Wave attenuation by sea ice turbulence

Abstract

The dissipation of wave energy in the marginal ice zone is often attributed to wave scattering and the dissipative mechanisms associated with the ice layer. In this study we present observations indicating that turbulence generated by the differential velocity between the sea ice cover and the orbital wave motion may be an important dissipative mechanism of wave energy. Through field measurements of under‐ice turbulence dissipation rates in pancake and frazil ice, it is shown that turbulence‐induced wave attenuation coefficients are in agreement with observed wave attenuation in the marginal ice zone. The results suggest that the turbulence‐induced attenuation rates can be parameterized by the characteristic wave properties and a coefficient. The coefficient is determined by the ice layer properties.