Retrieval and parameterisation of sea-ice bulk density from airborne multi-sensor measurements

Abstract km of high-resolution collocated airborne sea-ice and snow thickness and freeboard measurements in the western Arctic Ocean in 2017 and 2019. Sea-ice bulk density is derived assuming isostatic equilibrium for different ice types. Our results show higher average bulk densities for both first-year ice (FYI) and especially multi-year ice (MYI) compared to previous studies. In addition, we find a small difference between deformed and possibly unconsolidated FYI and younger MYI. We find a negative-exponential relationship between sea-ice bulk density and sea-ice freeboard and apply this parameterisation to one winter of monthly gridded CryoSat-2 sea-ice freeboard data. We discuss the suitability and the impact of the derived FYI and MYI bulk densities for sea-ice thickness retrievals and the uncertainty related to the indirect method of measuring sea-ice bulk density. The results suggest that retrieval algorithms be adapted to changes in sea-ice density and highlight the need of future studies to evaluate the impact of density parameterisation on the full sea-ice thickness data record.

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Retrieval and parameterisation of sea-ice bulk density from airborne multi-sensor measurements ; volume:16 ; number:1 ; year:2022 ; pages:259-275 ; extent:17 ; The Cryosphere ; 16, Heft 1 (2022), 259-275 (gesamt 17)

Contributors, Places and Time

• Creator: Jutila, Arttu ; Hendricks, Stefan ; Ricker, Robert ; Albedyll, Luisa von ; Krumpen, Thomas ; Haas, Christian

Further information

• DOI: 10.5194/tc-16-259-2022
• URN: urn:nbn:de:101:1-2022012704215242642254
• Rights: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 15.08.2025, 7:36 AM CEST