9504201 Serreze 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 prelim- inary 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. In order to place the field experiment phase of SHEBA at the best location, the climatological regime of the proposed site must be analyzed. Researchers at the University of Colorado will compile existing data on sea ice and atmospheric conditions in the region and publish the results on CD ROM about one year before final planning of the site location. Other researchers in the SHEBA project are expected to use the data to plan individual experiments on heat budget measurements. ??
