Differential Sea-Ice Drift. II. Comparison of Mesoscale Strain Measurements to Linear Drift Theory Predictions

Abstract

A comparison of mesoscale strain measurements with the atmospheric pressure field and the wind velocity field indicate that the ice divergence rate and vorticity follow the local pressure and wind divergence with significant correlation. For low atmospheric pressures and converging winds the divergence rate was found to be negative with the vorticity being counter-clockwise. The inverse behavior was observed for high pressures and diverging winds. This behavior was shown to agree with predictions based upon the infinite boundary solution of a linearized drift theory in the absence of gradient current effects and using the constitutive law proposed by Glen (1970) for pack ice. The best least-squares values of the constitutive law parameters η and ζ were found to be ≈ 1012 kg/s. Using typical divergence rates these values yield compressive stresses of the magnitude of 105 N/m which are similar to values suggested by the Parmerter and Coon (1972) ridge model. In general, the infinite boundary solution of the linear drift equation indicates that in a low-pressure region that is reasonably localized in space, the ice would be expected to converge for high compactness (winter) and diverge for low compactness (summer).Calculations were also carried out using a more general linear visco-elastic constitutive law that includes memory effects and which includes a generalized Hooke’s law as well as the Glen law as special cases. A best fit of this more general calculation with strain measurements indicates overall a better agreement with viscous behavior than with elastic behavior, with the frequency behavior of the estimated “viscosities” similar to the Glen law behavior at temporal frequencies less than ≈ 0.01 h−1.