Conservation and development of the Arctic Ocean

PI: Takuji Waseda (The University of Tokyo)

The summer sea ice in the Arctic Ocean has receded considerably in the past 25 years, and a vast open water area reaching 1400 km² has emerged. The area encompasses the polar cyclone that generates high waves reaching 5 m to 6 m significant wave height. Swells propagate under the sea ice for hundreds of kilometers and create a vast Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) where waves vigorously interact with sea ice. With a stronger seasonality, sea ice in the Arctic consists of first-year ice and multi-year ice. For ships navigating in the MIZ, high waves and thick multi-year ice floes impose a hazard. Moreover, the loss of coastal fast ice leaves the coastal area unprotected from the waves; coastal erosion advances and leads to the loss of building infrastructures on the coast, and the loss and instability of land-fast ice affect the maintenance of on-ice traffic routes. Arctic coasts and indigenous populations are particularly vulnerable to the loss of sea ice.

On the other hand, there is a high demand for the future development of the Arctic region, such as resource development, despite the impact of political uncertainty that momentarily slowed down the development of the Arctic Shipping route (ASR). 

The research is interdisciplinary. The group consists of three subgroups focusing on the prediction of ice-covered seas, monitoring of ships and their surrounding environments, and advancements in the development of icebreakers and technologies for environmental protection. The researches are conducted in three subgroups. Relevant keywords are listed below:

(Sub-Theme 1: Prediction of the ice-covered sea variation and its social implementation )
Wave-ice interaction, wave and sea ice prediction, navigation support for the ASR, short and long-term coastal prediction

(Sub-Theme 2: Monitoring the variation of the ice-covered sea)
Observing ice-covered sea for scientific and engineering objectives, navigation support, automated sea ice monitoring, sea ice properties, including material properties, and ship motion

(Sub-Theme 3: Environmentally friendly technology for the utilization of ice-covered sea)
Improving wave-ice-ship response models, developing digital twin models of icebreaker and surrounding environment, zero-emission for environmental protection, and economic assessment

The “Organization Chart” illustrates our research activities. The 3 subgroups work together in collaboration with the ADS/Arctic Sea Ice Information Center and the computing support group.