A study led by NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) Research Scientist Diana Francis has unraveled the four decade long mystery surrounding the occurrence of a mid-sea Polynya – a body of unfrozen ocean that appeared within a thick body of ice during Antarctica’s winter, almost two years ago.
The Maud-Rise Polynya was spotted in mid-September 2017 in the center of an ice pack in Antarctica's Lazarev Sea, causing researchers to question how this phenomenon occurred during Antarctica’s coldest, winter months when ice is at its thickest. Due to its difficult access location, NYUAD scientists used a combination of satellite observations and reanalysis data to discover that cyclones and the strong winds that they carry over the ice pack cause ice to shift in opposite directions, which leads to the opening of the Polynya.
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Images
Title: Polar Cyclone and The Maud Rise Polynya
Caption: Satellite images of a polar cyclone (left) and the Maud Rise Polynya (right) in September 2017
Credit: NASA Worldview
Title: The Maud Rise Polynya
Caption: The Maud Rise Polynya of September 2017
Credit: NASA Worldview