Ice drift in the Beaufort Sea observed by drifting buoys

This project, led by York University, has used airborne electromagnetic surveys and drift beacons to quantify the thickness and regional distribution of different sea ice types and extreme ice features in the southern Beaufort Sea. A Canadian airborne platform has been developed to perform long-range aerial surveys of sea ice and to mark the surveyed ice at the same time with drifting buoys. These have been air-dropped on extreme ice features and ice floes to study ice motion, deformation, and their impact on the ice thickness distribution. Two surveys were performed, one in April 2012 and one in April 2013, when end of winter thicknesses are at their maximum. The airborne platform is available to other users to add further sensors during the same flights to increase efficiency of operations. The airborne environmental observatory for the Beaufort Sea and Canadian Arctic will be available for use by other stakeholders in the future. The 2012 buoy deployment used parachute-equipped ice beacons manufactured by Canatec Associated in Calgary AB.

本项目由约克大学（York University）牵头，采用航空电磁探测与漂移信标技术，量化分析了波弗特海南部不同海冰类型及极端冰况的厚度与区域分布特征。研究团队开发了一套加拿大自研航空平台，可对海冰开展长距离航空探测，并同步使用漂流浮标对已探测海冰进行标记。上述浮标被空投至极端冰况区域与浮冰之上，用于研究海冰运动、形变及其对冰厚分布的影响。本次研究共开展两次航空勘测，分别于2012年4月与2013年4月实施——此时冬季末海冰厚度达到全年峰值。该航空平台可对外开放给其他用户，允许其在同一飞行任务中加装额外传感器，以提升作业效率。面向波弗特海与加拿大北极地区的航空环境观测站，未来将面向其他利益相关方开放使用。2012年的浮标部署工作，使用了由加拿大阿尔伯塔省卡尔加里市Canatec Associated公司制造的带降落伞的冰信标。