reached. We implemented in CICE a novel approach to define the flow rule. This is a useful capability as it allows to independently optimize critical stresses and deformations. As opposed to the standard flow rule, the novel approach can lead to a thicker and more active sea ice cover with narrower deformations.
Evgenii Salganik, Odile Crabeck, Niels Fuchs, Nils Hutter, Philipp Anhaus, and Jack Christopher Landy
The Cryosphere, 19, 1259–1278, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-1259-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-1259-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
To measure Arctic ice thickness, we often check how much ice sticks out of the water. This method depends on knowing the ice's density, which drops significantly in summer. Our study, validated with sonar and laser data, shows that these seasonal changes in density can complicate melt measurements. We stress the importance of considering these density changes for more accurate ice thickness readings.
Karl Kortum, Suman Singha, Gunnar Spreen, Nils Hutter, Arttu Jutila, and Christian Haas
The Cryosphere, 18, 2207–2222, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2207-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2207-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
A dataset of 20 radar satellite acquisitions and near-simultaneous helicopter-based surveys of the ice topography during the MOSAiC expedition is constructed and used to train a variety of deep learning algorithms. The results give realistic insights into the accuracy of retrieval of measured ice classes using modern deep learning models. The models able to learn from the spatial distribution of the measured sea ice classes are shown to have a clear advantage over those that cannot.
Luisa von Albedyll, Stefan Hendricks, Nils Hutter, Dmitrii Murashkin, Lars Kaleschke, Sascha Willmes, Linda Thielke, Xiangshan Tian-Kunze, Gunnar Spreen, and Christian Haas
The Cryosphere, 18, 1259–1285, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1259-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1259-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Leads (openings in sea ice cover) are created by sea ice dynamics. Because they are important for many processes in the Arctic winter climate, we aim to detect them with satellites. We present two new techniques to detect lead widths of a few hundred meters at high spatial resolution (700 m) and independent of clouds or sun illumination. We use the MOSAiC drift 2019–2020 in the Arctic for our case study and compare our new products to other existing lead products.
Robert Ricker, Steven Fons, Arttu Jutila, Nils Hutter, Kyle Duncan, Sinead L. Farrell, Nathan T. Kurtz, and Renée Mie Fredensborg Hansen
The Cryosphere, 17, 1411–1429, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1411-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1411-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Information on sea ice surface topography is important for studies of sea ice as well as for ship navigation through ice. The ICESat-2 satellite senses the sea ice surface with six laser beams. To examine the accuracy of these measurements, we carried out a temporally coincident helicopter flight along the same ground track as the satellite and measured the sea ice surface topography with a laser scanner. This showed that ICESat-2 can see even bumps of only few meters in the sea ice cover.
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Short summary
Sea ice is composed of a multitude of floes that constantly deform due to wind and ocean currents and thereby form leads and pressure ridges. These features are visible in the ice as stripes of open-ocean or high-piled ice. High-resolution sea ice models start to resolve these deformation features. In this paper we present two simulations that agree with satellite data according to a new evaluation metric that detects deformation features and compares their spatial and temporal characteristics.
Sea ice is composed of a multitude of floes that constantly deform due to wind and ocean...
