On the Flow Through Bering Strait: A Synthesis of Model Results and Observations

Abstract

Bering Strait is the only ocean connection between the Pacific and the Arctic. The flow through this narrow and shallow strait links the Pacific and Arctic oceans and impacts oceanic conditions downstream in the Chukchi Sea and the Western Arctic. We present a model synthesis of exchanges through Bering Strait at monthly to decadal time scales, including results from coupled ice-ocean models and observations. Significant quantities of heat and freshwater are delivered annually into the southern Chukchi Sea via Bering Strait. We quantify seasonal signals, along with interannual variability, over the course of 26 years of multiple model integrations. Volume transport and property fluxes are evaluated among several high- resolution model runs and compared with available moored observations. High-resolution models represent the bathymetry better, and may have a more realistic representation of the flow through the strait, although in terms of fluxes and mean properties, this is not always the case. We conclude that, (i) while some of the models used for Arctic studies achieve the correct order of magnitude for fluxes of volume, heat and freshwater, and have significant correlations with observational results, there is still a need for improvement and (ii) higher spatial resolution is needed to resolve features such as the Alaska Coastal Current (ACC). At the same time, additional measurements with better spatial coverage are needed to minimize uncertainties in observed estimates and to constrain models. Bering Strait is the only ocean connection between the Pacific and the Arctic. The flow through this narrow and shallow strait links the Pacific and Arctic oceans and impacts oceanic conditions downstream in the Chukchi Sea and the Western Arctic. We present a model synthesis of exchanges through Bering Strait at monthly to decadal time scales, including results from coupled ice-ocean models and observations. Significant quantities of heat and freshwater are delivered annually into the southern Chukchi Sea via Bering Strait. We quantify seasonal signals, along with interannual variability, over the course of 26 years of multiple model integrations. Volume transport and property fluxes are evaluated among several high- resolution model runs and compared with available moored observations. High-resolution models represent the bathymetry better, and may have a more realistic representation of the flow through the strait, although in terms of fluxes and mean properties, this is not always the case. We conclude that, (i) while some of the models used for Arctic studies achieve the correct order of magnitude for fluxes of volume, heat and freshwater, and have significant correlations with observational results, there is still a need for improvement and (ii) higher spatial resolution is needed to resolve features such as the Alaska Coastal Current (ACC). At the same time, additional measurements with better spatial coverage are needed to minimize uncertainties in observed estimates and to constrain models.