Arctic Ice Dynamics Joint Experiment (AIDJEX) assumptions revisited and found inadequate

Abstract

This paper revisits the Arctic Ice Dynamics Joint Experiment (AIDJEX) assumptions about pack ice behavior with an eye to modeling sea ice dynamics. The AIDJEX assumptions were that (1) enough leads were present in a 100 km by 100 km region to make the ice isotropic on that scale; (2) the ice had no tensile strength; and (3) the ice behavior could be approximated by an isotropic yield surface. These assumptions were made during the development of the AIDJEX model in the 1970s, and are now found inadequate. The assumptions were made in part because of insufficient large‐scale (10 km) deformation and stress data, and in part because of computer capability limitations. Upon reviewing deformation and stress data, it is clear that a model including deformation on discontinuities and an anisotropic failure surface with tension would better describe the behavior of pack ice. A model based on these assumptions is needed to represent the deformation and stress in pack ice on scales from 10 to 100 km, and would need to explicitly resolve discontinuities. Such a model would require a different class of metrics to validate discontinuities against observations.