Introducing ASPeCt Sea-Ice Cards
We are thrilled to present the ASPeCt Sea-Ice Cards, an essential tool for conducting shipboard observations in the Southern Ocean. These cards provide comprehensive guidelines for classifying sea ice and recording essential data.
Key features of the ASPeCt Sea-Ice Cards include:
- Baseline Variables: Users can document crucial sea-ice variables such as sea-ice concentration, type, and thickness. This includes measurements from overturned floes, ensuring detailed insights into sea-ice characteristics.
- Floe Classification: Cards allow observers to categorize floe sizes and describe topographic features like ridging and consolidation, which are vital for understanding ice dynamics.
- Snow and Open Water Analysis: The cards offer descriptors for snow types and open water gaps within the sea ice, assisting in the assessment of area-averaged surface albedo.
- Data Recording: For ongoing accuracy, observers are encouraged to estimate ice and snow thicknesses for randomly selected floes hourly.
Additionally, the ASPeCt Sea-Ice Cards provide links to data sheets and software, as well as references to other observation protocols, such as IceWatch for the Arctic and MANICE from the Canadian Ice Service.
By utilizing these resourceful cards, researchers and observers can effectively compile and analyze valuable sea-ice data, contributing to our understanding of this vital component of the climate system.
