Challenges in identifying Antarctic coastal polynyas in satellite observations and climate model output to support ecological climate change research

Landrum, Laura L.; DuVivier, Alice K.; Holland, Marika M.; Krumhardt, Kristen; Sylvester, Zephyr

doi:10.5194/tc-20-1815-2026

Articles | Volume 20, issue 3

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-1815-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-1815-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 20, issue 3

Research article

|

30 Mar 2026

Research article |

| 30 Mar 2026

Challenges in identifying Antarctic coastal polynyas in satellite observations and climate model output to support ecological climate change research

Laura L. Landrum, Alice K. DuVivier, Marika M. Holland, Kristen Krumhardt, and Zephyr Sylvester

Supplement

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-20-1815-2026-supplement

Model code and software

Cryosphere_AntarcticPolynyas_SatelliteModels_ecosystems-AntarcticPolynyasModelObs_Cryosph_Pub Laura Landrum https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18674466

Short summary

Antarctic polynyas – areas of open water surrounded by sea ice or sea ice and land – are key players in Antarctic marine ecosystems. Changes in the physical characteristics of polynyas will influence how these ecosystems respond to a changing climate. This work explores how to best compare polynyas identified in satellite data products and climate model data to verify that the model captures important features of Antarctic sea ice and marine ecosystems.