Arctic Sea Ice Mass Balance Buoy Measurements

45 temperature sensors per buoy profile the internal structure of Arctic sea ice at 10cm intervals. Data from drifting buoys includes position, air temperature, air pressure, snow depth, and ice thickness, sampled every 2 hours. The dataset was collected by the SCIOPS organization and last updated in 2009.

Use Cases

• Model ice thickness change by correlating bottom surface position with ice temperature profiles.
• Analyze the relationship between air temperature, snow depth, and top surface position to study surface melt.
• Track buoy drift patterns using position data to understand ice floe movement.
• Study thermal gradients within the ice column using the 45-point temperature profiles.
• Investigate correlations between atmospheric conditions from air pressure data and ice mass balance.

Strengths

• High-resolution ice temperature profiles with 45 sensors spaced 10cm apart.
• Multi-variable measurements including position, atmospheric, and ice properties.
• Time-series data collected on a consistent 2-hour sampling interval.

Limitations

• Dataset is temporally stale, with last known update in March 2009.
• Unknown sample size (number of buoys or rows) limits assessment of statistical power.
• Geographic coverage is limited to the drift paths of the deployed buoys in the Arctic Ocean.

Provenance

Source

SCIOPS organization via NASA EarthData.

Collection Method

Measurements from drifting Sea Ice Mass Balance buoys deployed in the Arctic Ocean.

Freshness

2009-03-30

Geography

Arctic Ocean.