Applications of SHEBA/FIRE data to evaluation of snow/ice albedo parameterizations

Abstract

Climate models use a wide variety of parameterizations for surface albedos of the ice‐covered ocean. These range from simple broadband albedo parameterizations that distinguish among snow‐covered and bare ice to more sophisticated parameterizations that include dependence on ice and snow depth, solar zenith angle, and spectral resolution. Several sophisticated parameterizations have also been developed for thermodynamic sea ice models that additionally include dependence on ice and snow age, and melt pond characteristics. Observations obtained in the Arctic Ocean during 1997–1998 in conjunction with the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA) and FIRE Arctic Clouds Experiment provide a unique data set against which to evaluate parameterizations of sea ice surface albedo. We apply eight different surface albedo parameterizations to the SHEBA/FIRE data set and evaluate the parameterized albedos against the observed albedos. Results show that these parameterizations yield very different representations of the annual cycle of sea ice albedo. The importance of details and functional relationships of the albedo parameterizations is assessed by incorporating into a single‐column sea ice model two different albedo parameterizations, one complex and one simple, that have the same annually averaged surface albedo. The baseline sea ice characteristics and strength of the ice‐albedo feedback are compared for the simulations of the different surface albedos.