Simulations of the Arctic sea ice comparing different approaches to modelling the floe size distribution and their respective impacts on the sea ice cover

This dataset has been produced by implementing either a power law derived or prognostic sea ice floe size distribution model within the CICE sea ice model. This dataset is used within the thesis ‘Fragmentation and melting of the seasonal sea ice cover’ (Bateson, 2021) to investigate the impact of the sea ice floe size distribution on the evolution of the Arctic sea ice cover and to compare different approaches to modelling floe size. Results are presented to show how variable floe size changes the seasonal retreat of the Arctic sea ice cover via changes to lateral melt volume and momentum exchange between the sea ice, ocean, and atmosphere. Winter floe formation and growth processes are found to strongly influence FSD impacts on the seasonal retreat of the sea ice, and the need to include brittle fracture processes in floe size distribution models is also demonstrated. A high sensitivity is found to poorly constrained FSD parameters, highlighting the need for further observations of floe size.