ARCUS 17th Annual Meeting and Arctic Forum 2005

Synthesis of Arctic Science at the University of New Hampshire

Cameron P. Wake¹, Jack Dibb², Mark Twickler³, Charles Vörösmarty⁴, Richard Lammers⁵, Alexander Shiklomanov⁶, Mark Fahnestock⁷, Steve Frolking⁸, Xiangming Xiao⁹, Changsheng Li¹⁰, Michael Rawlins¹¹, Marc Lessard¹², Roger Arnoldy¹³, Larry Mayer¹⁴, Andy Armstrong¹⁵, Jim Gardner¹⁶, Martin Jakobsson¹⁷, Lawrence Hamilton¹⁸, Cliff Brown^19
1Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-2329, Fax 603-862-2124, cameron.wake@unh.edu
²Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans & Space, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824-3525, USA, Phone 603-862-3063, Fax 603-862-2124, jack.dibb@unh.edu
³Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824-3525, USA, Phone 603-862-1991, Fax 603-862-2124, mark.twickler@unh.edu
⁴Water Systems Analysis Group, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Halll, Durham, NH, 03824-3525, USA, Phone 603-862-0850, Fax 603-862-0587, charles.vorosmarty@unh.edu
⁵Water Systems Analysis Group, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-4699, Fax 603-862-0587, richard.lammers@unh.edu
⁶Complex System Research Center , University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-4387, Fax 603-862-0188, sasha@eos.sr.unh.edu
⁷Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-0322, Fax 603-862-1915, mark.fahnestock@unh.edu
⁸Complex Systems Research Center, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824-3525, USA, Phone 603-862-0244, Fax 603-862-0188, steve.frolking@unh.edu
⁹Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-0322, Fax 603-862-1915, xiao@eos.sr.unh.edu
¹⁰Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-0322, Fax 603-862-1915, changsheng.li@unh.edu
¹¹Complex Systems Research Center, University of New Hampshire, 39 College Road - Morse Hall, Durham, NH, 03824-0188, USA, Phone 603-862-4734, Fax 603-862-0188, rawlins@eos.sr.unh.edu
¹²Department of Physics, Dartmouth College, 6127 Wilder Hall, Hanover, NH, 03755-3528, USA, Phone 603-646-2310, Fax 603-646-1446, marc@einstein.dartmouth.edu
¹³Space Science Center, University of New Hampshire, 38 Woodridge Road, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-868-5095, roger.arnoldy@unh.ede
¹⁴Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, University of New Hampshire, Chase Ocean Engineering Lab, 24 Colovos Road, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-2615, Fax 603-862-0839, larry.mayer@unh.edu
¹⁵Center for Coastal & Ocean Mapping, University of New Hampshire, 24 Colovos Road, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-4559, Fax 603-862-0839, andrew.armstrong@unh.edu
¹⁶Center for Coastal & Ocean Mapping, University of New Hampshire, 24 Colovos Road, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-3473, Fax 603-862-0839, jim.gardner.unh.edu
¹⁷Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, University of New Hampshire, 24 Colovos Road, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-3755, Fax 603-862-0839, martin.jakobsson@unh.edu
¹⁸Department of Sociology HSSC, University of New Hampshire, 20 College Road, Durham, NH, 03824-3509, USA, Phone 603-862-1859, Fax 603-862-3558, lawrence.hamilton@unh.edu
¹⁹Department of Sociology, University of New Hampshire, 420 Horton Social Science Center, Durham, NH, 03824, USA, Phone 603-862-0765, Fax 603-862-3558, cliff.brown@unh.edu

Several different research groups at the University of New Hampshire are currently active in a wide variety of Arctic research. Over the course of the next few years, we hope to synthesize this Arctic research to develop a broader understanding of change in the Arctic. A brief overview of areas of Arctic research excellence are outlined below. More information on Arctic research at UNH is provided online at: http://arctic.unh.edu.

Tracking Atmospheric transport of Contaminants to the Arctic: The Arctic troposphere carries chemicals emitted from natural and anthropogenic sources, with many of the source regions long distances upwind in more populous regions in North America, Europe and Asia. During intercontinental-scale transport to, and within, the Arctic, these are mixed and chemically processed with additional emissions from surface sources in the Arctic (cities, forests, tundra, the ocean, and, surprisingly, sunlit snow across the entire basin), and with air injected from the stratosphere. Many of the natural and pollutant chemicals are removed from the Arctic troposphere by dry deposition and precipitation, with snow falling onto glaciers throughout the Arctic preserving a valuable record of the past composition. Our group has advanced the understanding of this complex system through airborne and surface-based atmospheric sampling, detailed study of the two-way exchange between the troposphere and surface snow, and the recovery and interpretation of high-resolution glaciochemical records from Greenland and throughout the North American Arctic.

Land Surface Hydrology: One of the key research objectives of the Water Systems Analysis Group is to understand the variability of the pan-Arctic hydrological budget over space and time. We work closely with partners to assemble integrated and harmonized data sets covering the full pan-Arctic domain, involving remote sensing derived data layers (e.g. primary thaw day from SeaWinds Scatterometer, station based data, and modeled data. One of our fundamental tasks has been to identify the major storage and flux terms over the Arctic and to determine the extent of fresh water budget closure.

Upper Atmospheric Physics: This research in the Arctic is largely centered around auroral phenomena and associated processes. While aurora provides spectacular visual displays, it is also the last link in a complex chain of events involving the transfer of energy from the Sun to Earth. Investigations to study aurora are carried out with ground-based instrumentation as well as sounding rockets, launched into space above the aurora.

Mapping the Continental Shelf: Under the direction of the US Congress, the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping/Joint Hydrographic Center (CCOM/JHC) is conducting a detailed analysis of current U.S. data holdings relevant to a potential claim and identify regions where the collection of new ocean mapping data could substantially improve the quality of a claim. Among these areas, the Arctic is outstanding in that the existing database is far too sparse to support a well-defended claim, especially in areas where the perennial ice cover has prevented surface ships from operating. Thus the CCOM/JHC has been exploring means to collect modern mapping data in ice-covered regions and undertaken a series of cruises on a multibeam sonar-equipped icebreaker (HEALY) to collect data relevant to a potential claim under Article 76. In addition to directly addressing Law of the Sea issues, the new data collected also significantly adds to data needed to support the growing recognition of the critical role that the Arctic Ocean plays in the climatic and tectonic history of the Earth. The new bathymetric data (as well as associated CTD measurements) will help define the nature of deep circulation in the Arctic Basin as well as the history and distribution of ice in the region, a key component of the global climate system.

The North Atlantic Arc: The NAArc project examines human-environment interactions through case studies of recent changes experienced by fisheries-dependent societies in Newfoundland, Greenland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Norway. The interdisciplinary case studies integrate information about oceanographic and marine-ecosystem change with fisheries, demographic and other social-change data.