Experiments and new observation techniques related to wave-ice interactions

The polar oceans consist of open water, continuous ice covers and zones of broken ice floes of various sizes in the transition between water and ice. As the waves from the open ocean travel into the zone of ice floes, the wave height is efficiently damped. In this work, I have investigated mechanisms of energy dissipation that occur when waves are propagating through sea ice. It is important to gain knowledge about these processes because we may use this information to better predict the short term sea state and wave height and the long term climate in the polar regions. Reliable wave forecast models in the vicinity of sea ice are necessary to ensure safe human activities in the polar oceans. It is challenging to perform fieldwork on the sea ice due to the harsh conditions and the remoteness of the polar areas. Consequently, relatively few field studies on waves in ice are available. Therefore, my research group have developed new measurement techniques for direct observations of wave attenuation through sea ice. We have used these methods to show that a large portion of the wave energy is transformed into ocean turbulence in the interaction with sea ice