Davis Strait

Davis Strait connects Baffin Bay in the Arctic with the Labrador Sea in the North Atlantic Ocean. Fluxes of freshwater and natural and anthropogenic components across Davis Strait represent the integrated Arctic Water to the south via Canadian Arctic Archipelago and Atlantic Water to the north. Changes in freshwater transport have possible implications for the deep convection regime in the Labrador Sea, and therefore global thermohaline circulation. Ocean Sciences Division in partnership with the Applied Physics Lab, University of Washington (Dr. Craig Lee, PI), has been conducing a time series study since 2004 in Davis Strait as part of "Study of Environmental Arctic Change" (SERCH) with support from NSF and N-CARRE/DFO.

CTD/Rosette deployment in front of Jakobshavn Glacier on board of R/V Knorr

A combination of mooring arrays across the Strait, autonomous gliders and ship-based hydrography with water sampling contributes to our understanding of the influence of freshwater input from the Arctic and the Greenland Ice Sheet on global climate change. Chemical measurements including dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA) are used to study the size and variability of carbon fluxes from the Arctic as well as through the air-sea interface in the region. Nutrients and oxygen isotope composition (Ã}´18O) help to quantify freshwater sources (sea ice meltwater, river/glacial runoff and rain/snow) and the distribution and fluxes of each freshwater component.

Arctic Water Fraction across Davis Strait