Korean Long-term Observation in the Western Arctic Ecosystem

Abstract

Recently, it was found that higher temperatures along with a possible increase in the ice export have decreased the extent and thickness of perennial sea ice in the Arctic Ocean over the past 40 years and produced more open water especially in the western Arctic Ocean (Rothrock et al. 2003

Perovich and Richter-Menge 2009). The changes in climate on many scales influence the ecosystems in different regions of the Arctic Ocean. The study regions for the Korean Long-term Observation will be the Bering Strait/Chukchi Sea and Canada Basin in the western Arctic Ocean. Intensive long-term observation for the ecosystem in these regions is specifically urgent because physical environments, especially ice extent and thickness, are currently changing faster than other regions in the Arctic Ocean. The main goals of the Korean program will be to integrate the effects of climate change across spatial and temporal scales based on a long-term observation in the western Arctic Ocean, lay the groundwork for the future monitoring of ecosystem response to ongoing climate and environmental changes, and consequently predict the impacts of current climate and environmental changes on the marine ecosystems in the western Arctic Ocean.