2009 IPY Polar Field School Oceanography Project: An Investigation of the Impacts of Polynyas in Storfjorden, Svalbard

The seemingly insignificant Storfjorden Basin along the coast of Svalbard has been shown to produce 5–10% of the worldwide deep water owing to active polynya formation. During this investigation students participating in the 2009 IPY Polar Field School used buoy data to study the water mass properties as well as the local tides and currents impacting deep water formation in the basin. The investigation found that as sea water temperatures dropped to the critical freezing point of -1.9°C, salinity increased steadily throughout winter months with local peaks that support polynya formation and sea ice production in Storfjorden. The dominant current in this basin was found to have a northeast direction, which may have assisted in pushing the ice away from the coast, thus reinforcing the polynya formation.