Analysis of Development Characteristics of the Terra Nova Bay Polynya in East Antarctica by Using SAR and Optical Images

초록

Terra Nova Bay polynya (TNBP) is a representative coastal polynya in East Antarctica, which is formed by strong katabatic winds. As the TNBP is one of the major sea ice factory in East Antarctica and has a great impact on regional ocean circulation and surrounding marine ecosystem, it is very important to analyze its area change and development characteristics. In this study, we detected the TNBP from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and optical images obtained from April 2007 to April 2022 by visually analyzing the stripes caused by the Langmuir circulation effect and the boundary between the polynya and surrounding sea ice. Then, we analyzed the area change and development characteristics of the TNBP. The TNBP occurred frequently but in a small size during the Antarctic winter (April-July) when strong katabatic winds blow, whereas it developed in a large size in March and November when sea ice thickness is thin. The 12-hour mean wind speed before the satellite observations showed a correlation coefficient of 0.577 with the TNBP area. This represents that wind has a significant effect on the formation of TNBP, and that other environmental factors might also affect its development process. The direction of TNBP expansion was predominantly determined by the wind direction and was partially influenced by the local ocean current. The results of this study suggest that the influences of environmental factors related to wind, sea ice, ocean, and atmosphere should be analyzed in combination to identify the development characteristics of TNBP.

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