Articles | Volume 15, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4517-2021
© Author(s) 2021. 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-15-4517-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
27 Sep 2021
Research article |
| 27 Sep 2021
| 27 Sep 2021
Meltwater sources and sinks for multiyear Arctic sea ice in summer
Don Perovich
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Thayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
Madison Smith
Polar Science Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, USA
Bonnie Light
Polar Science Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, USA
Melinda Webster
Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
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Cited
22 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Methodological basis for calculations of solar heating of snow and snow melting in polar summer: a brief review L. Dombrovsky 10.20935/AcadEng7410
- Sea Ice Melt Pond Fraction Derived From Sentinel‐2 Data: Along the MOSAiC Drift and Arctic‐Wide H. Niehaus et al. 10.1029/2022GL102102
- Observing the evolution of summer melt on multiyear sea ice with ICESat-2 and Sentinel-2 E. Buckley et al. 10.5194/tc-17-3695-2023
- Observations of preferential summer melt of Arctic sea-ice ridge keels from repeated multibeam sonar surveys E. Salganik et al. 10.5194/tc-17-4873-2023
- Sea ice melt pond bathymetry reconstructed from aerial photographs using photogrammetry: a new method applied to MOSAiC data N. Fuchs et al. 10.5194/tc-18-2991-2024
- Quantifying false bottoms and under-ice meltwater layers beneath Arctic summer sea ice with fine-scale observations M. Smith et al. 10.1525/elementa.2021.000116
- An effect of a snow cover on solar heating and melting of lake or sea ice L. Dombrovsky 10.3389/fther.2023.1354265
- Sea-ice melt determines seasonal phytoplankton dynamics and delimits the habitat of temperate Atlantic taxa as the Arctic Ocean atlantifies E. Oldenburg et al. 10.1093/ismeco/ycae027
- Retrieval of snow layer and melt pond properties on Arctic sea ice from airborne imaging spectrometer observations S. Rosenburg et al. 10.5194/amt-16-3915-2023
- Improved sea surface salinity data for the Arctic Ocean derived from SMAP satellite data using machine learning approaches A. Savin et al. 10.3389/fmars.2024.1358882
- Sources and melt flux of methylmercury in sea ice on the Chukchi Plateau, Arctic Ocean J. Kim et al. 10.1016/j.ecss.2023.108536
- Seasonality and timing of sea ice mass balance and heat fluxes in the Arctic transpolar drift during 2019–2020 R. Lei et al. 10.1525/elementa.2021.000089
- Joint mapping of melt pond bathymetry and water volume on sea ice using optical remote sensing images and physical reflectance models C. Xiong & X. Li 10.1016/j.rse.2024.114571
- Implications of climate change on biogeochemical cycles in the Arctic Ocean with special emphasis on the nitrogen cycle F. Alangadan et al. 10.1007/s00300-025-03387-5
- Data-Driven Short-Term Daily Operational Sea Ice Regional Forecasting T. Grigoryev et al. 10.3390/rs14225837
- Thin and transient meltwater layers and false bottoms in the Arctic sea ice pack—Recent insights on these historically overlooked features M. Smith et al. 10.1525/elementa.2023.00025
- Arctic Sea ice leads detected using sentinel-1B SAR image and their responses to atmosphere circulation and sea ice dynamics M. Qu et al. 10.1016/j.rse.2024.114193
- Formation and fate of freshwater on an ice floe in the Central Arctic M. Smith et al. 10.5194/tc-19-619-2025
- MODELING HEAT TRANSFER DURING SOLAR-INDUCED MELTING OF LAKE AND SEA ICE L. Dombrovsky 10.1615/ComputThermalScien.2024054285
- Sea ice mass balance during the MOSAiC drift experiment: Results from manual ice and snow thickness gauges I. Raphael et al. 10.1525/elementa.2023.00040
- Modeling of ice albedo: A quantitative study of the impact of surface roughness T. Tanikawa et al. 10.1016/j.jqsrt.2025.109543
- Estimating Snow-Related Daily Change Events in the Canadian Winter Season: A Deep Learning-Based Approach K. Malik et al. 10.3390/jimaging11070239
22 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Methodological basis for calculations of solar heating of snow and snow melting in polar summer: a brief review L. Dombrovsky 10.20935/AcadEng7410
- Sea Ice Melt Pond Fraction Derived From Sentinel‐2 Data: Along the MOSAiC Drift and Arctic‐Wide H. Niehaus et al. 10.1029/2022GL102102
- Observing the evolution of summer melt on multiyear sea ice with ICESat-2 and Sentinel-2 E. Buckley et al. 10.5194/tc-17-3695-2023
- Observations of preferential summer melt of Arctic sea-ice ridge keels from repeated multibeam sonar surveys E. Salganik et al. 10.5194/tc-17-4873-2023
- Sea ice melt pond bathymetry reconstructed from aerial photographs using photogrammetry: a new method applied to MOSAiC data N. Fuchs et al. 10.5194/tc-18-2991-2024
- Quantifying false bottoms and under-ice meltwater layers beneath Arctic summer sea ice with fine-scale observations M. Smith et al. 10.1525/elementa.2021.000116
- An effect of a snow cover on solar heating and melting of lake or sea ice L. Dombrovsky 10.3389/fther.2023.1354265
- Sea-ice melt determines seasonal phytoplankton dynamics and delimits the habitat of temperate Atlantic taxa as the Arctic Ocean atlantifies E. Oldenburg et al. 10.1093/ismeco/ycae027
- Retrieval of snow layer and melt pond properties on Arctic sea ice from airborne imaging spectrometer observations S. Rosenburg et al. 10.5194/amt-16-3915-2023
- Improved sea surface salinity data for the Arctic Ocean derived from SMAP satellite data using machine learning approaches A. Savin et al. 10.3389/fmars.2024.1358882
- Sources and melt flux of methylmercury in sea ice on the Chukchi Plateau, Arctic Ocean J. Kim et al. 10.1016/j.ecss.2023.108536
- Seasonality and timing of sea ice mass balance and heat fluxes in the Arctic transpolar drift during 2019–2020 R. Lei et al. 10.1525/elementa.2021.000089
- Joint mapping of melt pond bathymetry and water volume on sea ice using optical remote sensing images and physical reflectance models C. Xiong & X. Li 10.1016/j.rse.2024.114571
- Implications of climate change on biogeochemical cycles in the Arctic Ocean with special emphasis on the nitrogen cycle F. Alangadan et al. 10.1007/s00300-025-03387-5
- Data-Driven Short-Term Daily Operational Sea Ice Regional Forecasting T. Grigoryev et al. 10.3390/rs14225837
- Thin and transient meltwater layers and false bottoms in the Arctic sea ice pack—Recent insights on these historically overlooked features M. Smith et al. 10.1525/elementa.2023.00025
- Arctic Sea ice leads detected using sentinel-1B SAR image and their responses to atmosphere circulation and sea ice dynamics M. Qu et al. 10.1016/j.rse.2024.114193
- Formation and fate of freshwater on an ice floe in the Central Arctic M. Smith et al. 10.5194/tc-19-619-2025
- MODELING HEAT TRANSFER DURING SOLAR-INDUCED MELTING OF LAKE AND SEA ICE L. Dombrovsky 10.1615/ComputThermalScien.2024054285
- Sea ice mass balance during the MOSAiC drift experiment: Results from manual ice and snow thickness gauges I. Raphael et al. 10.1525/elementa.2023.00040
- Modeling of ice albedo: A quantitative study of the impact of surface roughness T. Tanikawa et al. 10.1016/j.jqsrt.2025.109543
- Estimating Snow-Related Daily Change Events in the Canadian Winter Season: A Deep Learning-Based Approach K. Malik et al. 10.3390/jimaging11070239
Latest update: 22 Jul 2025
Short summary
During summer, Arctic sea ice melts on its surface and bottom and lateral edges. Some of this fresh meltwater is stored on the ice surface in features called melt ponds. The rest flows into the ocean. The meltwater flowing into the upper ocean affects ice growth and melt, upper ocean properties, and ocean ecosystems. Using field measurements, we found that the summer meltwater was equal to an 80 cm thick layer; 85 % of this meltwater flowed into the ocean and 15 % was stored in melt ponds.
During summer, Arctic sea ice melts on its surface and bottom and lateral edges. Some of this...
