Data Assimilation of Range- and Depth-Averaged Sound Speed from Acoustic Tomography Measurements in Fram Strait

Abstract

Abstract The 2010–12 Acoustic Technology for Observing the Interior of the Arctic Ocean (ACOBAR) experiment provided acoustic tomography data along three 167–301-km-long sections in Fram Strait between Greenland and Spitsbergen. Ocean sound speed data were assimilated into a regional numerical ocean model using the Massachusetts Institute of Technology General Circulation Model–Estimating the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean four-dimensional variational (MITgcm-ECCO 4DVAR) assimilation system. The resulting state estimate matched the assimilated sound speed time series; the root-mean-squared (RMS) error of the sound speed estimate (∼0.4 m s−1) is smaller than the uncertainty of the measurement (∼0.8 m s−1). Data assimilation improved modeled range- and depth-averaged ocean temperatures at the 78°50′N oceanographic mooring section in Fram Strait. The RMS error of the state estimate (0.21°C) is comparable to the uncertainty of the interpolated mooring section (0.23°C). Lack of depth information in the assimilated ocean sound speed measurements caused an increased temperature bias in the upper ocean (0–500 m). The correlations with the mooring section were not improved as short-term variations in the mooring measurements and the ocean state estimate do not always coincide in time. This is likely due to the small-scale eddying and nonlinearity of the ocean circulation in Fram Strait. Furthermore, the horizontal resolution of the state estimate (4.5 km) is eddy permitting, rather than eddy resolving. Thus, the state estimate cannot represent the full ocean dynamics of the region. This study is the first to demonstrate the usefulness of large-scale acoustic measurements for improving ocean state estimates at high latitudes. Significance Statement Acoustic tomography measurements allow one to observe ocean temperature in large ocean volumes under the Arctic sea ice by measuring sound speed, which is hard to synoptically observe by other methods. This study has established methods for assimilation of depth- and range-averaged ocean sound speed from an acoustic tomography experiment in Fram Strait. For the first time, a 2-yr time series of ocean sound from acoustic tomography has been assimilated into an ocean state estimate. The results highlight the use of ocean tomography in ice-covered regions to improve state estimates of ocean temperature.