Polynya

One recent UAV mission in Antarctica examined a polar ocean feature called a polynya, which is an area of open ocean surrounded on all sides by either a coast, sea ice, or both. ❋ Unknown (2009)

A polynya is a large area of open water surrounded by sea ice that is found in the same region year after year. ❋ Unknown (2008)

Third: if the polynya was a freak occurence then you wouldn’t expect to see the Beaufort frozen over on July 25th every year. 2006 was just an accident. ❋ Unknown (2006)

The goal was to map water conditions in the Ross Sea "polynya," a region of open water surrounded by sea ice, where the plankton blooms every Antarctic summer. ❋ Unknown (2011)

Beating back against the ocean current by tacking like a sailboat, GOE-3 made its way into the polynya to perform its mapping mission. ❋ Unknown (2011)

Reprogrammed to deal with the unexpectedly strong current, the first seaglider also made its way from the whale breathing hole to the polynya region. ❋ Unknown (2011)

In the St. Lawrence Island polynya region, changes in regional oceanography due to the position or size of the Gulf of Anadyr gyre are ultimately related to the northward transport of water through the Bering Strait, and to the geostrophic balance within the Arctic Ocean basin. ❋ Unknown (2009)

However, it is possible that an enhanced and more energetic polynya could result from warming. ❋ Unknown (2009)

The Gulf of Anadyr "cold pool" is maintained by sea-ice production and brine formation in the St. Lawrence Island polynya. ❋ Unknown (2009)

Because the Gulf of Anadyr "cold pool" is maintained by sea-ice production/brine formation in the St Lawrence Island polynya, an enhanced and more energetic polynya resulting from warming is likely to maintain a chemostat-type bloom system, allowing a longer growing season and higher levels of production. ❋ Unknown (2009)

The hydrography of the St. Lawrence Island polynya region and the Anadyr region is ultimately related to the northward transport of water through the Bering Strait. ❋ Unknown (2009)

Influence of the St Lawrence Island polynya upon the Bering Sea benthos. ❋ Unknown (2009)

Reduced sea-ice production to the south of the polynya resulting in a decreased supply of nutrients for early-season primary production would limit benthic populations. ❋ Unknown (2009)

Sea-ice production in the source region in winter is enhanced within a polynya (the North Water) formed by the persistent southward drift of ice. ❋ Unknown (2009)

One process often dominates in a given polynya, but both can occur. ❋ Unknown (2008)

Diagram of sensible-heat (open-ocean) and latent-heat (coastal) polynya formation. ❋ Unknown (2008)

A latent-heat polynya is characterized by ocean water at the freezing point. ❋ Unknown (2008)

In this type of polynya, sensible heat from the ocean provides the source of heat needed to melt the ice. ❋ Unknown (2008)

Some sensible-heat exchange also occurs within latent-heat polynyas because the water in the polynya is generally warmer than the air above it even though the water is at freezing temperature. ❋ Unknown (2008)