[22-Feb-2024] Smith, J.I., Kurapov, A.L., and Durski, S.M.
Presented at the 2024 Ocean Sciences MeetingInterannual variability in Bering Sea ice distribution and melt timing impact the physical and biogeochemical characteristics of the shelf throughout the summer season with important implications for several Alaskan fisheries. To understand the dynamic and thermodynamic processes that lead to this variability, coupled sea-ice ocean models have been developed at varying degrees of complexity. In this work, we explore the applicability of perhaps the most extensively developed sea ice model, the Los Alamos Consortium model for sea ice (CICE6). This model has been used extensively in large scale climate studies but less so in high-resolution regional domains. For our study, atmospheric forcing is obtained from the ERA5 reanalysis while ocean forcing is either sourced from realizations of the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) on the same domain or fully coupled. Incorporating many different sea ice processes such as, mechanical redistribution to due ridging and rafting, bubbly-brine thermodynamics, and varying sea ice rheologies, CICE allows for the study of the essential processes that govern sea ice growth and melting in the Bering Sea. We model key sea-ice variables, including ice thickness and fractional ice area coverage, alongside oceanic variables such as sea surface salinity and surface temperature, for the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 winter seasons. To validate our predictions, we compare the simulation results with satellite estimates of ice concentration and thickness and outcomes from other regional sea ice models.