Joint Probability Analysis and Prediction of Sea Ice Conditions in Liaodong Bay

Sea ice conditions in Liaodong Bay of China are often described by sea ice grades,which classify annual sea ice conditions based on the annual maximum sea ice thickness(AM-SIT)and annual maximum floating ice extent(AM-FIE).The joint probability distribution of AM-SIT and AM-FIE was established on the basis of their data pairs from 1949/1950 to 2019/2020 in Liaodong Bay.The joint intensity index of the sea ice condition in the current year is calculated,and the joint classification criteria of the sea ice grades in past years are established on the basis of the joint intensity index series.A comparison of the joint criteria with the 1973 and 2022 criteria revealed that the joint criteria of the sea ice grade match well,and the joint intensity index can be used to quantify the sea ice condition over the years.A time series analysis of the sea ice grades and the joint intensity index sequences based on the joint criteria are then performed.Results show a decreasing trend of the sea ice condition from 1949/1950 to 2019/2020,a mutation in 1990/1991,and a period of approximately 91 years of the sea ice condition.In addition,the Gray-Markov model(GMM)is applied to predict the joint sea ice grade and the joint intensity index of the sea ice condition series in future years,and the error between the results and the actual sea ice condition in 2020/2021 is small.

Spatiotemporal variation and freeze-thaw asymmetry of Arctic sea ice in multiple dimensions during 1979 to 2020

Arctic sea ice is broadly regarded as an indicator and amplifier of global climate change.The rapid changes in Arctic sea ice have been widely concerned.However,the spatiotemporal changes in the horizontal and vertical dimensions of Arctic sea ice and its asymmetry during the melt and freeze seasons are rarely quantified simultaneously based on multiple sources of the same long time series.In this study,the spatiotemporal variation and freeze-thaw asymmetry of Arctic sea ice were investigated from both the horizontal and vertical dimensions during 1979–2020 based on remote sensing and assimilation data.The results indicated that Arctic sea ice was declining at a remarkably high rate of–5.4×10^(4) km^(2)/a in sea ice area(SIA)and–2.2 cm/a in sea ice thickness(SIT)during 1979 to 2020,and the reduction of SIA and SIT was the largest in summer and the smallest in winter.Spatially,compared with other sub-regions,SIA showed a sharper declining trend in the Barents Sea,Kara Sea,and East Siberian Sea,while SIT presented a larger downward trend in the northern Canadian Archipelago,northern Greenland,and the East Siberian Sea.Regarding to the seasonal trend of sea ice on sub-region scale,the reduction rate of SIA exhibited an apparent spatial heterogeneity among seasons,especially in summer and winter,i.e.,the sub-regions linked to the open ocean exhibited a higher decline rate in winter;however,the other sub-regions blocked by the coastlines presented a greater decline rate in summer.For SIT,the sub-regions such as the Beaufort Sea,East Siberian Sea,Chukchi Sea,Central Arctic,and Canadian Archipelago always showed a higher downward rate in all seasons.Furthermore,a striking freeze-thaw asymmetry of Arctic sea ice was also detected.Comparing sea ice changes in different dimensions,sea ice over most regions in the Arctic showed an early retreat and rapid advance in the horizontal dimension but late melting and gradual freezing in the vertical dimension.The amount of sea ice melting and freezing was disequilibrium in the Arctic during the considered period,and the rate of sea ice melting was 0.3×10^(4) km^(2)/a and 0.01 cm/a higher than that of freezing in the horizontal and vertical dimensions,respectively.Moreover,there were notable shifts in the melting and freezing of Arctic sea ice in 1997/2003 and 2000/2004,respectively,in the horizontal/vertical dimension.

Some recent advances in remote sensing-based monitoring of changes in the Greenland Ice Sheet

The mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet(GrIS)plays a crucial role in global sea level change.Since the 1960s,remote sensing missions have been providing extensive and continuous observation data for change monitoring of the GrIS.In this paper,we present our recent research results from remote sensing-based GrIS change monitoring.First,historical satellite data are processed and used to fill data gaps and are combined with existing partial maps,completing an ice velocity map of the GrIS from the 1960s to 1980s.This map provides valuable data for estimating the historical mass balance of Greenland.Second,the monthly gravimetry-based mass balance of the GrIS from 2002 to 2020 is estimated by combining Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment(GRACE)and GRACE Follow On(GRACE-FO)data.It is found that the GrIS has lost a total mass of approximately 4443±75 Gt during this period.Third,based on Global Land Ice Measurements from Space(GLIMS),an updated Greenland glacier inventory is achieved utilizing data collected between 2006 and 2020.This inventory provides more detailed and up-to-data glacier boundaries of Greenland.Overall,these advances provide essential data support for estimating the mass balance of the GrIS,contributing to the advancement of research on global sea level change.

An improved algorithm for retrieving thin sea ice thickness in the Arctic Ocean from SMOS and SMAP L-band radiometer data

The aim of this study was to develop an improved thin sea ice thickness(SIT)retrieval algorithm in the Arctic Ocean from the Soil Moisture Ocean Salinity and Soil Moisture Active Passive L-band radiometer data.This SIT retrieval algorithm was trained using the simulated SIT from the cumulative freezing degree days model during the freeze-up period over five carefully selected regions in the Beaufort,Chukchi,East Siberian,Laptev and Kara seas and utilized the microwave polarization ratio(PR)at incidence angle of 40°.The improvements of the proposed retrieval algorithm include the correction for the sea ice concentration impact,reliable reference SIT data over different representative regions of the Arctic Ocean and the utilization of microwave polarization ratio that is independent of ice temperature.The relationship between the SIT and PR was found to be almost stable across the five selected regions.The SIT retrievals were then compared to other two existing algorithms(i.e.,UH_SIT from the University of Hamburg and UB_SIT from the University of Bremen)and validated against independent SIT data obtained from moored upward looking sonars(ULS)and airborne electromagnetic(EM)induction sensors.The results suggest that the proposed algorithm could achieve comparable accuracies to UH_SIT and UB_SIT with root mean square error(RMSE)being about 0.20 m when validating using ULS SIT data and outperformed the UH_SIT and UB_SIT with RMSE being about 0.21 m when validatng using EM SIT data.The proposed algorithm can be used for thin sea ice thickness(<1.0 m)estimation in the Arctic Ocean and requires less auxiliary data in the SIT retrieval procedure which makes its implementation more practical.

Two-Staged Method for Ice Channel Identification Based on Image Segmentation and Corner Point Regression

Identification of the ice channel is the basic technology for developing intelligent ships in ice-covered waters,which is important to ensure the safety and economy of navigation.In the Arctic,merchant ships with low ice class often navigate in channels opened up by icebreakers.Navigation in the ice channel often depends on good maneuverability skills and abundant experience from the captain to a large extent.The ship may get stuck if steered into ice fields off the channel.Under this circumstance,it is very important to study how to identify the boundary lines of ice channels with a reliable method.In this paper,a two-staged ice channel identification method is developed based on image segmentation and corner point regression.The first stage employs the image segmentation method to extract channel regions.In the second stage,an intelligent corner regression network is proposed to extract the channel boundary lines from the channel region.A non-intelligent angle-based filtering and clustering method is proposed and compared with corner point regression network.The training and evaluation of the segmentation method and corner regression network are carried out on the synthetic and real ice channel dataset.The evaluation results show that the accuracy of the method using the corner point regression network in the second stage is achieved as high as 73.33%on the synthetic ice channel dataset and 70.66%on the real ice channel dataset,and the processing speed can reach up to 14.58frames per second.

Advances in ice avalanches on the Tibetan Plateau

As some of the greatest natural disasters in the cryosphere,ice avalanches(IAs)seriously threaten lives and cause catastrophic damage to the resource environment,but a comprehensive overview of the state of knowledge on IAs remains lacking.We summarized 63 IAs on the Tibetan Plateau(TP)since the 20th century,of which,over 20 IAs occurred after the 21st century.The distributions of IAs are mainly concentrated in the southeastern and northwestern TP,and the occurrence time of IAs is mostly concentrated from July to September.We highlight recent advances in mechanical properties and genetic mechanisms of IAs and emphasize that temperature,rainfall,and seismicity are the inducing factors.The failure modes of IAs are summarized into 6 categories by examples:slip pulling type,slip toppling type,slip breaking type,water level collapse type,cave roof collapse type,and wedge failure type.Finally,we deliver recommendations concerning the risk assessment and prediction of IAs.The results provide important scientific value for addressing climate change and resisting glacier-related hazards.

Methods for ice velocity mapping in West Antarctica using historical optical satellite images

The Antarctic Ice Sheet harbors more than 90%of the Earth ice mass,with significant losses experienced through dynamic thinning,particularly in West Antarctica.The crucial aspect of investigating ice mass balance in historical periods preceding 1990 hinges on the utilization of ice velocities derived from optical satellite images.We employed declassified satellite images and Landsat images with normalized cross correlation based image matching,adopting an adaptive combination of skills and methods to overcome challenges encountered during the mapping of historical ice velocity in West Antarctica.A basin-wide synthesis velocity map encompassing the coastal regions of most large-scale glaciers and ice shelves in West Antarctica has already been successfully generated.Our results for historical ice velocities cover over 70%of the grounding line in most of the West Antarctic basins.Through adjustments,we uncovered overestimations in ice velocity measurements over an extended period,transforming our ice velocity map into a spatially deterministic,temporally average version.Among all velocity measurements,Thwaites Glacier exhibited a notable spatial variation in the fastest ice flowline and velocity distribution.Overestimation distributions on Thwaites Glacier displayed a clear consistency with the positions of subsequent front calving events,offering insights into the instabilities of ice shelves.

Migration and role of zinc in biogeochemical cycles in the Antarctic Ice Sheet and the Southern Ocean

Zinc(Zn),a widespread metal in the Earth’s crust,serves as a crucial nutrient in the Southern Ocean’s primary production.Studies on Zn in Antarctic snow and ice offer insights into the origins of this metal and its transport routes,as well as its impact on the biogeochemical processes within the Antarctic atmosphere–land–ocean system.This review examines research on the spatial and temporal distribution of Zn in Antarctic snow and ice,as well as in Southern Ocean waters.It includes an overview of advanced methods for sampling and analyzing Zn,along with explanations for the observed variations.The review also discusses various sources of Zn as a nutrient to the Southern Ocean.Finally,it addresses prospective issues related to the use of Zn isotopes in identifying atmospheric sources and their biogeochemical effects on the development of the Southern Ocean ecosystem.

A multi-scale second-order autoregressive recursive filter approach for the sea ice concentration analysis

To effectively extract multi-scale information from observation data and improve computational efficiency,a multi-scale second-order autoregressive recursive filter(MSRF)method is designed.The second-order autoregressive filter used in this study has been attempted to replace the traditional first-order recursive filter used in spatial multi-scale recursive filter(SMRF)method.The experimental results indicate that the MSRF scheme successfully extracts various scale information resolved by observations.Moreover,compared with the SMRF scheme,the MSRF scheme improves computational accuracy and efficiency to some extent.The MSRF scheme can not only propagate to a longer distance without the attenuation of innovation,but also reduce the mean absolute deviation between the reconstructed sea ice concentration results and observations reduced by about 3.2%compared to the SMRF scheme.On the other hand,compared with traditional first-order recursive filters using in the SMRF scheme that multiple filters are executed,the MSRF scheme only needs to perform two filter processes in one iteration,greatly improving filtering efficiency.In the two-dimensional experiment of sea ice concentration,the calculation time of the MSRF scheme is only 1/7 of that of SMRF scheme.This means that the MSRF scheme can achieve better performance with less computational cost,which is of great significance for further application in real-time ocean or sea ice data assimilation systems in the future.

Impacts of Ice-Ocean Stress on the Subpolar Southern Ocean:Role of the Ocean Surface Current

The mechanical influences involved in the interaction between the Antarctic sea ice and ocean surface current(OSC)on the subpolar Southern Ocean have been systematically investigated for the first time by conducting two simulations that include and exclude the OSC in the calculation of the ice-ocean stress(IOS), using an eddy-permitting coupled ocean-sea ice global model. By comparing the results of these two experiments, significant increases of 5%, 27%, and 24%, were found in the subpolar Southern Ocean when excluding the OSC in the IOS calculation for the ocean surface stress,upwelling, and downwelling, respectively. Excluding the OSC in the IOS calculation also visibly strengthens the total mechanical energy input to the OSC by about 16%, and increases the eddy kinetic energy and mean kinetic energy by about38% and 12%, respectively. Moreover, the response of the meridional overturning circulation in the Southern Ocean yields respective increases of about 16% and 15% for the upper and lower branches;and the subpolar gyres are also found to considerably intensify, by about 12%, 11%, and 11% in the Weddell Gyre, the Ross Gyre, and the Australian-Antarctic Gyre, respectively. The strengthened ocean circulations and Ekman pumping result in a warmer sea surface temperature(SST), and hence an incremental surface heat loss. The increased sea ice drift and warm SST lead to an expansion of the sea ice area and a reduction of sea ice volume. These results emphasize the importance of OSCs in the air-sea-ice interactions on the global ocean circulations and the mass balance of Antarctic ice shelves, and this component may become more significant as the rapid change of Antarctic sea ice.

Let the World Enjoy the Infinite Charm of Ice&Snow in China

Series of events of "Nihao!China"2024 China Ice&Snow Tourism Overseas Promotion Season will further enhance the visibility of China ice&snow tourism in the international market and tourists,drive the"hot economy"of culture and tourism with the"cold resources"of ice&snow,and play a positive role in and far-reaching impact on promoting the vigorous development of the market of winter inbound tourism.

The Opening Ceremony of the 4Oth China Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival&China-France Yearof Culture and Tourism

The opening ceremony of the 4Oth China Harbin International Iceand Snow Festival&China-FranceYearof Cultureand Tourism was held in Harbin Ice and Snow Worldon January 5,2024.Under the darkening sky in the evening,the dazzling lights illuminated Harbin Iceand Snow World.In the charming lighting and dynamic music,tourists from all over the world gathered together to enjoy the magnificent ice and snow sceneryand sharethe unique charm of the feast of Heilongjiang.

Global Celebrationof ‘Nihao!China’--2024 China Ice& Snow Tourism Overseas Promotion Season

The successful holding of"Nihao!China"--2024 China Ice&Snow Tourism Overseas Promotion Season has not only deepened the understanding of the people of various countries on the ice&snow cultural and tourist resources with Chinese characteristics,enhanced the exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and foreign cultural and tourist industries,but also accumulated rich experience for the brand construction of the series of event"Themed Tourism Overseas Promotion Season".

Retrieval of Antarctic sea ice freeboard and thickness from HY-2B satellite altimeter data

Antarctic sea ice is an important part of the Earth’s atmospheric system,and satellite remote sensing is an important technology for observing Antarctic sea ice.Whether Chinese Haiyang-2B(HY-2B)satellite altimeter data could be used to estimate sea ice freeboard and provide alternative Antarctic sea ice thickness information with a high precision and long time series,as other radar altimetry satellites can,needs further investigation.This paper proposed an algorithm to discriminate leads and then retrieve sea ice freeboard and thickness from HY-2B radar altimeter data.We first collected the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer ice surface temperature(IST)product from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to extract leads from the Antarctic waters and verified their accuracy through Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar images.Second,a surface classification decision tree was generated for HY-2B satellite altimeter measurements of the Antarctic waters to extract leads and calculate local sea surface heights.We then estimated the Antarctic sea ice freeboard and thickness based on local sea surface heights and the static equilibrium equation.Finally,the retrieved HY-2B Antarctic sea ice thickness was compared with the CryoSat-2 sea ice thickness and the Antarctic Sea Ice Processes and Climate(ASPeCt)ship-based observed sea ice thickness.The results indicate that our classification decision tree constructed for HY-2B satellite altimeter measurements was reasonable,and the root mean square error of the obtained sea ice thickness compared to the ship measurements was 0.62 m.The proposed sea ice thickness algorithm for the HY-2B radar satellite fills a gap in this application domain for the HY-series satellites and can be a complement to existing Antarctic sea ice thickness products;this algorithm could provide long-time-series and large-scale sea ice thickness data that contribute to research on global climate change.

The variation in basal channels and basal melt rates of Pine Island Ice Shelf

In recent years,there has been a significant acceleration in the thinning,calving and retreat of the Pine Island Ice Shelf(PIIS).The basal channels,results of enhanced basal melting,have the potential to significantly impact the stability of the PIIS.In this study,we used a variety of remote sensing data,including Landsat,REMA DEM,ICESat-1 and ICESat-2 satellite altimetry observations,and Ice Bridge airborne measurements,to study the spatiotemporal changes in the basal channels from 2003 to 2020 and basal melt rate from 2010 to 2017 of the PIIS under the Eulerian framework.We found that the basal channels are highly developed in the PIIS,with a total length exceeding 450 km.Most of the basal channels are ocean-sourced or groundingline-sourced basal channels,caused by the rapid melting under the ice shelf or near the groundingline.A raised seabed prevented warm water intrusion into the eastern branch of the PIIS,resulting in a lower basal melt rate in that area.In contrast,a deepsea trough facilitates warm seawater into the mainstream and the western branch of the PIIS,resulting in a higher basal melt rate in the main-stream,and the surface elevation changes above the basal channels of the mainstream and western branch are more significant.The El Ni?o event in 2015–2016 possibly slowed down the basal melting of the PIIS by modulating wind field,surface sea temperature and depth seawater temperature.Ocean and atmospheric changes were driven by El Ni?o,which can further explain and confirm the changes in the basal melting of the PIIS.

Study on Image Recognition Algorithm for Residual Snow and Ice on Photovoltaic Modules

The accumulation of snow and ice on PV modules can have a detrimental impact on power generation,leading to reduced efficiency for prolonged periods.Thus,it becomes imperative to develop an intelligent system capable of accurately assessing the extent of snow and ice coverage on PV modules.To address this issue,the article proposes an innovative ice and snow recognition algorithm that effectively segments the ice and snow areas within the collected images.Furthermore,the algorithm incorporates an analysis of the morphological characteristics of ice and snow coverage on PV modules,allowing for the establishment of a residual ice and snow recognition process.This process utilizes both the external ellipse method and the pixel statistical method to refine the identification process.The effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is validated through extensive testing with isolated and continuous snow area pictures.The results demonstrate the algorithm’s accuracy and reliability in identifying and quantifying residual snow and ice on PV modules.In conclusion,this research presents a valuable method for accurately detecting and quantifying snow and ice coverage on PV modules.This breakthrough is of utmost significance for PV power plants,as it enables predictions of power generation efficiency and facilitates efficient PV maintenance during the challenging winter conditions characterized by snow and ice.By proactively managing snow and ice coverage,PV power plants can optimize energy production and minimize downtime,ensuring a sustainable and reliable renewable energy supply.

Actionable Genotypes and Their Association with Life Span in Iceland

Background:In 2021,the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics(ACMG)recommended reporting actionable genotypes in 73 genes associated with diseases for which preventive or therapeutic measures are available.Evaluations of the association of actionable genotypes in these genes with life span are currently lacking.Methods:We assessed the prevalence of coding and splice variants in genes on the ACMG Secondary Findings,version 3.0(ACMG SF v3.0),list in the genomes of 57,933 Icelanders.We assigned pathogenicity to all reviewed variants using reported evidence in the ClinVar database,the frequency of variants,and their associations with disease to create a manually curated set of actionable genotypes(variants).We assessed the relationship between these genotypes and life span and further examined the specific causes of death among carriers.

Actionable Genotypes and Their Association with Life Span in Iceland

Background:In 2021,the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics(ACMG)recommended reporting actionable genotypes in 73 genes associated with diseases for which preventive or therapeutic measures are available.Evaluations of the association of actionable genotypes in these genes with life span are currently lacking.

A World of Ice and Snow Being also Invaluable Asset:A Case Study of the"Snow Village"

Based on field visit and interview,the current situation of snow village in China is summarized from four aspects:core scenic spots in snow village,skiing industry in snow village,film and television industry in snow village,and ice and snow agritainment.The investigation found that there are still significant problems in homogenization,scenic area infrastructure,and government regulation in snow village.Targeted solutions are proposed from four aspects:tapping internal advantages,strengthening top-level design and infrastructure construction,promoting tourism industry upgrading,and collaborating to innovate the ice and snow tourism supply chain,in order to further promote the economic development of snow village.

基于Elmer/Ice参数约束的西南极玛丽伯德地冰盖数值模拟

西南极玛丽伯德地冰盖底部地热通量的不确定性对准确模拟其演化有着重大的影响,探究地热通量的变化对冰盖温度场和速度场的影响具有重要意义。本文基于2021年更新的Bed Machine V2中的南极冰盖底部基岩高程、表面高程数据,添加表面温度、表面质量平衡和地热通量等边界条件,利用Full-Stokes三维模型Elmer/Ice对西南极玛丽伯德地的部分区域(76.8°S—77.3°S,138°W—142°W)进行了静态模拟。实验通过美国冰雪中心2020年更新的MEaSUREs项目的遥感冰盖表面流速数据(MEaSUREs In-SAR-Based Antarctica Ice Velocity Map),对Elmer/Ice中的冰盖底部滑动系数和格伦增强因子两个参数进行约束,以模拟得到的表面冰流速和遥感表面冰流速之间的均方根误差(RMSE)作为评价指标,获得适合区域模拟的最佳参数。当滑动系数为0.1,格伦增强因子为0.26时取得最小RMSE(4.140 m·a^(-1))。以此参数进行模拟,并对地热通量进行调节,得到了研究区域的速度场、温度场、应力场等实验结果。实验结果表明,地热通量改变时冰盖底部温度场变化较大。