Thin-ice dynamics and ice production in the Storfjorden polynya for winter seasons 2002/2003–2013/2014 using MODIS thermal infrared imagery

Preußer, A.; Willmes, S.; Heinemann, G.; Paul, S.

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1063-2015

Articles | Volume 9, issue 3

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1063-2015

© Author(s) 2015. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1063-2015

© Author(s) 2015. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

Articles | Volume 9, issue 3

Research article

|

21 May 2015

Research article |

| 21 May 2015

Thin-ice dynamics and ice production in the Storfjorden polynya for winter seasons 2002/2003–2013/2014 using MODIS thermal infrared imagery

A. Preußer, S. Willmes, G. Heinemann, and S. Paul

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Final revised paper (published on 21 May 2015)
Preprint (discussion started on 13 Nov 2014)

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

AC: Author comment | RC: Referee comment | SC: Short comment | EC: Editor comment

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RC C2893: 'Interactive comment on “Thin-ice dynamics and ice production in the Storfjorden polynya for winter-seasons 2002/2003-2013/2014 using MODIS thermal infrared imagery” by A. Preusser et al.', Anonymous Referee #1, 15 Jan 2015
- AC C3168: 'Interactive comment on "Thin-ice dynamics and ice production in the Storfjorden polynya for winter-seasons 2002/2003-2013/2014 using MODIS thermal infrared imagery"', Andreas Preußer, 25 Feb 2015
RC C2917: 'General commnets', Anonymous Referee #2, 19 Jan 2015
- AC C3169: 'Interactive comment on "Thin-ice dynamics and ice production in the Storfjorden polynya for winter-seasons 2002/2003-2013/2014 using MODIS thermal infrared imagery"', Andreas Preußer, 25 Feb 2015
RC C2947: 'Interactive comment on “Thin-ice dynamics and ice production in the Storfjorden polynya for winter-seasons 2002/2003–2013/2014 using MODIS thermal infrared imagery” by A. Preußer et al., Anonymous Referee #3', Anonymous Referee #3, 25 Jan 2015
- AC C3170: 'Interactive comment on "Thin-ice dynamics and ice production in the Storfjorden polynya for winter-seasons 2002/2003-2013/2014 using MODIS thermal infrared imagery"', Andreas Preußer, 25 Feb 2015
AC C3172: 'Revised manuscript', Andreas Preußer, 27 Feb 2015

Peer-review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision

AR by Andreas Preußer on behalf of the Authors (19 Mar 2015)

ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (Editor review) (04 Apr 2015) by Christian Haas

Dear Authors,

Thank you for your replies and revisions after the first round of reviews of your manuscript. I think that you have addressed must concerns sufficiently, but feel that the manuscript still requires a few minor revisions before it should be published. Here are a few more comments to that regard.

• Please include what is now Appendix A and Figure 9 in the text, either in the methods or discussion sections. I see no reason that the material is separated from one of these sections, in particular as it is quite short.
• Please consider to replace Figure 8 with the respective figure you have used in the reviewer replies to show the impact of seasonal differences. Please also add a little text from your replies to the reviewers.
Please also consider the following more technical comments:
• Can you try to improve the abstract by making it more concise but including more results?
• Please check grammar and formulation of the new text sections.
• The numerous used abbreviations and acronyms make the text partially hard to follow, although I appreciate your efforts to save space. Please check usage of acronyms and where it could be avoided. It may also be better to use consistent variable and subscripts for certain variable, e.g. h_thin instead of TIT.
• In particular please spell out abbreviations in table and figure captions (you can use the abbreviations in parentheses and axis labels), such that the tables and figures are self-explaining.
• With reference to one reviewer’s comment about comparability with results from other studies, and your own discussion of the results of Jardon et al. in the discussion, is there a possibility to include a rough representation of Jardon’s results in one of your figures?
• And finally, is it possible to include a comment in the discussion about ice growth under ice that is already more than 20 cm thick? I would imagine that that ice growth represents a significant contribution to ice volume and brine formation as well? Or what are the arguments that it may not?

Thank you and best regards

Christian Haas

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AR by Andreas Preußer on behalf of the Authors (13 Apr 2015) Author's response Manuscript

ED: Publish as is (16 Apr 2015) by Christian Haas

AR by Andreas Preußer on behalf of the Authors (16 Apr 2015)

Short summary

The Storfjorden polynya (Svalbard) forms regularly under the influence of strong north-easterly winds. In this study, spatial and temporal characteristics for the period 2002/03-2013/14 were inferred from daily calculated thin-ice thickness distributions, based on MODIS ice surface temperatures and ERA-interim reanalysis. With an estimated average ice production of 28.3km³/winter, this polynya system is of particular interest regarding its potential contribution to deep water formation.