Interactions between small scale cyclones and sea ice and their role in the Southern Ocean climate system

Small (<2000 km across) cyclones over the Southern Ocean represent an important element in the global circulations of heat and moisture and hence the maintenance of Southern Hemisphere climate. The primary objectives of this project are to advance the understanding of atmospheric processes responsible for the development and decay of small Southern Ocean cyclones and to explore the interactions between these cyclones and the underlying surface conditions, including sea ice extent, thickness, concentration, motion, and temperature. To attain these objectives we propose to use satellite imagery and datasets, archived output and new experiments from a numerical weather prediction model, and many pre-existing in-situ observations.