PCMDI > WCRP CMIP3 Model Output > Diagnostic Subprojects

PI:	Megan Linkin
Institution:	University of Maryland
Abstract:
We are investigating the impact of extratropical wintertime teleconnections on the position of the marginal ice zone in the sub Arctic Seas. We focus on the North Pacific Oscillation/West Pacific (NPO/WP) pattern, which is characterized by a dipole in sea level pressure (geopotential height) anomalies at the surface (aloft). The northern node of the NPO/WP imposes circulation anomalies over the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk and these circulation anomalies force both a dynamic and thermodynamic response of the marginal ice zone in these two seas. The ice will drift at a 45 degree angle to the right of the wind and low level temperature advection will determine the southern limit of ice sustainability. The observational analysis is almost complete and we hope to use the output of CAM3, the CAM3.5 and the CSIM5 to determine if the NPO/WP is present in the model atmosphere and if so, whether the modeled ice edge responds properly to atmospheric forcing associated with the NPO/WP.
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