This manuscript describes measurements of a number of physical and biogeochemical parameters to shed light on interactions between the sea ice surface layer and CH4 and N2O fluxes in ice-covered areas of the Fram Strait. While the reviewers criticise the lack of direct flux measurements, they commend the concomitant measurement of a set of rarely measured parameters in a challenging and severely under-sampled environment. As such the manuscript can be considered as a useful baseline and important stepping stone for future, more detailed, studies on trace gas fluxes in ice-covered areas of polar oceans. Both reviewers have also raised several technical concerns and also suggested to adjust some statements/claims made by the authors, so they are properly supported by the presented results.
The authors have provided a detailed final response mapping a clear pathway towards a revised and improved version of the manuscript, including clarification of sampling methodologies and adjusted wording of claims based on the available data set.
We are looking forward to a revised version of this manuscript.

Dear Dr Holthusen and co-authors,

thank you for submitting a revised version of your manuscript which can now be accepted for publication subject to some minor technical corrections. Thank you for clearly addressing the detailed comments and incorporating suggestions from both reviewers, which has improved the clarity as well as the robustness of this manuscript. While no discrete gas flux measurements were sampled during the study, the manuscript describes a unique dataset that provides novel insights into coupled physical-biogeochemical processes (including SML/SAS dynamics) that affect CH4 and N2O fluxes in Fram Strait. Thereby, the study provides novel information improving the understanding of the multiple factors affecting air-sea gas transfer in ice-covered parts of the Arctic Ocean, and will be useful for designing future studies in this rapidly changing environment.