Research supported by this grant is under the auspices of the Arctic Systems Science (ARCSS) Global Change Research Program and is jointly sponsored by the Division of Ocean Sciences and the Office of Polar Programs. Work to be performed represents preliminary steps towards a major 5-year research project named SHEBA, which is envisioned to study the heat budget of the Arctic Ocean and its impact on global change. The primary goals of SHEBA are: (1) to develop, test and implement models of arctic ocean-atmosphere-ice processes that demonstrably improve simulations of the present day arctic climate, including its variability, using General Circulation Models (GCMs), and (2) to improve the interpre- tation of satellite remote sensing data in the Arctic for analysis of the arctic climate system and provide reliable data for model input, model validation and climate monitoring. The investigators will examine the scale at which physical processes affect the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) as a result of the presence of leads in the Arctic pack ice. The opening of leads produces increased cloudiness and has a major impact on the heat budget of the Arctic. The results of this research will be used to select the best measurements to be made in the SHEBA field experiment and to modify Global Climate Models so that better simulations of Arctic heat flux may be accomplished.
