Collaborative Research: Eurasian and Makarov basins observational network targets changes in the Arctic Ocean

Responding to urgent needs for a long-term multidisciplinary observation system for understanding rapid high-latitude climate change in the Arctic Ocean, a Eurasian and Makarov Basin (EMB) observational network is proposed as an element of the Arctic Observing Network (AON). Three August-September cruises, one every two years, will be conducted, with extensive measurements along continental margins, a boundary current conduit; cruises will cover vast areas from Svalbard to the East Siberian Sea. The program ties together oceanographic, chemical, and ice observations using moorings, repeated oceanographic sections, and Lagrangian drifters to provide vital information about Arctic Ocean changes. The overarching goal of the study as an AON element is to compile a cohesive picture of the state and transformations of Atlantic Water (AW) in the EMB, with particular focus on three major observational targets: (1) along-slope AW transport by the boundary currents (2) interaction of AW branches with shelf waters, deep basin interior and upper ocean (3) EMB indications of changes in the upper ocean circulation. The proposed targets are broad in scope and pose a wide range of challenges to modern high-latitude observational oceanography. The EMB's size and location mean that this part of the Arctic Ocean is representative of pan-arctic conditions and processes, and therefore appropriate for long-term observing. Therefore, the project is an important element of the pan-AON. Graduate students will be supported; female and Alaska Native students will be encouraged to participate. Program outreach will culminate in 2013 with a shipboard summer school. Data and products, critically-needed benchmarks for Arctic satellite sea-ice and altimeter measurements, will be available per AON data policy.