Geometry, Morphology, Physical Properties and Structure of Sea Ice Ridges During the Transition Period from First-Year to Second-Year in the Summer 2023 and 2024
2025
Alexandra Pliss | Knut Vilhelm Høyland | Bernt Johan Leira
Summer processes in sea ice and their influence on the ridge action of structures in industrial areas are still rarely studied but of high interest. This article analyses data from two expeditions, the multidisciplinary GoNorth 2023 in the Arctic and the NPI Fram Strait 2024 cruise, combined with detailed analysis along the ridge keel and calculation of limit stress on vertical structures. The ice ridges were investigated by drilling cross-sections and sampling cores for temperature, salinity and density measurements. The keel depth ranged from 3.0 m to 4.8 m and the sail height ranged from 0.3 m to 0.9 m. The mean density and salinity of the ridge samples in 2023 were 899 kg/m<sup>3</sup> and 2.2 ppt, respectively, and the mean salinity in 2024 was 2.0 ppt. The average constant temperature in the keel was −1.7 °C in 2023 and −1.6 °C in 2024. The upper limit of the strength of ridged ice on a vertical structure of 7.2 m in width ranged from 3.1 to 4.1 MPa. These results contribute to the knowledge of summer consolidation processes and are useful for statistical analysis of ice ridge loads exerted on offshore structures by drifting ice ridges.
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