Variability of Water Characteristics in the Northeastern Part of the Greenland Sea during the Winter Periods in 2019–2023

T. M. Maksimovskaya1, 2, ✉, A. V. Zimin1, O. A. Atadzhanova1, A. A. Konik1, D. V. Moiseev2

1 Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of RAS, Moscow, Russian Federation

2 Murmansk Marine Biological Institute of RAS, Murmansk, Russian Federation

✉ e-mail: maximovskaja.t@yandex.ru

Abstract

Purpose. The paper aims to present the results of in situ measurements, analyze the features of variability of water characteristics in the northeastern part of the Greenland Sea with an emphasis on the Marginal Frontal Zone in winter based on the onboard measurement results, as well as to assess the agreement between the reanalysis data and the in situ observations.

Methods and Results. The results of temperature and salinity measurements performed during the expeditionary research in the northeastern part of the Greenland Sea in winter periods of 2019–2023 are used in the paper. The temperature and salinity anomalies of the Atlantic waters are assessed by comparing the in situ data with the WOA-2023 climatic data. To evaluate the reanalysis quality, the data from the MERCATOR PSY4QV3R1, CMEMS GLORYS12v1 and TOPAZ5 products for the 0–40 m depths are involved. The comparison is carried out using the standard statistical methods: descriptive statistics, spatial correlation analysis and discrepancy function method. It is found that the studied frontal section between the Arctic and Atlantic waters could be traced up to 80 km from the ice edge. The maximum gradients of thermohaline characteristics in the Marginal Frontal Zone were recorded in 2023 under conditions of the significant positive temperature anomalies of surface waters of the Atlantic origin. It is shown that the reanalysis data describe accurately temperature and salinity only within the Atlantic water region.

Conclusions. The results of in situ measurements confirm the existence of stable positive water temperature anomalies relative to the climatic values in the surface layer of the Greenland Sea northeastern part in winter, which influence the characteristics of hydrological field gradients in the Marginal Frontal Zone. Being compared, the temperature and salinity fields resulted from the observation and reanalysis data have shown that the latter lack the datasets which describe reliably the thermohaline characteristics of waters near the ice edge.

Keywords

water temperature, water salinity, frontal zone, Marginal Frontal Zone, MERCATOR, GLORYS12v1, TOPAZ5, onboard observations, Greenland Sea

Acknowledgements

The study was carried out within the framework of state assignment themes FMWE-2024-0028 and FMEE-2024-0016.

Original russian text

Original Russian Text © The Authors, 2025, published in MORSKOY GIDROFIZICHESKIY ZHURNAL, Vol. 41, Iss. 2, pp. 146–159 (2025)

For citation

Maksimovskaya, T.M., Zimin, A.V., Atadzhanova, O.A., Konik, A.A. and Moiseev, D.V., 2025. Variability of Water Characteristics in the Northeastern Part of the Greenland Sea during the Winter Periods in 2019–2023. Physical Oceanography, 32(2), pp. 174-186.

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