Review article: Weddell Sea polynya formation, cessation and climatic impacts
Review article: Weddell Sea polynya formation, cessation and climatic impacts
Open-ocean polynyas, areas with little or no sea ice, reappeared extensively in 2016 and 2017 over the Maud Rise in the Weddell Sea after a 40-year hiatus, raising a series of unresolved questions about the atmosphere-ice-ocean interactions in the Antarctic region. These major polynyas significantly influence moisture and heat exchange between the atmosphere and the ocean, impacting both regional and global climate dynamics, as well as ecosystem functioning and biogeochemical processes. Notably, they may play a crucial role in contributing to the formation of Antarctic Bottom Water and influencing global ocean circulation. In this Review, we synthesize current knowledge on the drivers and impacts of Weddell Sea polynyas. Recent occurrences have been linked to factors such as a strengthening Weddell Gyre, a negative Southern Annular Mode, extreme local atmospheric conditions (atmospheric rivers and cyclones), and subsurface ocean heat buildup which acts as a preconditioning factor. The associated deep ocean convection from these polynyas can enhance air-sea gas exchange and trigger earlier phytoplankton blooms due to the influx of iron and nutrients from the deep ocean. While advancements in observation and modeling techniques have significantly improved our understanding of polynyas, substantial uncertainties remain regarding their interaction with recent Antarctic sea ice loss, their sensitivity to ocean mixing schemes, their excessive size or frequency in climate simulations, and future projections. Therefore, future research should focus on developing comprehensive four-dimensional regional observatories and targeted, data-constrained coupled models that accurately capture atmosphere-ice-ocean interactions across various timescales.
285-308
Zhou, Lu
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Ayres, Holly
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Gülk, Birte
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Narayanan, Aditya
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de Lavergne, Casimir
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Ödalen, Malin
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Silvano, Alessandro
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Wang, Xingchi
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Lindeman, Margaret
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Steiger, Nadine
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16 January 2026
Zhou, Lu
3f92e98f-606b-4f03-b5a6-dde17493c81f
Ayres, Holly
4c997e5d-d857-49fa-af57-b29c2ebf553f
Gülk, Birte
4e083c9a-a189-434b-a967-2a1d6508cd15
Narayanan, Aditya
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de Lavergne, Casimir
fb15659a-82a1-4bf0-8cda-504f90a2f029
Ödalen, Malin
34d587e6-279c-4112-bbff-a8fdcf14bc21
Silvano, Alessandro
54a4322b-c52d-4179-a414-dc108c416ec9
Wang, Xingchi
39f890a7-3203-41b0-83a7-dd41bb39268a
Lindeman, Margaret
06b055d9-7e83-4156-b8cb-18558aedcd47
Steiger, Nadine
fd94086f-3d0d-44c3-9ff7-539f4232494a
Zhou, Lu, Ayres, Holly, Gülk, Birte, Narayanan, Aditya, de Lavergne, Casimir, Ödalen, Malin, Silvano, Alessandro, Wang, Xingchi, Lindeman, Margaret and Steiger, Nadine
(2026)
Review article: Weddell Sea polynya formation, cessation and climatic impacts.
The Cryosphere, 20 (1), .
(doi:10.5194/tc-20-285-2026).
Abstract
Open-ocean polynyas, areas with little or no sea ice, reappeared extensively in 2016 and 2017 over the Maud Rise in the Weddell Sea after a 40-year hiatus, raising a series of unresolved questions about the atmosphere-ice-ocean interactions in the Antarctic region. These major polynyas significantly influence moisture and heat exchange between the atmosphere and the ocean, impacting both regional and global climate dynamics, as well as ecosystem functioning and biogeochemical processes. Notably, they may play a crucial role in contributing to the formation of Antarctic Bottom Water and influencing global ocean circulation. In this Review, we synthesize current knowledge on the drivers and impacts of Weddell Sea polynyas. Recent occurrences have been linked to factors such as a strengthening Weddell Gyre, a negative Southern Annular Mode, extreme local atmospheric conditions (atmospheric rivers and cyclones), and subsurface ocean heat buildup which acts as a preconditioning factor. The associated deep ocean convection from these polynyas can enhance air-sea gas exchange and trigger earlier phytoplankton blooms due to the influx of iron and nutrients from the deep ocean. While advancements in observation and modeling techniques have significantly improved our understanding of polynyas, substantial uncertainties remain regarding their interaction with recent Antarctic sea ice loss, their sensitivity to ocean mixing schemes, their excessive size or frequency in climate simulations, and future projections. Therefore, future research should focus on developing comprehensive four-dimensional regional observatories and targeted, data-constrained coupled models that accurately capture atmosphere-ice-ocean interactions across various timescales.
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tc-20-285-2026
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Accepted/In Press date: 23 December 2025
e-pub ahead of print date: 16 January 2026
Published date: 16 January 2026
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Local EPrints ID: 510952
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/510952
ISSN: 1994-0416
PURE UUID: ed38d23f-69c3-4162-afd8-361dbabda86b
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Date deposited: 27 Apr 2026 16:50
Last modified: 02 May 2026 02:14
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Author:
Lu Zhou
Author:
Holly Ayres
Author:
Birte Gülk
Author:
Aditya Narayanan
Author:
Casimir de Lavergne
Author:
Malin Ödalen
Author:
Xingchi Wang
Author:
Margaret Lindeman
Author:
Nadine Steiger
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